New York Magazine on David Wright

In this week’s issue of New York magazine, on newsstands today and online at http://nymag.com/news/features/30019/, contributing editor David Amsden profiles the NY Mets’ third-baseman David Wright. With his dimples and packageable fifties charm, Wright is emerging as a heartthrob to rival Derek Jeter—the women want to marry him, the men…also want to marry him. How can his teammates stand it?

David Wright on women:
“I don’t want to put them in the same category as drugs, but women can be a … a distraction. I have to remember, baseball is the reason I have my apartment, baseball is the reason I’m on the cover of video games—baseball is what I do. I’m not saying I don’t ever … I mean, I go on dates, but I’ll just never let something like that become as important as the game. Not right now, at least.”

Mets’ catcher Paul Lo Duca on Wright:
“He thinks every woman in the world is in love with him, so we give him some shit, keep his feet on the earth. I tell him that if he was a garbageman, not a single woman would notice him. [Mets’ pitcher Tom] Glavine always says, ‘When I was your age, every woman loved me too. It’s not you, it’s the uniform on your back.’ ”

Wright on decorating his new $6 million Flatiron district loft:
“Since I have literally just about no taste and no understanding of what colors go with what, I hired an interior decorator,” Wright says one day over lunch, his tone somewhat embarrassed. “Basically, I told her I wanted it to be the ultimate bachelor pad. We’ve butted heads a few times—she wants more color, I’m into the grays and blacks—but it’s been a pretty smooth experience.”

Wright on Derek Jeter:
“He’s offered me some great advice. He just says to remember who you were when you started playing and don’t change. It sounds simple, but it’s not. You wear the uniform, you’re under a microscope. He has his social life, but he’s also someone kids look up to. That’s a hard balance. I’m very conscious of what it means to wear the jersey, but at the same time, I’m a 24-year-old who likes to do what any normal 24-year-old does.”

Wright on how many flat-screens he has:
“A lot. I was at the ESPN Zone—you know it? In Times Square ? Anyway, I based my media room on how they do their TVs. I’ve got five in there so I can watch every football game.”

Wright on living in NYC:
“Just living here, I feel like I’ve become more cultured. The museums, the people. In Virginia , where I grew up, it was a very conservative town. Just take the food in New York . I don’t know if I’d ever had sushi before I came here, but in New York, every other place is a sushi restaurant….I drive a lot faster and more aggressively whenever I’m back home. And people will sometimes call me out for slipping in the New York accent. And talking too fast. People back home say I talk too fast now.”

Thanks to Lauren Starke of New York Magazine for the article...