Kevin Kernan

Kevin Kernan

MLB

Mets captain David Wright: I’m no feel-good story, I want to win

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Understand this about David Wright. This comeback is about passion and purpose.

He’s not looking for sympathy. He’s looking for success.

“I can go on for hours about that, but I still have a passion for the game,’’ Wright told The Post Friday night. “Everybody I’ve talked to has said the same thing to me. You know when you know.’’

It’s not over for David Wright, not yet.

“It’s not just to stay healthy, it’s to be productive, I have to go out there and do what I’m capable of doing. I think I really have some good baseball left in me,’’ Wright said at the seventh annual David Wright Vegas Night at the Virginia Beach Convention Center. The event has raised more than $1 million dollars for the Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters, the only freestanding children’s hospital in Virginia.

“Health is extremely important, but I have to go out there and do what I’m capable of doing,’’ Wright said. “That’s just as much in the equation as staying healthy, playing well. This is not about being a feel-good story, we’re trying to win. There are no personal feel-good stories. There is a fire burning inside of me to succeed.

David WrightPaul J. Bereswill

“Sure it’s a lot more challenging than when I was 21,’’ said Wright, 34, who is coming back from two nightmare seasons because of back and neck woes. “What I know for a fact is I have a passion. I still feel can help get this team to where it needs to go.’’

That is back to the World Series like two years ago.

Noted Wright’s mentor and friend Michael Cuddyer, who retired after the 2015 season, “Hey, I know when it’s time to retire. To succeed, first and foremost it’s a mindset. You’ve got to get yourself in the mindset that you are not going to go through the motions. He’s in the mindset that I’m not only going to prove myself right, I’m going to prove everybody else right that has stuck with me, that I am going out and battle. I’m going to do my best to get this team back to the World Series.

“That’s who he has always been, and I feel that if he thinks he doesn’t have that in his mind, he will probably walk away whenever that is, but it’s not today.’’

No it’s not.

Wright’s wife, Molly Beers, said, “David is a fighter, he is so determined to get back on the field, literally he will do whatever it takes.’’

“When we take the field I still get the same butterflies I got 13 years ago,’’ Wright said. “That’s how I know I am still enjoying myself. At the end of the day, I love the game, I love playing, I take a lot of pride in being a Met. It’s just not my time yet.’’

Wright played in just 75 games over the past two years, compiling 289 at-bats over that span and 12 home runs. In 2016, he batted .226 with 55 strikeouts in 137 at-bats, a most telling number.

“I wouldn’t wish this on anybody but I still enjoy the process of getting ready for a baseball game,’’ Wright said. “I’ve had people come up to me the last couple of weeks and ask: ‘Do you still play?’ That’s how little I’ve played. This is the longest stretch I haven’t played baseball in my life.’’

Wright underwent surgery on his neck to repair a herniated disk on June 16. In July, David and Molly welcomed their daughter, Olivia Shea, into the world.

“It’s been the greatest thing,’’ Wright said of being a father, noting it makes this charity work even more important. “Every year we’ve done this we’ve raised more money than the last. It is so important. Especially with me having a daughter of my own, it really hits home.’’

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As for Wright’s return goals, he said he is not in the prediction business.

“I can’t tell you how many games I am going to play,’’ he said. “I hope to be ready for spring training, that’s my goal, but I can’t tell you I can play this many games. I don’t know when my back is going to flare up.’’

He has been hitting since Christmas, but has not yet thrown.

“I need to play in spring training, I need at bats and ground balls at third base,’’ said Wright, who will leave for spring training early. “I feel good now. I can’t wait to get it going.

“The neck surgery made me nervous because you got guys like Prince Fielder where it hasn’t gone as planned, but as of right this second I feel good.

“With these [pitchers] all coming back, feeling good,’’ Wright said of the Mets’ arms, “the possibilities are sky-high, they’re endless.’’

Despite all his physical woes, David Wright still sees himself in the middle of those possibilities.