Hernandez was drafted by the Cardinals in the 42nd round of the
1971 draft, as the 776th overall player. He was perceived to be a character risk because he sat out his entire senior year of high school due to a dispute with a coach.
He quickly rose to the upper echelon in the League. In
1979, he led the league with a .344 batting average, 48 doubles, and 116 runs scored, and went on to share the
National League's Most Valuable Player Award with
Willie Stargell.
In
1982, the Cardinals won the
World Series, defeating the
Milwaukee Brewers in seven games. In Game 6, Hernandez and Cardinal catcher
Darrell Porter hit home runs in a 13-1 St. Louis victory.
After multiple disagreements with Cardinal management, most notably including manager
Whitey Herzog, Hernandez was traded to the Mets on
June 15, 1983. The Cardinals received pitchers
Neil Allen and
Rick Ownbey in return. The trade was arguably the best in Mets history (or, at least, before the acquisition of future Hall of Fame catcher
Mike Piazza). From a strictly talent standpoint, it was a terrible one for the Cardinals, but Manager
Whitey Herzog felt that Hernandez had become a cancer on his team and never regretted the trade. He soon replaced Hernandez with fellow All-Star
Jack Clark and won two more pennants in the next four years. With the Mets, Hernandez was determined to prove Herzog wrong, helping to fuel a rivalry between the two teams in the mid-1980s.
In 1985, Hernandez's
cocaine use, which had been the subject of persistent rumors and the chief source of friction between Hernandez and Herzog, became a matter of public record as a result of the Pittsburgh trial of drug dealer Curtis Strong. Hernandez made a successful recovery.
Hernandez wore uniform number 18 for the first two years of his career. In
1976, he switched to number 37, insisting that his uniform number end with a "7" in honor of
Mickey Mantle. The Mets had retired number 37 for former manager
Casey Stengel, so Hernandez switched to number 17, which he wore for the remainder of his career. His arrival and veteran leadership seemed to give the Mets confidence and credibility. In
1984, his first full season with the team, the Mets improved from a record of 68-94 to 90-72. The Mets finished second behind the
Chicago Cubs in 1984 and the Cardinals in
1985, but won the
World Series in
1986. The following season, Hernandez was named the first team captain in franchise history.
Hernandez was often compared to
New York Yankees first baseman
Don Mattingly. Both had won several Gold Gloves, a batting title and a Most Valuable Player award. Unfortunately, both players also had their careers curtailed by back injuries. Hernandez also suffered from knee and
hamstring problems. By
1988, at the age of just 34, Hernandez began a sharp decline, and the Mets chose not to re-sign him after his contract ran out at the close of the
1989 season.
On
December 7, 1989, the
Cleveland Indians signed Hernandez to a contract, but back injuries led to his appearance in only 43 games in the
1990 season. Hernandez retired after the season.
Hernandez never received enough support from the
Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) to be elected to the
Baseball Hall of Fame. In
2004, after nine years on the ballot, he received votes from fewer than 5% of the writers, disqualifying himself for further eligibility. Hernandez may still be considered for induction by the
Veterans Committee in
2011, twenty years after his retirement.
