Josh Hader hypothetical trade: Could Brewers-Mets deal work?

The New York Mets have been interested in Josh Hader in the past. Can they make a hypothetical trade with the Milwaukee Brewers work?

As the offseason continues and the lockout unfortunately drags on, MLB teams and players are trying to figure out what their futures will look like all while fans try to keep themselves busy. That includes everything from going through memes to creating all sorts of possible trade scenarios.

In a long line of hypothetical trades based off of reader requests, Jim Bowden of The Athletic recently kicked around the thought of moving Josh Hader from the Milwaukee Brewers to the New York Mets. The Mets have reportedly looked in Hader’s direction before. Would they be able to make a trade happen now?

Heck, would the Milwaukee Brewers be interested in entertaining what the Mets could potentially offer in a deal involving Hader?

Possible Josh Hader trade: Can Brewers, Mets make a trade involving Josh Hader work?

It seems like Bowden believes this is something that should happen and, in his scenario, the Brewers would get the hypothetical haul of Jeff McNeil, Dominic Smith, and RHP J.T. Ginn.

The return would be pretty good for both parties.

The upside of getting Hader is pretty obvious. The 27-year-old pitcher is coming off of a dominant year and has 96 saves across five seasons with Milwaukee. He’s made the All-Star Game three times and posted a 1.23 ERA through 2021.

He’s really good.

New York would end up with a strong closer that could shut opposing batters down and possibly help the Mets be pretty dangerous as they try to overhaul things a bit and move forward.

As for the Brewers, the trade wouldn’t be a bad idea for them either. McNeil and Smith are both solid players who have decently high ceilings.

McNeil’s versatility makes him an asset and he’s able to fill in at various spots. He’s not the best hitter, but he did have 23 home runs in 2019. If he can return to that production at the plate, he’s definitely a valuable player to have.

As for Smith, he could help the Brewers out at first base or in the outfield, depending on where he’s most needed and is a pretty good hitter. In 2021, Smith hit 11 home runs and had 58 RBIs, but also had 112 strikeouts and posted a .244 batting average. So, there’s some work to be done there, but there are certainly worse options to have in a lineup.

Plus, even if neither is exactly what the Brewers want, there’s no shame in packaging one or both of them up in future trades with other franchises. Landing both McNeil and Smith could give Milwaukee some flexibility as it works through its roster.

As for the third portion of the trade from the Mets, the Brewers would end up getting a pretty intriguing prospect in Ginn.

Interestingly enough, Milwaukee has done well with picking up pitchers who played for the Mississippi State Bulldogs as both Brandon Woodruff and prospect Ethan Small made their way through Starkville. Ginn is a young prospect and he also spent his college days at Dudy Noble Field, like Woodruff and Small before him.

It’s possible that there’d be something there Milwaukee would be willing to make a move on.

The deal could potentially work out well for both parties if the folks running the franchises were actually interested in making something happen. The Mets would be giving up quite a bit to land Hader, but there are certainly potential worse trades that could be made.