Keith Hernandez and SNY are back in contract negotiations, according to the New York Post’s Mike Puma, who reports the two sides are “in the initial stages” of working out a deal that would keep the beloved Mets analyst in the booth for the next three seasons.

Hernandez called approximately 110 games last season, and whether he continues at that pace or scales back his workload will be part of the ongoing discussions, per Puma.

If this all sounds familiar, that’s because it is. Hernandez’s ongoing contract situations have become as much a part of the Mets’ offseason routine as speculation about which free agents Steve Cohen will throw money at. His deal expired after the 2022 season, leading to a prolonged negotiation that stretched into February 2023 before he eventually signed a three-year extension. That deal took him through the 2025 season, which just wrapped up.

Back in October, Hernandez revealed to Puma that his contract had expired after 20 seasons in the booth. “My contract has run out, but I would love to continue in the booth,” Hernandez said during a Q&A. “I enjoy what I do.”

The Wilpon family still owns SNY despite selling the Mets to Steve Cohen in 2020, and that ownership structure has led to past tension during contract negotiations. Mets fans have long expressed frustration that the process has dragged on longer than necessary, particularly given the Wilpons’ reputation for being notoriously cheap during their tenure as owners.

In 2019, Hernandez’s contract expired during SNY’s final broadcast of the season, prompting an on-air discussion about his uncertain future. He ultimately re-upped with a three-year deal worth just under $1 million annually. Then, in 2022, Ron Darling casually mentioned Hernandez would be dealing with contract negotiations very soon, prompting the Hall of Fame first baseman to admit it wasn’t set in stone whether he would return for 2023.

The 2023 negotiations hit a snag when SNY offered Hernandez a deal, he rejected it and counter-offered, and the network went weeks without responding. Eventually, they reached an agreement — but not before testing the patience of Mets fans who couldn’t fathom losing Hernandez from the booth.

Hernandez, now 72, has been part of SNY’s broadcast team since the network launched in 2006. Alongside Gary Cohen and Ron Darling, he’s called Mets games for two decades. The trio ranked as the best booth in baseball in Awful Announcing’s 2024 local MLB announcer rankings and came in second in this past year’s rankings, with Darling saying there’s “no way we can do what we do without Keith.”

“When Gary Cohen and I do the broadcast ourselves, it tends to get a little nerdy because we’re both a little nerdy by just who we are,” Darling explained on 670 The Score in Chicago during last season’s playoffs. “And Keith lightens it up, surely. No one entertains better than Keith Hernandez.”

Last year, Hernandez told the Post that he hoped to follow Ralph Kiner’s path by signing another three-year deal that would allow him to gradually reduce his schedule while giving SNY time to transition Daniel Murphy into a larger role. The network has started preparing for Hernandez’s eventual departure by expanding Murphy’s presence in the booth this season, though based on Darling’s comments, that day isn’t coming anytime soon.

Hernandez has talked openly about scaling back his workload as he approaches his mid-70s. The 86-mile drive from his Sag Harbor home to Citi Field has become “a little rugged,” though he’s said he loves what he does and isn’t complaining.

“I’m doing 110 games. If I lived in the city, it’d be a piece of cake, but I got an 86-mile drive, and that’s a little rugged,” Hernandez said on The Show podcast. “But I don’t mind it; I’m not complaining. I love what I do. I love the game.”

Whether SNY and Hernandez can work out another deal quickly remains to be seen. But based on past negotiations, Mets fans shouldn’t expect a quick resolution.

Hernandez isn’t going anywhere. He’s said as much repeatedly. But SNY and the Wilpons seem determined to make Mets fans sweat it out anyway, just like they did in 2019, 2023, and now 2026.

At least this time, negotiations are “in the initial stages” rather than stalled completely. That counts as progress in the world of Keith Hernandez contract talks. By February, we’ll probably have a deal. And in three years, we’ll do this all over again.