Darling back in Mets booth, humbled by support

New York Mets announcer Ron Darling was back in the booth Tuesday night, his first game back since surgery to treat thyroid cancer last month.

Before the game against the San Francisco Giants at Citi Field, Darling said it was "extremely humbling" to feel the support he had received from the Mets community. The former Mets pitcher said he received somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000 letters from fans while he was recovering.

"I was 22 years old when I was called up to the Mets," he said. "I'm 58 now. And I feel like I've gotten love from these fans in that entire time, and none more evident than the last 60 days.

"You feel like it's just a little personal struggle, challenge that you have, but so many people want to make sure that you feel as though you have their hugs. I'm still trying to wrap my brain around that one. It's completely humbling."

Mets broadcaster SNY tweeted video of Darling returning to the studio on Tuesday afternoon.

"You don't realize until you're away how much this is in your blood," he said.

"As far as how I'll feel, it's kind of unknown. I don't know what my stamina is going to be like in the game or voice-wise. So if (fellow analyst) Keith Hernandez is talking a lot, you'll know where I'm at. But I feel like it's the right time, and everyone thinks it's the right time, too. So we'll try."

Darling said April 13 that he was taking a medical leave. On May 6, he said a mass had been removed and he planned to be back at work in about a month.

He said in a statement Monday that his doctors told him his cancer had been "stabilized for now" and he had been cleared to work. He said he would be monitored closely for the next several months to "assure my progress remains on the right track."

Darling was 136-116 from 1983 to 1995 and helped the Mets win the 1986 World Series.