Named after a character in the 1960s animated television show “Jonny Quest,” Hadji was a Bengal, “a breed that is four generations removed from the Asian Tree Leopard,” Hernandez told GQ in 2021.

The love and tender regard with which Hernandez, 71, held Hadji is well known among the Mets faithful: the cat was referenced many a time during baseball broadcasts — sometimes unintentionally.