Former Cubs pitcher Rich Harden signs with the Texas Rangers
by Chanman25 on Dec 9, 2009 4:36 PM CST
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Sigh, well we will miss you Rich. Recent reports have come out stating that he was on the verge of signing and it appears that the Texas Rangers are the lucky winners here. Here is the article: http://bases.nbcsports.com/2009/12/report-harden-could-be-on-verge-of-signing.html.php
As always for my posts, Rotoworld's spin on the deal:
According to Craig Calcaterra of NBCSports.com, the Rangers have agreed to a one-year, $7.5 million contract with right-hander Rich Harden.
The deal also comes with an $11.5 million option for 2011. It's a bold move by the Rangers, who have had their fair share of money problems this year, but it makes more than enough sense. The club has quickly filled a hole left by Kevin Millwood's rumored departure to Baltimore and snagged one of the filthiest pitchers in the game. The 28-year-old Harden posted a 4.06 ERA, a 1.32 WHIP and an incredible 10.9 K/9 in 26 starts this past season.
The contract is about what we generally thought he'd take; Not to much of a shock, but agonizing, considering if we never signed Bradley he'd still be a Cub. Thanks, Jim.
This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of SB Nation or Al Yellon, managing editor (unless it's a FanPost posted by Al). FanPost opinions are valued expressions of opinion by passionate and knowledgeable baseball fans.
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Yup
The kvetching and whinging about what Hendry does or doesn’t do is making me physically ill.
I reject your reality and substitute my own.
by WayneCampbell08 on Dec 9, 2009 10:42 PM CST up reply actions 1 recs
Isn't that the truth
I think Cubs fans are going mad.
by Not Bruce Froemming on Dec 10, 2009 12:15 AM CST up reply actions
Rec'd. We knew weeks ago that they decided to let him go.
His signing elsewhere is neither surprising nor concerning. In fact, his signing in a different league, and a different city, are positives when compared to the possibility he could have landed in St. Louis, Milwaukee or on the South Side.
by Orval Overall on Dec 10, 2009 11:53 AM CST up reply actions
Mike Maddux has his work cut out for hm
What makes this interesting is that the Rangers are the ones trying to revolutionize how long starting pitchers are used and they believe that way too much attention is paid to pitch counts. Have fun with Harden.
"I am not ashamed to say I love Greg Maddux" - Jim Hendry
Me either Jim
I'm confused.
As seen on MLBTR, this deal isn’t finalized and in fact the Mariners are still in the running for Harden as well…
Yeah...
These Winter Meetings are impossible to follow. It’s enough to drive one batty. :)
by CubsWin!Oregon on Dec 9, 2009 4:46 PM CST up reply actions
no kidding
I don’t think it’s been this crazy for a couple years, in addition this free agent class isn’t t hat great too
Wrigley Bound in the Summer of 2010
Agreed.
Though the above one seems to have corrected course:
by CubsWin!Oregon on Dec 9, 2009 5:02 PM CST up reply actions
10.5 Million
I would sleep with Blou if it meant the Cubs would win a WS. by Doggie Stalker on Aug 22, 2009 4:11 PM EDT
I thought Rich pitched better on cool evenings...
…how’s that gonna work in the Texas heat?
Nobody cares about your fantasy baseball team
surprising
Word was out that he’d accept a one-year deal to try to reestablish himself and prove to the world that he was healthy. Seems like Texas is a curious place to do that.
Isn't Texas also in talks with Sheets?!
Could be a very interesting year for the boys in Arlington.
"Pounding sand since 1982...."
Between the Texas heat and richies' 5 and fly outings
i feel sorry for the rangers’ bullpen
This Chicago Cubs team is currently Aaron free. Keep it that way, please.
I've only been to 2 night games at Wrigley
And Harden pitched both. He was lights out those nights and they were my two favorite games I’ve seen in person.
I will truly miss him on the team and wish him the best of luck with all of his future endeavors.
I went to Rich's debut at Wrigley.
One of his most impressive outings, almost ruined by a Marmol meltdown, then Marshall had to pull Carlos’ chestnuts out of the fire in extras. Seems like so damn long ago, but it was only a year-and-a-half. Time flies…
"I have the time and hatred but not the knowledge." ~Madison Cub Fan (Aug. 25, 2009)
I remember that game
That whole year up until playoffs were great!
The first night game I saw Harden in was in 2008. It was also the first time I saw Kerry Wood pitch. The crowd chanting “Kerry, Kerry” in the 9th was awesome. I’m so glad I got to see them both pitch!
I was there too
SCREAMING at Marmol, calling for his head. He blew a five run lead IIRC and for whatever reason Lou kept him in to finish the inning.
Harden had 10+ k’s I believe. It was a heck of a game from him
"If I were playing third base and my mother were rounding third with the run that was going to beat us, I'd trip her. Oh, I'd pick her up and brush her off and say, 'Sorry, Mom,' but nobody beats me." ~ Leo Durocher
I also remember Theriot throwing to first
from his back in that inning. Naturally, it sailed wide of the bag. I almost lost my voice that day.
