The Citi Field ceremony to retire David Wright’s No. 5 removed the last obvious retired player for the Mets to give such a distinction.
Because retiring a number has, over the years, become a more common event, it would be no surprise if the Mets had someone else join Wright, Gil Hodges (No. 14), Dwight Gooden (No. 16), Keith Hernandez (No. 17), Darryl Strawberry (No. 18), Willie Mays (24), Mike Piazza (31), Jerry Koosman (No. 36), Casey Stengel (No. 37), Tom Seaver (No. 41) and the league-wide No. 42 of Jackie Robinson.
The most obvious next in line are probably Gary Carter’s No. 8 and Jose Reyes’ No. 7. Carter only spent five seasons as a Met and does not hold much resonance in the team’s record books. It would be about recognizing the Hall of Famer’s impact as the last piece to the historic 1986 champions and his importance on the most sustained period of excellence (1985-88) so far in franchise history.
Reyes remains beloved by Mets fans and is arguably (and perhaps there is no argument) the most electric player in franchise history.
