Finding a more skilled broadcasting team in Major League Baseball than SNY’s would be difficult. And our readers tend to agree, as the trio of Gary Cohen, Ron Darling, and Keith Hernandez were ranked as the second-best local broadcasters in the sport for 2023.
And while Hernandez and Darling are two of the best color analysts in the business, neither is making it through the entire spring training schedule; the same goes for Cohen. On Friday, the New York Post’s Mike Puma reported that former Mets second baseman Daniel Murphy has been added to the SNY roster as a spring training fill-in for Hernandez and Darling.
Citing sources, Puma reports that Murphy will be in the booth for at least two Grapefruit League games early in spring training.
Cohen, Hernandez, and Darling are each scheduled to work approximately five games, while Steve Gelbs and other analysts, like Murphy, will cover the remaining spring training broadcasts.
Murphy last played in the Major Leagues with the Colorado Rockies in 2020. He retired the following season and resurfaced in 2022 when he participated in the Mets Old Timers’ Game. He attempted to make a comeback this past year, signing with the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League and later the Los Angeles Angels organization before hanging up his cleats for good this time.
Murphy spent most of his 12-year career with the New York Mets (2008,09, 2011-15). He was named an MLB All-Star in 2014 and helped lead the Mets to a World Series appearance a year later. In the 2015 playoffs, Murphy was a Mets folk hero, as he became the first player in Major League history to hit a home run in six consecutive postseason games.
While he enjoyed much success with the Mets, much of his notoriety came with the Washington Nationals (2016-18). Murphy was named an All-Star in 2016 and 2017, winning two National League Silver Slugger Awards during that same time frame. He also finished second in the National League MVP voting in 2016 behind Kris Bryant after leading the league in doubles (47), slugging percentage (.595) and OPS (.985).
Murphy becomes the latest former Met to try his hand at the broadcast booth. It remains to be seen if he has a future in the media — particularly with SNY — but it is an interesting development nonetheless.
