Absent injuries, Mets captain and third baseman David Wright would probably be working on a Hall of Fame career right now. However, he's been absolutely waylaid by health woes -- serious back, shoulder, and neck maladies of late -- for several years. At this writing, Wright has played in a mere 75 games since the start of the 2015 season and hasn't appeared in a game since May 27, 2016. Given that he's now 35, is there any hope that he'll ever see the field again?

Maybe, actually. Wright at the moment is trying to work his way through spinal stenosis and a 2016 surgery to repair a herniated disk in his neck. Recently, he played catch for the first time since 2017, and he's also been able to take some ground balls and hit off a tee. On Monday, Wright took the next step, and there's video to prove it:

Yep, that's Wright taking outdoor batting practice for the first time in a very long time. We obviously can't glean too much from this color-television footage, but at the very least Wright is taking hacks at something close to full effort and looking pretty stable and comfortable while doing so. Wright is certainly all too familiar with setbacks, so let's not get ahead of ourselves. Still, the very possibility of seeing Wright on the field should brighten what's looking like a lost season for the Mets. 

Wright's signed through the 2020 season, and really he could coast by and just cash his checks. To his credit, though, he's doing everything he can to see the field once again. At the very least, the video above shows he's making progress.