Brewers’ Corey Hart to Miss 3-4 Months After Knee Surgery
By Josh Hill
Brewers fans are getting a whiff of bad news on Friday, as the club has announced slugger Corey Hart will undergo knee surgery and is expected to miss the next three-to-four months recovering.
The surgery is to repair an injury Hart suffered during the 2012 season.
Hart hit .270 last season with 30 homers, 83 RBI, 91 runs and 35 doubles. So it’s safe to say his loss is a tremendous blow to the Brewers hope to start the 2013 off on the right foot. Hart filled in at first base last season after the Brewers lost Prince Fielder to the Detroit Tigers in free agency.
The timing is not only bad for the Brewers, but even worse for Hart. The slugger is entering the final year of his contract with the Brewers and was looking to earn an extension. He might get that extension still, but it won’t be at the price Hart was salivating over. He’s not lost for the season, but if he wants to earn the coin he thinks he’s worth, Hart is going to have to rebound extremely well from his surgery.
Milwaukee is estimating Hart’s recovery at 3-4 months, but that’s not including any minor league stints Hart will no doubt have to endure on his road back to the Majors. At the moment, early May is looking like when Hart will recover from the surgery, which means mid-May to early-June is a realistic timetable for Hart’s return to the Brewers.