According to a tweet from Joel “Sure Thing” Sherman, the Mets are talking to the Brewers about a potential swap: John Maine for Corey Hart.
Hart hit for a very mediocre OPS of .757 over the past two seasons, with an OPS+ of .99 after having an excellent 2007 season at the plate. Corey’s playing the majority of his big league career in right field and hasn’t excelled at the position.
The oft-injured John Maine has decent stuff, as we all know, compiling a lifetime ERA of 4.22, but also has a difficult time working deep into games.
Both players are arbitration eligible through 2011.
26 comments
darknova306
12/8/2009-6:09am at 6:09 am (UTC -4)
Hm, it’s interesting but I really don’t like trading pitching when we already have big holes in the rotation. Granted, Maine isn’t a sure thing by any means, but he’s got talent and should be fine in the 4-5 spots if he’s healthy. I’m willing to take the chance on Maine being healthy and productive more than relying on Pelf and Ollie getting their heads together.
If there is legitimacy to this rumor, it reeks of Omar’s typical: fill in the holes with reclamation projects and hope something sticks.
prismo
12/8/2009-6:41am at 6:41 am (UTC -4)
I agree. I don’t expect anything more than 100 innings with a 4.30 ERA from Maine this season, but even that would be better than whatever Corey Hart would do. (and lol at MC thinking the Brewers were going to trade Braun to the Mets)
rustyjr
12/8/2009-6:52am at 6:52 am (UTC -4)
yeah i still feel Maine can have a break out season – give up on ollie not john boy
darknova306
12/8/2009-7:01am at 7:01 am (UTC -4)
“give up on ollie”
I accomplished that feat in 2008.
Kingman 26
12/8/2009-8:41am at 8:41 am (UTC -4)
HAHA!!
darknova306
12/8/2009-6:12am at 6:12 am (UTC -4)
If we’re looking to trade something relating to pitching, can we trade Dan Warthen?
oleosmirf
12/8/2009-8:42am at 8:42 am (UTC -4)
that would leave the Mets rotation as Johan, Pelfrey, Ollie and 2 empties. Unfortunately, I dont see the mets spending enough money to fill a #2 and #3 spot in the rotation
Kingman 26
12/8/2009-8:45am at 8:45 am (UTC -4)
Yeah, they will probably go with El Duque and Alay Soler in those spots; no way Omar and the Coupons spend anything else after the Cora, Coste, and Blanco signings.
oleosmirf
12/8/2009-9:15am at 9:15 am (UTC -4)
spending 25 mil on Piniero and Marquis is not what I had in mind…
Kingman 26
12/8/2009-9:20am at 9:20 am (UTC -4)
Yeah, and since that is over and done with, contracts signed, lockers being painted with their names, etc., what do we whine about next??
oleosmirf
12/8/2009-9:26am at 9:26 am (UTC -4)
you’re confident that Omar/the Wilpons will the spend the money necessary to make this team a contender again. Sure its too early but they need more than just 1 big name acquisition.
If they sign Holliday and Lackey and flip Castillo for Hudson…then i’d be impressed…
Kingman 26
12/8/2009-9:35am at 9:35 am (UTC -4)
Well, at least now you are being reasonable and realistic.
Why does no team in the major leagues have any interest in Hudson for the second year in a row? Why was only one team interested in him last year and he was benched in Sept and the playoffs?
oleosmirf
12/8/2009-9:55am at 9:55 am (UTC -4)
what do you predict they will do this offseason?
Kingman 26
12/8/2009-10:21am at 10:21 am (UTC -4)
I will probably be wrong on all of these, but what I do predict is that Omar will get one major impact player (Lackey or Holliday after their prices fall) and one or two more secondary pieces (Cameron, Bradley, Wolf, Marquis, Pineiro, Hudson, Gonzalez, etc etc)or, if we do not get Lackey/Holliday, 3 or 4 other smaller, but good, pieces.
Oleo, every year Omar does something big–Pedro, Beltran, Wagner, Delgado, Johan, KRod…I think there is zero reason to think he will not do it again.
Kingman 26
12/8/2009-10:24am at 10:24 am (UTC -4)
Mike, not Adrian, Gonzalez.
fongy2
12/8/2009-9:44am at 9:44 am (UTC -4)
Lima time!!!
trs86
12/8/2009-10:06am at 10:06 am (UTC -4)
Obviously if they spend 45 million I would be impressed too. But that’s not happening.
dirtysanchez
12/8/2009-9:32am at 9:32 am (UTC -4)
um this is omar you guys…those 2 empties will most likely be filled with niese and nieve…
Kingman 26
12/8/2009-9:37am at 9:37 am (UTC -4)
Hey, who is writing this pessimism under the name of Dirty Sanchez?
Is this Mr Bill? Alex??
Kingman 26
12/8/2009-8:43am at 8:43 am (UTC -4)
No way on this deal. Yes, I would take Hart and hope he regains his 2007 form, but not for Maine.
Maine may never get over his injury troubles, and he may never be able to economize enough to be more than a 5 or 6 inning guy, but despite this, he probably has the best stuff and most potential of all of our young underachieving pitchers.
wannybackstra
12/8/2009-9:42am at 9:42 am (UTC -4)
Translation: The Brewers brought up John Maine’s name in discussions with the Mets. The Mets expressed interest in Hart. Whether the two discussions were related and there was mutual interest is unlikely.
prismo
12/8/2009-9:47am at 9:47 am (UTC -4)
This basically would be the Mets trading an injury-prone #4 pitcher for a 4th outfielder. They’d at least have to get a decent prospect to make this semi-worthwhile.
fongy2
12/8/2009-9:57am at 9:57 am (UTC -4)
In defense of John Maine, I don’t
know if he’s so much injury prone as
still recovering from going under the knife. He should have been shut
down early in’08 once they found he
had arm problems which eventually
would lead to an operation. Most pitchers need atleast one full and often two full seasons to recover.
Too young and comes too cheap to give up on him for a guy like Hart.
trs86
12/8/2009-10:05am at 10:05 am (UTC -4)
My fear is that everything points to sayings like “learning to pitch with pain”. To me that means 2 things. 1 Maine can’t pitch through minimal pain OR 2 Maine is damaged
whataputz
12/8/2009-10:09am at 10:09 am (UTC -4)
Maine is enticing. To me out of Ollie, Pelf, and Maine, Maine is the most talented. He’s looked like an ace for a good stretch of time in what I believe was the begging of the ’07 season. Obviously that was long ago, and he’s been banged up. This trade isn’t terrible, but if Wolf is getting 3 years, do we really want to guarantee the need to sign two pitchers?
CaseStreet
12/8/2009-10:30pm at 10:30 pm (UTC -4)
I find this interesting for a number of reasons:
1. everyone wants the Mets to sign two pitchers, with Maine moving to the BP, but from today’s comments you don’t want to give up on him
2. this means the Mets are expecting to bring in 2 pitchers unless they plan on giving one spot to Niese, Figgy, etc.
3. The Mets would rather trade for an OFer.