By WFAN.com
David Wright does not share Mets assistant general manager John Ricco's pessimism about his chances of playing in the big leagues this season.
When asked by SNY on Wednesday if he expects to return to the majors this year, Wright answered: "I think the simple answer to that is yes.
"Do I know when? No," said the Mets' captain, was had been rehabbing with Triple-A Las Vegas. "I will say this: It has been certainly an uphill battle for me. It's been, as far as challenges go, the biggest challenge that I've faced in my career in coming back from multiple surgeries, putting in the time to not only rehab and get it to where I feel comfortable playing, but also getting caught up to speed in such a short amount of time.
"I'm hopeful -- and maybe that's just being cautiously optimistic -- but I put in a lot of work for this, and I want it, and it's a goal of mine. And I do -- I do think it'll happen."
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The Mets announced Thursday that Wright will rejoin the Mets in San Francisco and continue his rehab with the club's training staff. He will remain on the disabled list.
Back, shoulder and neck issues have limited Wright to just 75 games over the past four seasons. He last played in the majors in May 2016.
Wright, 35, underwent surgery last September to repair his right rotator cuff and then was back in the operating room a month later for a laminotomy procedure on his lower back. During spring training this year, Wright was shut down for two months after experiencing setbacks coming back from those surgeries.
Wright played in 12 minor league games this season, hitting .171 with no home runs and two RBIs.
On Tuesday, Ricco told reporters that it was "unrealistic to think he would be activated anytime soon," adding Wright's performance hasn't had the "quantity or quality" of consistency he'd like to see.
