Wright to have No. 5 retired, enter Mets Hall of Fame on July 19 (source)

NEW YORK -- The Mets are about to fete one of the greatest players in their history with the most prestigious honor a team can bestow.

The team intends to retire David Wright’s No. 5 and induct him into the Mets Hall of Fame during a July 19 ceremony at Citi Field, according to multiple people with knowledge of the plans. Wright will become the 10th individual to have his number retired by the Mets and the second, along with Tom Seaver, to enter the team’s Hall of Fame on the same day.

The ceremony will take place before a 4:10 p.m. ET game against the Reds.

The most accomplished position player in Mets history, Wright hit 242 home runs, drove home 970 runs and compiled 49.2 Wins Above Replacement over a 14-year career in New York. He established a Hall of Fame arc in his 20s before succumbing to the back, neck and shoulder injuries that ultimately ended his career. From 2015-17, Wright played in only 75 games. He returned in 2018 to appear in two final, emotional games -- the last of them before a sold-out crowd at Citi.

? The top moments of David Wright's career

Despite the injuries, Wright holds franchise records for hits, doubles, walks, RBIs and runs scored, leading many of those categories by significant margins. He ranks second behind Darryl Strawberry in home runs. He’s also a seven-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glover at third base and was one of the most popular New York athletes of his generation, spending his entire career in Queens.

No Met has worn Wright’s No. 5 since he retired after the 2018 season.

Beginning in July, it will hang above the left-field grandstand at Citi Field alongside the numbers of Casey Stengel, Gil Hodges, Seaver, Mike Piazza, Jerry Koosman, Keith Hernandez, Willie Mays, Dwight Gooden and Strawberry. In addition to those, Jackie Robinson’s No. 42 is retired around baseball, and the Mets have placards honoring one of their founders, Bill Shea, as well as two broadcasters, Ralph Kiner and Bob Murphy.

For decades, the Mets tended not to retire the numbers of players unless they were bound for the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. That resulted in only Seaver and Piazza earing the distinction from 1974-2020.

Recently, however, the Mets loosened their guidelines to honor other prominent players. Koosman, Hernandez, Mays, Gooden and Strawberry have all had their numbers retired over the past four years, clearing a backlog to set the stage for Wright’s ceremony next summer.

Wright will also become the 35th member of the Mets Hall of Fame.

Unrelatedly, Wright is entering his second cycle on the National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot. He appeared on 6.2% of ballots last year, clearing the 5% necessary to remain under consideration for entry into Cooperstown.