The Mets are going to see a lot of the surging Phillies over the next few weeks.
Keith Hernandez will see nothing of them. And he says that is by design.
The beloved SNY analyst and Mets great has caused an uproar in Philadelphia after claiming he has requested the network exclude games involving the Phillies from his work schedule.
I’ve expressed to the front office — not the Mets front office, our front office at SNY — that I hate doing Phillies games,” Hernandez told an amused Gary Cohen during Tuesday’s Mets-Reds game at Citi Field. “So I guess they gave me the series off.
“They never seem to disappoint. Over the years — and they’re hot right now, so I’d like to see them — but as far as fundamentally, defensively, the Phillies have always been just not up to it.”
Hernandez will be St. Louis to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Cardinals’ 1982 World Series team this weekend. So he won’t be on the call when the Mets host the Phillies in a three-game set. And he is not scheduled to work a four-game set in Philly the following weekend. Hernandez later qualified he likes the city itself, but not watching its team and its poor “fundies.”
“Don’t hold your breath. I’ll watch on TV,” Hernandez said when Cohen suggested he could work some overtime in order to see the Phils, who are threatening the Braves for second place in the NL East.
Anyway, this has gone down about as well as you would expect in Philly.
Keith Hernandez must not have seen any of the Phillies' games over the last two months… pic.twitter.com/BEVCxojv60
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) August 10, 2022
T-Mac vs Keith Hernandez at Jetro! pic.twitter.com/l2JPROHpwO
— Crossing Broad (@CrossingBroad) August 10, 2022
Even the guy who ambushes every Eagles free agent at the airport is up in arms.
? “I despise him”
-Newman from Seinfeld https://t.co/FNN2MJ1W8Z
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) August 10, 2022
We propose an intersport tag team match: Keith Hernandez and Peter in Maple Shade against Nick Sirianni and John Kruk. Two-city sports talk radio legend Jody MacDonell can be the special guest referee.
James Kratch can be reached at james.kratch@xlmedia.com