"I have the time and hatred but not the knowledge." ~Madison Cub Fan (Aug. 25, 2009)
Two different games
They won 5-0 against Reds. Marmol did come in and hit a batter and walked a batter. Wood had to come in for a non-save situation. That didn’t matter. This was the first time I came to Chicago (or Cubs in NY) when Kerry Wood WASN’T injured.
Harden did get 10K’s that night and Soto ran faster than I ever saw him and got a triple.
This isn't OT or OT-ish
Any baseball signing is not OT. This is a baseball site.
There is no such thing as an ugly female breast
FOR INSTANCE:
CAKE: OT
YOUR BABY: OT
MILTON BRADLEY SUCKS: NOT-OT
"The riches of the game are in the thrills, not the money." --Ernie Banks
What if my baby who's eating cake hates Milton Bradley?
"If I were playing third base and my mother were rounding third with the run that was going to beat us, I'd trip her. Oh, I'd pick her up and brush her off and say, 'Sorry, Mom,' but nobody beats me." ~ Leo Durocher
you must include a poll then
baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out
But if your baby who's eating cake LIKES Milton Bradely
OT
"I am not ashamed to say I love Greg Maddux" - Jim Hendry
Me either Jim
by Doggie Stalker on Dec 9, 2009 11:14 PM CST up reply actions
if my son likes MB
he is going to be up for adoption
/sarcasm
baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out
Rangers send Milwood to Baltimore
could that be part of a MB trade with Balt next?
baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out
Excellent signing for the Rangers
when you factor in that they basically used their Millwood savings on him. Granted, Harden is a bit riskier, but if Harden can give them 140-150 innings at his usual level, this will have been a solid enough swap of veteran arms for them.
Cubs may face Harden in 2010.
Cubs are at Texas May 21, 22 and 23.
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
and i plan to be there
baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out
Only for 5-6 innings though
I always turn to the sports section first. The sports page records people's accomplishments; the front page has nothing but man's failures.
~Earl Warren
by lookingdeadred on Dec 10, 2009 2:13 PM CST up reply actions
I won't miss him
And I sure don’t blame Hendry for no more Harden. It was a gamble getting him, but he proved too fragile and unreliable. Great stuff when he’s on, really great, but he wasn’t on enough to be considered a go to guy. I hope he does well, but fragile is fragile. Guys like him don’t suddenly get well, not fragile. Good luck to him,he’ll need it.
"When they signed Fukudome, I knew they were trying to get me fired". - Ron Santo, January, 2008
He was beyond lights out in 2008.
And he was generally pretty good in 2009.
If he was available for this kind of money, it was a serious mistake letting him go. Kyle Lohse makes way more than this.
MLBMilestone.com - following the numbers to Cooperstown
by D98 on Dec 9, 2009 8:48 PM CST up reply actions
So?
Why are you so hung up on how much the players are paid? Lohse sucks. I’m glad the Cards wasted all that money on him. Why aren’t you?
I reject your reality and substitute my own.
by WayneCampbell08 on Dec 9, 2009 10:46 PM CST up reply actions
You might not realize this, but
D98 actually is a big-league general manager.
by Not Bruce Froemming on Dec 10, 2009 12:17 AM CST up reply actions
I don't think Harden is gone because of any contracts per se.
The Cubs, after all, do appear to be in the market for another starter.
No, the Cubs seem to have soured on fragile pitchers. They let Rich walk for the same reason they let Wood walk. It will be interesting to see if this is more a Hendry thing in reaction to Prior or a Lou thing given how he uses bullpens/
Is he traded yet?
After Harden's last 2 years, this really looks like $7.5M well spent.
If, as you postulate, Hendry’s simply making the decision that he doesn’t like Harden’s performance or his style, then this is another strike against Hendry.
$7.5M. Holy lord.
We spent half that on a year of Aaron Miles.
MLBMilestone.com - following the numbers to Cooperstown
by D98 on Dec 9, 2009 8:49 PM CST up reply actions
HENDRYS AN IDIOT
CUBS NEED BULLPEN KILLERS
This Chicago Cubs team is currently Aaron free. Keep it that way, please.
by jesus christos on Dec 9, 2009 8:50 PM CST up reply actions
Also the Astros acquired Matt Lindstrom
which proves that Jim Hendry is an idiot.
Is he traded yet?
by DGU on Dec 9, 2009 9:32 PM CST up reply actions
Miles made 2.5 million a year
I think the Cubs are picking up a million of what he is owed so not exactly 7.5 million .
"I am not ashamed to say I love Greg Maddux" - Jim Hendry
Me either Jim
by Doggie Stalker on Dec 9, 2009 11:16 PM CST up reply actions
No, he's right.
