The Mets already have big problems with Jason Bay on the disabled list, but David Wright is not playing games anymore. He says he’s ready to put the Mets on his shoulders or if he has to, put some shoulders against the wall, to get this team turned around.
Tonight’s opening game against the Marlins at Sun Life Stadium has new meaning for Wright. Terry Collins said before spring training that he wanted Wright to become more of a leader and Wright has accepted that challenge.
“I feel extremely comfortable in that role,” Wright told The Post. “From the guy with the most tenure on this team to the guy with no tenure, I feel comfortable going up and grabbing them and saying what’s on my mind. That’s something I need to continue maturing in that role. I’m more in position now to take that role, where I can be a little more vocal. If I see something, I’ll pull them to the side, usually in the tunnel, and let them know what I think and what needs to be done.”
It’s going to take that kind of leadership to get the Mets out of the hole they’ve dug for themselves. Wright said he has had enough of the losing.
“You have a lot of players going into the season with something to prove; a little chip on their shoulder,” Wright said. “You have a lot of guys who are fighting to make a name for themselves or remake themselves. There are a lot of hungry guys in this clubhouse.”
Wright said that for the first time he can remember the Mets have a “mean streak heading into the season.”
All that sounds great, but it will be up to Wright to put those words into action.
“When it’s all said and done I want to be considered a winner,” Wright said.
Right now he knows his Mets Legacy starts with an “L” because the team has not won.
“The guys that they remember in New York, the players that they cherish are the guys that win,” he said. “We haven’t done that. I haven’t done that. When somebody looks back at your career, you are either a winner or you are not. It doesn’t matter what you do individually. The biggest motivating factor is that I haven’t accomplished anything as far as getting to that point of being considered a winner.
“I want to experience that parade and I want to experience what it feels like to win and to have your team solidified in New York sports history.”
The only parade he’s experienced in New York is when the All-Star Game was here.
“I’ve been through some bad times here,” he said. “I’ve been through some ugly times here and a little bit of good. I think that one year of going to the playoffs (2006) and experiencing what it was like, and just that adrenaline rush, that high that you get for playing that caliber of baseball in New York, that’s something that is always in the back of your mind. There’s nothing like that.”
Wright thinks these Mets will shock everyone.
“We’re not playing fantasy baseball in here,” he said. “Some teams look better than others, but at the end of the day you have to play the game.”
Here is his game plan of survival for the Mets:
“We go out there and we take care of the Marlins on Opening Day. We can kind of pat ourselves on the back and then worry about Game 2,” Wright said. “We don’t have to compare position-for-position against other teams for 162 games. We go position-for-position against the Marlins for Game 1 and then get ready for Game 2. You only have to be better than the team you are playing that night. You play together. You play winning baseball. We have guys in here who are willing to do the dirty work to get the job done.”
There’s plenty of dirty work to be done.
kevin.kernan@nypost.com