New York Mets get it right with Keith Hernandez honor
By Kevin Henry
No one will ever wear number 17 for the New York Mets again. That’s a decision the franchise has made … and it’s the right decision as well.
The New York Mets will retire the number 17 in honor of Keith Hernandez during the 2022 season
Keith Hernandez, who wore number 17 with the New York Mets from 1983-1989, will become the fifth Mets player to have his uniform retired in a ceremony scheduled for Saturday, July 9, when the Miami Marlins visit Citi Field. His number 17 will be retired alongside Gil Hodges’ number 14, Mike Piazza’s number 31, Jerry Koosman’s number 36, and Tom Seaver’s number 41.
The Mets have also retired number 42 for Jackie Robinson and number 37 for Casey Stengel, who was the first manager in franchise history.
While the list of numbers for the Mets may be short, Hernandez certainly deserves to have his included. Traded by the St. Louis Cardinals to the Mets during the 1983 season for Neil Allen and Rick Ownbey, Hernandez earned a Gold Glove in each of the six seasons he held down first base for the Mets and represented the franchise in three All-Star Games.
A key part of the 1986 World Champion Mets, the retirement of number 17 will come as part of the team’s 60th anniversary season-long celebration next year. It will also be long overdue for a player who deserved much more recognition for his role with both the Mets and Cardinals from Baseball Hall of Fame voters, who limited Hernandez to 10.8 percent of the vote or less for each of the nine years he appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot.
An 11-time Gold Glove winner and the 1979 National League MVP, Hernandez has yet to appear on the Modern Era ballot and it’s unknown if he will appear when the ballot is brought back up for consideration in 2024.
You can read about his career here and why some believe Hernandez is one of the biggest snubs in Hall of Fame voting history.
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From his time on the field to his time in the booth as a Mets broadcaster with SNY, Hernandez has been synonymous with the franchise for years. Now the retirement of his number 17 will ensure that Hernandez is a part of the Mets for the entirety of the franchise’s future.