Separated At Birth: David Wright & Dark Helmet

David Wright returned to the Mets tonight, armed with his dangerous bat and his super-sized batting helmet. Keith Hernandez did not hide his distaste for the new protective chapeaus. He spent the first three innings of tonight's Mets-Rockies tilt giving the viewers his analysis of how the new batting helmets almost made him lose his appetite for Tootsie Pops.

Although the new protective headgear did look odd on David, it also looked awfully familiar. In fact, maybe these pictures will jar my memory a little:










Of course! The new helmets have been around since the 1980s! They were originally seen in the movie "Spaceballs". Rick Moranis wore the helmet in his role as the appropriately named Dark Helmet in the 1987 film, not that wearing it did him much good.

It's not the first time Rick Moranis has influenced a David Wright decision. Three years before "Spaceballs", he starred in "Ghostbusters", where the heroes were told "not to cross the streams" when combatting ectoplasmic poltergeists. It looks like David had no problems crossing streams with his mortal enemy, Derek Jeter, in this picture.

Rick Moranis and David Wright. No one has ever seen them in the same room. Separated at birth? Hey, stranger things have happened. Unfortunately, most of those things have taken place for members of the 2009 Mets. Welcome back, David!