Keith Hernandez still in awe leading up to special day
Keith Hernandez is still soaking it all in six months after receiving a phone call from Mets owner Steve Cohen informing him that the organization would be retiring his No. 17 in a ceremony at Citi Field on July 9.
Time hasn’t changed his perspective and the excitement he has leading up to his special day.
“Well, I’m a great procrastinator. I haven’t worked this week and I’ve had my family in. It’s been kind of pushed as each day comes closer you realize,” said Hernandez in a news conference prior to Saturday afternoon’s game at Citi Field. “I did my speech this morning. I’m a great procrastinator. I woke up I believe at 8 a.m., had coffee and then I sat down for around an hour and did the speech. It will hit me when I’m out there today. I just drove in right now and I see all the number 17 jerseys out there which is kind of touching and nice.”
The Mets retired Hernandez’s No. 17 prior to Saturday's game against the Miami Marlins in an emotional on-field ceremony in front of a packed house. Hernandez’s wife, daughters, Jesse, Melissa and Mary, and brother, Gary, were in attendance to honor his legacy.
Former teammates from the 1986 team - Mookie Wilson, Tim Teufel and Ron Darling – were in attendance as well as former Mets great and Hall of Famer Mike Piazza.
Hernandez gave a touching speech, thanking former teammates, family and friends, while recounting his career in New York. He threw out the honorary first pitch.
Hernandez is just the fourth Mets player to have his number retired and seventh overall, joining Jerry Koosman (No. 36), Tom Seaver (No. 41) and Mike Piazza (No. 31). The Mets have also retired No. 14 for manager Gil Hodges, No. 37 for manager Casey Stengel and No. 42 for Jackie Robinson.
This is the second number in as many years that the Mets have retired with Koosman honored last August. Cohen has prioritized embracing the history of the Mets, who are celebrating their 60th year in existence this season.
The theme of the day was Hernandez, whose name, image and number were highlighted throughout the stadium including the scoreboard and digital displays. The number 17 was etched into the grass in center field and a large illustration of Hernandez playing first base covered home plate. Mets players wore a No. 17 patch on their jerseys and the first 25,000 fans received a Bobblehead of Hernandez.
The organization presented Hernandez with several gifts, including a one of a kind mosaic of his image made out of over 6,000 of his different baseball cards.
The first captain in franchise history, Hernandez ranks among the best to wear a Mets uniform and is considered one of the greatest first basemen in major league history.
During his seven-year stint in Queens (1983-1989), the lefty took home the Rawlings Gold Glove award every year except his final season. He earned a Silver Slugger award in 1984 and led New York to their second World Series title in 1986.
He is second in Mets history with a .297 average, and fourth in club history with a .387 on-base percentage and his 468 RBIs rank 10th.
“This is certainly a great honor. It started out a last-place team for around six years since the infamous trade of Tom Seaver. I’m coming over here off a World Championship team after an unsettling 1983 season and I was really soaking in all the culture of the New York Mets. But then Spring Training in 1984 and within 10 days I realized I was surrounding by a great group of young players with talent and everything Frank Cashen had told me the day I was traded that we think we’re ready to rise. We had not squandered our Draft picks. It was all there for me to see in Spring Training.”
Hernandez finished second in MVP voting in 1984 after belting 15 home runs, 94 RBI and 83 runs while batting .311. The next year, the Mets missed the playoffs despite winning 97 games. Hernandez posted a team-high .309 average with 10 home runs and 91 RBI. He was fourth in MVP voting in 1986.
"When I think of Keith I think probably the defense. He was one of those guys who could deliver what the team needed that day. He was a guy you could hit-and-run with. He could hit the ball out of the ball park. I tend to look a lot at and listen to teammates talk about playing with him. Keith made his teammates better," Mets manager Buck Showalter said. "We talk a lot in the offseason about players and acquisitions. One of the criteria you look at is if they make their teammate better. It’s not a matter of what they say, but sometimes it’s just their actions and karma that they create around the club because of who they are and how they choose to go about their business professionally. As a manager you look for things that you can count on every day. You can count on Keith every day."
Hernandez was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 1997 and was voted the Mets' all-time first baseman by fans in celebration of the team's 40th anniversary in 2002.
Prior to joining the Mets, Hernandez played nine seasons with St. Louis where he won five Gold Gloves and was named to the All-Star team in 1979 and 1980. In 1979 Hernandez shared the National League Most Valuable Player award with the Pirates' Willie Stargell after leading the league with a .344 average, 48 doubles and 116 runs. He led St. Louis to the World Series title in 1982.
In 17 Big League seasons, Hernandez batted .296 with 2,182 hits, 162 home runs and 1,071 RBI. He batted over .300 seven times in his career and led the National League in runs scored (1979 & 1980), batting average (1979), doubles (1979), on-base percentage (1980), and walks (1986) during his career. Hernandez won 11 Gold Glove awards for his defense at first base, setting a Major League record for the position that still stands.
He signed with the Cleveland Indians for the 1990 season and appeared in only 43 games, batting .200 with one home run and eight RBIs. He retired at the end of the season.
"Another thing is that my perspective of the game for so long has been up in the booth looking down on the action with Gary [Cohen] and Ron [Darling]. You lose perspective when you walk on the field in front of a full house,' said Hernandez, who has been the Mets color commentator on broadcasts with Gary Cohen and former teammate Ron Darling. "It used to be mundane every day when you played. You would go to the game, look up in the fifth inning and say, ‘Oh my God it’s a full house.’ You would be so used to be playing in front of so many people.
"I will definitely look around and it will be a different perspective. It will be like old times, but I’ll be in a suit instead of a uniform.”
Email: gantaifis@northjersey.com
Twitter: @ngantaifis1
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Keith Hernandez still in awe ahead of Mets jersey retirement
