Jerry Seinfeld is probably the most famous New York Mets fan celebrity.
While his hit show Seinfeld leaned into George Costanza (Jason Alexander) working for the New York Yankees as the assistant to the traveling secretary, it was Keith Hernandez who guest-starred as himself and became the object of Elaine Benes’ (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) undying crush.
And during a recent appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, Seinfeld, a self-proclaimed Hernandez admirer, revealed the backstory behind the iconic cameo. While he initially said he didn’t personally request Hernandez, Seinfeld revealed his “man crush” probably influenced the casting choice.
He also described Hernandez with genuine affection, expressing his continued admiration for the former Met.
“The idea was, who would be the ultimate catch for me that we could do this story of Jerry trying to seduce — for lack of a better word — me wanting to be with someone I idolize or heroize or something,” Seinfeld told Eisen. “And for me, being a Mets fan, as you are, Keith in 1990…he was my idol; he was my hero. I loved the way he would captain the infield. He was such a great team captain.”
“He, of course, had no idea what he was saying yes to,” Seinfeld explained. “That was the only day that I worked on the series that before I drove in, in my closest I changed my shirt twice. It was like a big date. I was so excited to meet him.”
“And I still love the guy, by the way,” he added. “Absolutely, love the guy.”
Eisen and Seinfeld agreed that Hernandez does an “amazing” job on SNY broadcasts alongside Ron Darling and Gary Cohen. Seinfeld then hypothetically asked Eisen, who happens to be a Yankees fan acutely aware of GKR’s prowess, if he would trade the beloved broadcast booth for a World Series.
“Absolutely not,” Seinfeld said, “because that’s three hours of entertainment nightly for me.”
Let’s put on the record here that Eisen, who described himself as somebody who puts a roof over their head to talk, would never trade Gary, Keith, or Ron. He values the booth and the broadcasters. And so does Seinfeld.
Seinfeld, who has become a fixture in the SNY booth over the years, knows his admiration for Gary, Keith, and Ron is mutual. Cohen, a Seinfeld fan himself, frequently throws out show references, and Hernandez’s guest appearance is widely considered the show’s greatest cameo. So, for Seinfeld, it’s a dream come true – chopping it up with the guys who soundtrack his baseball season, April-September.
So perhaps he wouldn’t trade them for a World Series, either.
“That’s an Olympic gold medal we have there,” Seinfeld said of SNY’s booth.
And Awful Announcing’s 2023 MLB local broadcast rankings tend to agree.
Editors Note: A previous edition of this article incorrectly stated that Rich Eisen was a Mets fan. We regret this error.
