The Mets are going to retire Keith Hernandez’s No. 17 during a ceremony on Saturday, July 9, prior to a game with the Marlins.
Hernandez, the lynchpin of the Mets’ 1986 world championship team, joins Casey Stengel (37), Gil Hodges (14), Tom Seaver (41), Mike Piazza (31) and Jerry Koosman (36) to be so honored.
Hernandez played for the Mets from 1983-89, acquired from the Cardinals in a trade on June 15, 1983. He hit .297 as a Met and won five Gold Gloves as a first baseman in New York. In 1984, he finished second to Ryne Sandberg in the NL MVP vote, hitting .311 with 97 RBIs.
He shared the 1979 MVP Award with Willie Stargell, hitting .344 with 105 RBIs for St. Louis, and was also a key member of the Cardinals’ 1982 World Series winner.
Hernandez was elected to the Mets Hall of Fame in 1997.
“I’m thrilled,” Hernandez said in a statement released by the Mets. “This is truly a special honor that lasts beyond a lifetime. I can’t thank Steve and Alex Cohen and the Mets Hall of Fame Committee enough.
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