I wasn't kidding last night as I tweeted during Corey Hart's explosive first round of the Home Run Derby. With each and every bomb he launched over the outfield wall, I wrote that his trade value went up and up.
In fact, it'll probably never be as high as it is right now -- unless you count that 90 minutes between the first and second rounds of the derby.
Which is why I say trade Corey Hart right this second. Don't wait another minute, general manager Doug Melvin. Work your magic like you have done so many times before.
I was a big Corey Hart fan until September 2008. That's when the Brewers -- and Hart, in particular -- did everything they could to play themselves out of the playoffs.
Hart, in fact, made this astonishing statement on Sept. 11, 2008 regarding playing on the road in Philadelphia:
"Actually, it felt more like a home game than playing in Miller Park," said Hart, who had no home runs and two RBI up to that point in September. "We didn't hear the boos that we sometimes here at home. That's the way it goes. Everybody's expecting (the team) to win. I guess they have a reason to be frustrated because we haven't been winning.
"It's not a lack of hustle or effort. A guy makes an error, a guy strikes out and you hear your hometown booing you. It makes you ready to get out of there and go somewhere else for awhile. I think we're all looser here."
Right then and there I was done with Hart. The fact that he followed up in 2009 with an underachieving .260 batting average and 12 home runs, then took the Brewers to salary arbitration (and won) before this year, didn't help.
And now, he's the Brewers most consistent player, an All Star with 21 home runs at the break.
Get rid of him.
Honestly, it would take some sort of miracle for the Brewers, now nine games under .500 to get back into playoff contention, so it's OK to concede that the team is "sellers." Sure, a comeback could happen, but Hart is vocally frustrated with team management that didn't even have him start Opening Day. He becomes a free agent after next year, and can you imagine him signing a new deal with the Brewers? I can't.
Meanwhile, the Brewers starting rotation is close to useless, save for Yovani Gallardo. Dave Bush is certainly serviceable, but the rotation drops off after him. As I predicted, Doug Davis has been a complete bust, while I believe Randy Wolf will turn out to be an overpriced disappointment. Don't even get me started on Manny Parra or Chris Narveson -- on a good team, well, they might not even be on that team.
If Melvin can upgrade his pitching staff by trading Hart, he must do it as soon as possible. More interesting trades tend to be available after the season is over, but it's unlikely that Hart will look as good then as he does now.
And personally, I have a long memory when it comes to players blaming Milwaukee fans for their troubles. We've sat through many, many years of bad baseball and have come back for more. For Hart to assert that Philly is a friendlier place for an opposing player to play shows that either he's stupid, bitter or both.
Frankly, the Phillies -- or any other team -- can have him. As long as they ship Milwaukee a quality starting pitcher in return.
Andy is the president, publisher and founder of OnMilwaukee. He returned to Milwaukee in 1996 after living on the East Coast for nine years, where he wrote for The Dallas Morning News Washington Bureau and worked in the White House Office of Communications. He was also Associate Editor of The GW Hatchet, his college newspaper at The George Washington University.
Before launching OnMilwaukee.com in 1998 at age 23, he worked in public relations for two Milwaukee firms, most of the time daydreaming about starting his own publication.
Hobbies include running when he finds the time, fixing the rust on his '75 MGB, mowing the lawn at his cottage in the Northwoods, and making an annual pilgrimage to Phoenix for Brewers Spring Training.
