New York Mets fans got some more good news this week, but it’s not really about what’s going to happen on the field starting next month. The Mets have three of the best announcers in baseball in play-by-play man Gary Thorne, analyst Ron Darling and fellow analyst Keith Hernandez, and Hernandez signed a three-year deal to keep the trio going.
His staying power is remarkable. Hernandez is 72, and the deal he signed will reduce the number of games he will call for SportsNet New York (SNY), but it will keep him in the booth through 2028, according to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. He’ll call 95 games based on the agreement, which is slightly less than the 110 Hernandez called under the previous deal.
The deal also sets a record of sorts. The three announcers have been together since the network’s inception in 2006, and they are the longest-running broadcast team in Mets history. Historically, SNY has staggered the lengths of the contracts so that they expire at different times, so now it's Hernandez who's up.
The three announcers have very different personalities that mesh together in ways that are unlike those of any other broadcast team in baseball. Three-man booths can be tricky and crowded, but Cohen is an expert at orchestrating the contributions of his analysts to match the game, and he’s not above taking detours when the game warrants doing that for whatever reason.
Darling, on the other hand, is sharply analytical. He can also be candid and critical, but he never does it in a mean-spirited way, and there’s a reason he typically calls postseason games for other networks when his duties with the Mets are done, which happened earlier than expected this year.
Hernandez finds a footing of his own. His stories of his upbringing are part of what’s endeared him to the fan base, and Hernandez has been known to take viewers inside his clubhouse experiences to reveal key details. He, too, can be critical, but Hernandez can by sly about it, so much so that viewers often don’t realize what he’s done when he condemns a player or manager for a given gaffe.
The Mets announcing trio hasn’t slipped a bit, either. Their attention may wander a little in games that aren’t all that interesting, but when the game is on the line they’re all sharp in ways that go beyond their words. Mets fans are lucky to have them, and this news is a gift to go with the revamped roster.