It’s been a while since we’ve had a new edition of The Cooperstown Case, but we’re back!

And this time around, we have one of the stars of “Whiteyball” and an integral part of the history of the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets… first baseman Keith Hernandez.

After all, he is a member of both teams’ Hall of Fames.

Keith Hernandez, first baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets, and (briefly) the Cleveland Indians, was not a prototypical first basebamn. Hernandez wasn’t a prolific home run hitter or RBI man. Instead, he was a solid offensive producer and quite possibly the best defensive first baseman in the history of baseball.

Hernandez today may be best known for his work on SNY as an analyst for Mets games with Gary Cohen and Ron Darling.

Hernandez won two World Series rings in his career — the other coming with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1982. In 1979, with the Cardinals, he was the National League MVP. He made the All-Star team five times, won a pair of Silver Sluggers, claimed the 1979 NL batting title with a .344 average and was considered one of the best fielding first basemen of all-time with 11 straight Gold Gloves.

In a 17-year career that saw him selected as a 42nd-round pick of the St. Louis Cardinals in 1971, Hernandez never reached that 3,000-hit benchmark, as he finished with 2,182 hits for his career. His career slash line was .296/.384/.436/.821 with 162 home runs and 1,071 RBI.

Five years after he retired (at the end of the 1990 season), Hernandez was on the BBWAA ballot (Baseball Writers Association of America) for the first time. He got just 5.1% of the vote in an election that requires 75% approval to be granted a plaque in Cooperstown, New York. Hernandez remained on the ballot for eight more years but never got more than 10.8%.

Notable accomplishments by keith hernandez (1b)

• St. Louis Cardinals (1974-83), New York Mets (1983-89), Cleveland Indians (1990)
• Career: .296 BA, .384 OBP, 162 HR, 1,071 RBI, 2,182 Hits
• Career: 128 OPS+, 60.3 WAR (Wins Above Replacement)
• 11-time Gold Glove Award Winner (most ever for first basemen)
• 1979 N.L. co-MVP with Willie Stargell
• 3 top 10’s in MVP voting from 1984-86
• 5-time All-Star
• Member of 1982 and 1986 World Championship teams (Cardinals & Mets)

So, defensively AND offensively, he was one of the most consistent players in baseball during the 1970s, 80s, and 1990. Three decades of consistency, and an integral part of two legendary World Series champions.

Hernandez’s breakout campaign was with the Cardinals in in 1979. He blew past the .300 batting mark for the first time, leading the majors with a .344 BA and 48 doubles. For the first time in his career, he was named an All-Star and he also notched career highs with a .417 on-base% and .513 slugging%. Hernandez also had career bests in hits (210), RBI (105), and Runs (116). Also, for the heck of it, using statistics that were decades from being invented, his WAR (7.6) and OPS+ (151) were also the best of his 17-year career.

Citing his brilliant defense, Hernandez has two very prominent advocates in the media landscape, albeit two advocates who are unable to vote on the Hall of Fame. Those advocates are the 2018 Frick Award Winner (Bob Costas) and MLB Network’s Brian Kenny.

Here’s how Kenny eloquently described Keith’s fielding prowess in his thought-provoking book, “Ahead of the Curve“:

“First base is not normally a vital defensive position. Hernandez, though, was a transformational player. He turned first base defense into a weapon few teams in the history of the game have ever even approximated. Being the best ever at anything in the field should count for a lot in a Hall of Fame case…

I often will rail at the phrase ‘eye test’ often used by these writers, but there is value in watching one game at a time, pitch by pitch. Numbers are an abstraction. They represent a physical act on the field. But when Keith Hernandez pegs a lead runner at third to snuff out a rally, it goes into the books as a single assist. It may have changed the game, but it’s an afterthought in the box score.

Unfortunately, the sportswriters of the ’80s missed a hell of a game… Stuck in a 1970s mind-set of what a Hall of Fame first baseman should be, they forfeited the one advantage they had over someone looking at a page in The Baseball Encyclopedia: being at the park to see the nuances of his game.”

— Brian Kenny, “Ahead of the Curve” (2016)

Even if you take the entire major leagues and lump Hernandez in with Eddie Murray and Rod Carew, being the third-best at your position out of 26 teams (for a 20-year period of time) is pretty damn good.

Keith Hernandez had a unique career, one that’s hard to quantify statistically. For me, it’s a career worthy of a plaque in Cooperstown. He’s an iconic member of two historic franchises, and beloved by millions of baseball fans over the decades.

So, go ahead and decide for yourself if you feel Keith Hernandez should be inducted into Cooperstown.