David Wright is done.
But the bottom line is that Wright is broken and no surgery or rehab in the world will fix him. He’s had major back and neck injuries and surgeries and plays a sport where running and throwing and bending and rotating needs to be done at full effort with complete range of motion over and over. The hamstring issues Wright experienced over the years were not isolated issues, but symptoms of other, ‘big picture’ issues that we have seen manifest themselves over the past few years.
Saying Wright’s current injury is a simple shoulder impingement is like saying a car totaled in an accident has a flat tire. The throwing and swinging motions require that all parts of the ‘chain’ work together properly. Wright couldn’t throw before the neck surgery and he can’t throw now.
In short, he’s broken.
Actually, Wright and Tiger Woods have a lot in common. Woods is broken, too. It’s just that Tiger can pick and choose where and when he competes. He can take time off and give his body some rest, which will allow him to play in occasional golf tournaments. David Wright doesn’t have this luxury, as he is a player on a team with a fixed roster and a season that requires he be available on a regular basis. He also has to move in three dimensions in a spontaneous manner. Tiger just has to swing a golf club.
But both athletes, young men outside the world of sports, will never again compete at the highest level of their respective sports. And while Tiger Woods will be able to putter and sputter around on the golf courses of the world, David Wright is going to have to retire.
