(Anthony J. Causi; AP (inset))
PORT ST. LUCIE — Kid stayed in touch with the kid until the end.
“The peacefulness he had towards the end it was amazing, you can’t even explain it,’’ David Wright told The Post about Gary Carter, who died of brain cancer on Feb. 16.
The two would talk at length at least once a month and had spoken in the weeks before Carter passed away.
“It was just incredible that he was at that kind of peace, knowing what he had to endure,” Wright said. “Gary had so much to offer and I’m so glad I got to know him personally.’’
In some ways Wright is the Gary Carter of this Mets team — professional in every way and respected in the clubhouse. If the Mets were to trade Wright, he could become the missing piece for some team just as Carter was for the Mets when he was traded from Montreal on Dec. 10, 1984.
Don’t expect Wright to be traded, though. The Mets want to keep Wright and at this point he wants to stay.
Wright tried his best to build a relationship with the 1986 Mets from the start.
“To be an 18-year old kid and shake their hands, that was awesome,’’ Wright said of the likes of Carter, Darryl Strawberry and Keith Hernandez. “You had World Champions, Hall of Famers and I wanted to learn everything I could, the way you carry yourself.’’
Carter and Wright became friends.
“He would periodically call to check in to see how I was feeling at the plate,’’ Wright explained. “He always liked to talk about the dynamic of the clubhouse. That goes back to when he played, kind of being one of the leaders on that team, the pulse of the clubhouse.’’
Wright learned about the clubhouse from Carter.
“I try to talk to everybody because it’s easy to fall into cliques,’’ Wright explained. “Sometimes it’s like high school.
“The biggest thing I got from Gary was the energy and the enthusiasm that he had for the game,’’ Wright said. “You could always hear the excitement in his voice, even when he was down to his last couple of months. You could tell he wasn’t feeling well and he started out kind of sluggish on the phone and before you knew he’s asking me questions, like, ‘How is [Josh] Thole feeling behind the plate?’ You could then hear the energy in his voice.’’
Thole, by the way, is feeling great now because of the adjustments he has made in his defensive stance over the winter.
“For Gary to make those calls, especially when he knew he didn’t have much time left, is kind of going to be my lasting memory of him,’’ Wright said. “We’d just be talking baseball for 15-20 minutes.’’
Wright went to the memorial service for Carter Friday night in Palm Beach Gardens.
“You just saw the amount of respect that family and friends had for him, it was almost like a Hall of Fame induction,’’ Wright said. “It was a who’s who of baseball.
“Anybody would sign up to be just half the player Gary was,’’ Wright noted, “and if you were half the person he was you are going to be really successful in life.’’
The Mets should make Wright the official captain of the team. They insist they want to keep him for the long haul. His longtime friend, Ryan Zimmerman, just signed a monster six-year $100 million extension with the Nationals.
“Growing up, I would have told you that you were crazy if any of us made that kind of money combined, but it’s great for him,’’ Wright said of Zimmerman’s deal. “He loves it there.”
Wright said he still loves being a Met and is determined to have a bounce-back season.
“I want to be here because the baseball people think I’m part of the reason we can get things turned around,’’ he said. “I want to win here.’’
Clearly, Gary Carter’s optimism rubbed off on David Wright.