Quotes- Mets catcher John Stearns: "it's the biggest heist since the Thomas Crown Affair".
Hernandez was one of the games best players, defensively he had won five straight Gold Gloves at first base from 1978 to that point. He was the 1979 NL co-MVP along with Willie Stargell. That year he won the batting title, led the NL in doubles & led the NL in runs scored for the first of two straight years.
He & his St. Louis Cardinals team, were the reigning World Champions, having beaten the Milwaukee Brewers in the 1982 World Series.
The facts were that Hernandez was due for free agency at the end of the year & the Cardinal front office didn't think they could afford to resign him. Another reason may have been that they needed pitching. Neil Allen was a fine young pitcher, but was having a bad year which made him more available. The Cards GM at the time was former Met GM Joe McDonald & he felt "good arms were hard to come by". The Cards also got right hander, Rick Ownbey.
But when Mets manager Gild Hodges, died suddenly of heart attack, they chose Yogi Berra to manage over Herzog. Whitey was clearly the better candidate, but Berra was a New York favorite & the more popular choice. Herzog was furious, he left the Mets & he never forgave them.
After success with the Kansas City Royals (three straight AL West titles & two second place finishes in five years) he went to manage the St. Louis Cardinals & have a Hall of Fame career.
Herzog felt that Keith Hernandez was not giving it 100%. In his book "The White Rat" he said Hernandez was loafing. "He loafed down the line on ground balls & wasn't aggressive on the bases."
Herzog said, he couldn't live with Hernandez attitude either. He said, as manager he had two basic rules; being on time & hustle.
It was also no secret, that Hernandez was partying at the time & had a cocaine habit. Herzog had no time for any of this, he didn't know for sure about his drug use but was suspicious of it. Hernandez claims he was turned on the cocaine by team mate Bernie Carbo in 1980.
In a federal court testimony in the famous "baseball drug trials" of the 1980's, Hernandez claimed he did massive amounts of cocaine & had a desire for more.
Hernandez said he felt that a trade was coming, because he was not in good graces with Whitey. An hour before the 1983 trade deadline, he was called into Herzog's office & informed of his trade. At the announcement was put on the Busch Stadium score board, the fans booed. It is still considered one of the worst trades in Cardinal history.
At the time, Hernandez was shocked & disappointed it was with the Mets. The Mets were a last place team & it looked like they were going no where. But as Hernandez became familiar with his new team, he saw a lot of young talent in the organization.
The next year the Mets became contenders, having their first winning season in seven years.
He said he dropped his drug habit just before coming to New York, after seeing Lonnie Smith have a bad experience after a game. He turned his career around & became one of the games most intense players.
Hernandez is one of the Mets best players in team history, a member of their team Hall of Fame, a popular personality & long time outspoken broadcaster, with a wry sense of humor. He is loved by Mets fans.
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