Recently, I decided to make an effort to switch things up a bit and take a different and more positive approach for this series of articles. I am calling this series a "blast from the past" and I will pick a different former Mets’ player from teams of the past and take a deeper look at them, using the fancy "new" statistical models that may not have been in existence at that time.
The first player that came to mind was none other then Hubie Brooks, who was sort of a hero of mine growing up. For the second part in this series, I want to focus on a player who helped spearhead the Mets’ rise to power in the mid-80’s. That would be none other then former first baseman and current Mets’ broadcaster Keith “Mex” Hernandez.
KH’s playing career spanned seventeen seasons, starting with a cameo appearance for the St Louis Cardinals in 1974 and ending with an abbreviated appearance with the Cleveland Indians in 1990. As most of you are aware, he actually played for three different ball clubs (STL, NYM and CLE) while amassing approximately 60.4 WAR during that time period, which is a seasonal average of 3.56 WAR for his entire career (impressive).
If you use 572 plate appearances as an average season for KH, he actually compiled 12.88 seasons worth of at bats, which means he had several seasons where he missed time due to being a young player, an injured player or an old player (we all follow that model in some way, shape for form). If you use the 12.88 number as the divisor, his 60.4 career WAR actually works out to an average of 4.69 WAR per year which is even more impressive.
Additionally, his career statistical average line and awards totals are as follows;
.296/.384/.436 (.821 OPS)
13 HR/83 RBI/8 SB and 87 Runs
5 All Star Games
11 Gold Gloves and 2 Silver Slugger Awards
1979 NL Batting Title and MVP Award
Interestingly enough, he never hit more then 18 HR during any one season and he only topped 100 RB’s once, while playing a position that was considered a “power hitter’s position”. Despite his lack of power, KH was the consummate team player and he was extremely effective in all facets the game, which translated to success for the teams that he played for. Even more fascinating is the fact that he earned roughly 17 million dollars for his entire career, which is roughly a 1 million dollar per year average or six times LESS then what Jose Reyes is stealing, I mean earning this year. Ah, inflation at work, right?
Since this is a Mets’ centered blog, I wanted to take a moment and highlight his Mets’ career, which was impressive but shorter then I remember (only seven of his seventeen year career). KH was acquired on June 15, 1983 as a 29 year old first baseman from the Cardinals in exchange for Neil Allen and Rick Owenby, which turned out to be an excellent trade for the Mets. I feel that this deal was one of the most influential moves that the Mets made during that time period as it started the “turnaround" in the mid-80’s for the franchise.
From that point, until he left the Mets as a free agent after the 1989 season, KH put together the following statistical average line and awards totals;
.297/.387/.429 (.816 OPS)
14.5 HR/85.1 RBI/3.1 SB and 82.72 Runs
3 All Star Games
5 Gold Gloves and 1 Silver Slugger Award
***Top Ten MVP Voting three times, to include a runner up finish in 1984
It would be fair to say that we obtained KH at the tail end of his prime and then for his inevitable decline (age 29 through age 35 seasons), but he was still a weapon in the lineup and an one of the team leaders during his stay. It is hard to quantify “leadership” but look at the Mets’ records before his acquisition, during his Mets’ tenure and then after he left for some statistical proof.
While he didn’t get into the Hall of Fame, he is most certainly one of the most influential Mets in the team’s history and he played a large role in the 1986 Championship Season, for which I will be forever grateful. Plus, he has turned into a pretty good broadcaster for the team, in my humble opinion.
Wouldn’t it be cool if he was in the broadcast booth the next time the Mets win a championship?
I loved fiery Keith.
ReplyDeleteOne moment that sticks in my mind was a failure moment, though...splitter-dominant Mike Scott up against Keith with 2 strikes on him. Looking splitter, Scott blew a fastball that to me looked like 100 MPH right past him. Just devastating.
Scott coming down the stretch in 1986 was incredibly dominant, and thankfully, the Mets won game 6 of the NCLS or would have faced Scott in Game 7. my guess is the Mets would not have made the World Series if that had happened.
Keith I had hoped would make the hall of fame, but I knew his lack of power would have required him to stay at the top of his game into his late 30's, which sadly did not happen.
Keith is the second best 1st baseman this club has had. John Olerud was the best and a case could be made for Carlos Delgado as well.
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