The Winter Meetings are off to a modest start. The Mets have signed pitchers Jared Robinson and Trevor Hildenberger to minor league deals. However, these aren’t the high-profile acquisitions that the fan base is eagerly anticipating.

The rumor mill has tied the Mets to several players, George Springer, Trevor Bauer, James McCann, and J.T. Realmuto to name a few. They’re all free agents. Another player linked to the Mets via a potential trade is Brewers’ reliever Josh Hader.

Hader burst onto the scene in 2017, tossing 47.2 innings and striking out 68 hitters for a 12.8 K/9 rate. Over four years with Milwaukee, Hader has a K/9 rate of 15.3, with his best mark of 16.4 coming in 2019.

Hader also has an H/9 rate of 4.4 and a BB/9 rate of 3.3 in his career. Hader’s high in saves was 37 in 2019. He led the National League in saves in 2020 with 13 in a shortened season.

The left-hander had a slight decline in a few statistics in 2020, as his K/9 was 14.7, down from 16.4 in 2019 and 15.8 in 2018. His 3.79 ERA in 2020 was the highest of his career, while is 3.8 H/9 was the lowest of his career. The hard-throwing reliever will be 27 next season, and should still be in his prime.

Why Would Milwaukee Trade Him?

The answer is the same for many teams shedding good talent, such as the Cubs non-tendering Kyle Schwarber. Money appears to be tight in MLB after the pandemic season. Hader is arbitration eligible in 2021. He made $4.1 million last year, and would seem to be in line for a hefty pay increase.

The Brewers have Devin Williams, last year’s NL Rookie of the Year, who tossed 27 innings in 2020, logging a K/9 rate of 17.7. Williams is not arbitration eligible until the 2023 season. Williams, and the combination of Alex Claudio, David Phelps, and Eric Yardley could give the Brewers a competitive bullpen, while they get salary relief, and potentially valuable pieces for Hader.

Why Would the Mets Trade For Josh Hader?

Josh Hader is an exceptional talent, who performs well against left-handed hitters (career .122 BA against) and right-handed hitters (career .154 BA against). He clearly has “swing and miss” stuff, and can record critical outs without the ball being put in play.

The Mets are short on left-handed relievers, to a point where after non-tendering Chasen Shreve, Steven Matz could be their primary left-hander out of the bullpen (if they do not re-sign Justin Wilson).

Of course, it’s early in the offseason, but Hader would be a huge upgrade to the bullpen, and could either close or set up Edwin Diaz.

The most compelling question for the Mets in a potential Hader trade is whether or not they have the players to entice the Brewers. In looking at Milwaukee’s roster, third base could be need, where Eric Sogard played the majority of the time in 2020. Sogard slashed just .209/.281/.278.

The Mets could offer J.D Davis to the Brewers, along with another major league player and a top prospect (Ronny Mauricio?).  Davis may thrive in hitter-friendly Miller Park. That may not be enough, as it’s likely other teams will be in serious pursuit of Hader if he were to be made available.

While starting pitching, center field, and catcher are clearly the Mets’ offseason priorities, adding a bullpen arm, especially an arm like Hader’s, can upgrade the team significantly in an area of perennial need.

Should the Mets “back up the truck” for Hader?

Probably not. But should Sandy Alderson reach out to Matt Arnold, the new GM of the Brewers, and see if there could be a match?

He most definitely should.