A source told MMO on Saturday that the New York Mets have not contacted free agent Cory Hart or made any offer to the former Brewers first baseman. “There’s been a few teams, but the Mets are not one of them.”
Last week, Hart said that while there’s been plenty of interest in him from teams in both the AL and NL, there’s some hesitation until he gets medical clearance from doctors.
“What’s so hard right now is I don’t get cleared until Dec. 3,” Hart said. “We have plenty of teams calling and checking in to see how I’m doing, but until the doctor says I’m 100%, they’re going to hold off until that time.”
Hart is coming back from surgeries on both knees. He had one procedure done on his his right knee in January to repair a defect on the joint surface, and then while rehabbing from that injury, Hart injured his left knee and had more surgery in July.
The 31-year old slugger also admitted that he has lost 20 pounds while rehabbing his knees and believes that bodes well for a return to the outfield.
“I live here in Arizona, so we’re trying to get as many teams as we can to come and watch me. I’m healthy and basically 100% and doing everything that the rest of the baseball guys are doing.”
The Red Sox, Rays and Rockies are three teams that have reported interest, according to Hart.
Over his previous three seasons entering his lost 2013 campaign, Hart has hit .280 with an .857 OPS and has averaged 30 homers.
Hart’s versatility will certainly be a big part of his appeal in addition to his righthanded power.
I’d like to see the Mets kick the tires on Hart, and I’m sure that on Tuesday we’ll likely hear they have some interest, followed soon by some report that they are out.
