Keith Hernandez

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Hernandez was born in San Francisco to John Hernandez Sr., who was a minor league baseball player, and Jacquelyn Jordan Hernandez, the daughter of a Texas oil wildcatter. His oldest brother, John Jr., was born prematurely and died soon after birth. He grew up in Pacifica and Millbrae, California. He attended Terra Nova High School in Pacifica during his freshman year, then transferred to Capuchino High School in San Bruno for the remainder of his high school years. During a Mets broadcast, Hernandez said he nearly enrolled at Serra High School, a boys' Catholic high school in San Mateo that graduated Barry Bonds and Tom Brady. Hernandez was a star athlete in high school and graduated in 1971. One of his teammates at Terra Nova High School was future major league pitcher Bob McClure, who had also played Little League baseball with him. Given his surname, and the fact that he is from California, it was incorrectly assumed that Hernandez was of Mexican descent, and he was nicknamed 'Mex' by his teammates. In actuality, his father's ancestry is Castilian Spanish and his mother is Scots-Irish, as he explained during a Mets broadcast on SNY. Hernandez was perceived as having attitude issues because he sat out his entire senior high school season due to a dispute with a coach. He played briefly at the College of San Mateo, a local community college, before being drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 42nd round of the 1971 Major League Baseball draft as the 783rd player selected. Hernandez was the last player selected and signed in the 1971 Major League Baseball draft to play in the Major Leagues. He batted and threw left-handed, and through most of his career was listed as being 6' tall (1.83m) and 195 lbs. (88.5 kg). During his childhood, Hernandez's brother bought a book on Civil War history, which ignited Hernandez's passion for the subject. His interest in the Civil War landed Hernandez guest spots on KMOX radio when he was with the Cardinals. He was also featured in the New York Times when he was with the Mets and appeared in episodes of the television series Seinfeld.

In Their Own Story

Hernandez's reputation as a defensive terror was legendary, particularly regarding bunt defense. He charged so aggressively that opponents were often discouraged from attempting bunts based on his name alone; Pete Rose compared facing him to "driving the lane against Bill Russell." Astros manager Hal Lanier stated that the combination of Hernandez at first and pitchers like Ron Darling made bunting "near impossible," while Cubs manager Jim Frey noted he wouldn't ask most pitchers to try it. Beyond fielding, Hernandez's personal life faced scrutiny during the 1985 Pittsburgh trial of drug dealer Curtis Strong, which revealed his previous cocaine use. MLB Commissioner Peter Ueberroth suspended seven players, including Hernandez, though the suspensions were commuted after they donated 10% of their salaries to drug-abuse programs and completed community service. Despite this friction with former manager Whitey Herzog, who called him a "cancer," Hernandez helped the Mets win the World Series in 1986.

Reader's Guide

Hernandez wore uniform number 18 for the first two years of his career. In 1976, he switched to number 37, insisting that his uniform number end with a '7' in honor of Mickey Mantle (with whom he shared a birthday). The Mets had retired number 37 for former manager Casey Stengel, so Hernandez switched to number 17 upon joining the club, which he wore for the remainder of his career.

Did You Know?

• Hernandez shared the 1979 NL MVP award with Willie Stargell, the only time in MLB history two players received the same number of points and shared the award.
• He received 11 consecutive Gold Glove awards, the most by any first baseman in baseball history.
• Hernandez is widely considered the best defensive first baseman of all time.
• He has been a color commentator on Mets games for SNY alongside former teammate Ron Darling and play-by-play announcer Gary Cohen since joining the broadcast in mid-2006.