Hey guys, I thought everybody would be interested in this piece.  I wrote it about a week ago, but I wanted to wait until Harden's second start to post it here.  And despite the loss, he didn't disappoint in his performance.  Here is the link:

Rich Harden

What the article does is break down Harden's mechanics, stuff, and outlook for future health.

Harden (I guess over the offseason) made some changes to his arm action.  In my view it looks smoother than in 2007 and less stressful for the arm.

I must add...Harden's fastball/change-up combo is just sick.  If you scroll down to where it says "Stuff", you'll see just how similar a plane each pitch comes in on, which is partly why he is so difficult to hit.

For discussion purposes, try to put all biases aside and factor in the players given up in both deals...what pitcher would you ultimately want: Harden or Sabathia.

My opinion is that while Harden has the better raw stuff, Harden's health risk makes me take Sabathia.  But when you factor in the Cubs receiving a quality pitcher in Chad Gaudin, you have to figure that the Cubs got the better value.  So Iike the Harden/Gaudin deal better but would prefer Sabathia over Harden though tonight's start does make me question if that's the right call.

In any case, hope you enjoy the read.  Thanks again.