Update: According to Newsday’s Anthony Reiber, Todd Zeile will fill in for Keith Hernandez in St. Louis on Wednesday, in addition to San Francisco. Hernandez had made a quip on Tuesday night’s broadcast about Gary Cohen pulling a Vin Scully, but that appears to be made in jest, with Zeile making it to St. Louis before 1:15 ET first pitch.
Gary Cohen is set to do his best Vin Scully impression on Wednesday afternoon.
The Mets’ play-by-play voice revealed during Tuesday’s broadcast that he would be flying solo for New York’s series finale in St. Louis. That’s because Keith Hernandez is being placed on SportsNet New York’s injured list to tend to a bad back. The 72-year-old Hernandez, who recently inked a three-year extension with SNY that trimmed down his total number of games, will miss the next five games he was scheduled to call.
During the Mets’ 3-0 loss to the Cardinals, Cohen described Hernandez as having “excruciating pain” shooting up his right leg. Hernandez mentioned having a few slipped discs in his back during New York’s opening series against Pittsburgh and attributed it to his dog, MacDuff.
Gary Cohen says Keith Hernandez will miss tomorrow’s game due to back issues. Hernandez has cited “excruciating pain” shooting up his right leg.
— Dan Bartels (@DanBartels2) April 1, 2026
Hernandez will also not be making the trip to San Francisco, and instead will be replaced by Todd Zeile.
Keith Hernandez (back) is out for the San Francisco series. Todd Zeile will join Gare in the SNY booth instead.
— The Mets Newsletter (@metsnewsletter) March 31, 2026
“I’ll tell you what, if you’re skipping San Francisco, you must be in a lot of pain,” Cohen said on Monday.
Hernandez offered that the flight into St. Louis’ Lambert International Airport on Sunday afternoon was “murderous,” and despite trying to fight through the pain, he will be getting an epidural shot on Thursday.
Ron Darling figures to be back alongside Cohen when the Mets return home for three games against the Diamondbacks and three against the A’s, with Hernandez’s return timeline still unclear.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.