$2 million last year, and $1.7 million of his 2010 contract — $3.7 million of Cub money to Miles. That’s half of what Harden will make in 2010.
I’m OK with this. Harden’s too brittle to be counted on.
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
Read too fast
and missed the HALF part. My math was OK , my reading comprehension not so much.
"I am not ashamed to say I love Greg Maddux" - Jim Hendry
Me either Jim
by Doggie Stalker on Dec 10, 2009 10:41 AM CST up reply actions
But if the Cubs had spent $7.5 million on Rich Harden...
…could they still afford a decent centerfielder?
Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.
I suppose not.
That said, if we had these kinds of serious money crunch issues, we should have thought twice before taking all of the actions that have led to this point, from Fukudome to Bradley to Miles to Grabow. This is not an organization that has been acting like money is important or limited.
The thing that really gets to me are all of these “Cubs seek starting pitcher” reports. It’s unlikely they can match the value/performance proposition of the guy they just jettisoned a week ago.
MLBMilestone.com - following the numbers to Cooperstown
Yeah, granted, all the big contracts have put the team in a very precarious situation.
But, going back to Zambrano, Soriano and Kosuke, I think Hendry honestly thought he was assembling a playoff-caliber team, which, y’know, he actually did do. Those playoffs didn’t go so well and didn’t happen at all this year, so now he’s left trying to pick up the pieces.
Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.
I don't have a problem with the Z contract.
The Soriano contract is grating because it’s almost unprecedented in length, and because it was premised on the falsehood that Soriano could play CF — but also because it was so clearly an overreaction to the prior year’s mistake in opting against pursuing Beltran.
The Kosuke contract was a systemic failure, and it’s just too bad that it was our system that wound up “winning” that particular sweepstakes.
These deals all start unwinding in a few years. Obviously, they continue to be annoying, in that we see our aspirational organizations (LAD, NYY, BOS) spend similar amounts of money on actual elite baseball players, while the Cubs are forced to stand pat with their unbelievably expensive and mediocre outfield.
MLBMilestone.com - following the numbers to Cooperstown
It depends on what you're looking for from a SP
Harden gives you upside, but a lot of downside. Sometimes you just want safe and dependable. Remember, none of us have seen Harden’s medical records and to sign, Harden gave away a nice team option. If he was taking a one year deal to re-establish his value and sign a longer contract, the team option works against that for him.
Is he traded yet?
kind of funny math there.
They spent $2mm/year on Aaron Miles, and decided they didn’t want the second year. Drawing an equivalence with that and a 1year $7.5mm deal is pretty weak. We get it, the Miles signing was a mistake. That doesn’t mean any other contract ever should be measured against what Miles was paid.
by Orval Overall on Dec 10, 2009 11:55 AM CST up reply actions
I don't think that you're following.
The Cubs spent $2.5MM/year on Aaron Miles, and wound up eating another $1.7M on top of that. For one year of Miles, they paid ~$3.7M.
Which is ludicrous in and of itself, but which looks even worse now that we see that the Miles money would have gotten us halfway to a 1-year deal with Harden. And now Hendry has reportedly decided he needs to go shopping for another starter. It’s like the team is being run by the guy from Memento — not only isn’t there a long-term plan, there’s barely a short-term plan.
MLBMilestone.com - following the numbers to Cooperstown
Is Nolan Ryan still with the Rangers?
This doesn’t make sense. I thought I saw a piece where Ryan was putting Ranger pitchers on notice to go deep into games. That makes this signing curious.
i believe so
and he still is part owner of the Round Rock Express and Corpus Christi Hooks which are both Houston affialites
baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out
Ryan may or may not be around in 2010.
He aligned himself with an ownership group that does not appear to be the leaders to buy the team. If Dennis Gilbert’s group wins the bidding, Ryan may or may not be retained.
I love to play baseball. I'm a baseball player. I've always been a baseball player. I'm still a baseball player. That's who I am. - Ryne Sandberg
by Bill Potter on Dec 10, 2009 10:00 AM CST up reply actions
This is a good point.
Rich Harden’s career could end if Ryan pushes him to stay in games.
Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.
Rich and MB
Man… I wish Harden could have hung around. I wish him the best.
BTW: Does anyone get the feeling that there really wasn’t a “surprise” team that suddenly appeared in the race for MB? I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that was line being used to get and get whoever to take more of MB’s contract, or to hurry talks along…
I get the feeling that there were inquiries
which didn’t go very far at all and the Cubs hoped saying there were new inquiries would lead reporters starved for news to do the very things we all did.
Is he traded yet?
Farewell, bullpen killer...
Harden is filthy, make no mistake. But I will not miss his 110 pitch, 5.1 inning outings. His big strikeout rate looks great, until you remember that he almost never threw more than seven innings. Short outings mean using the bullpen more, and asking guys to pitch longer than they probably should. Give me fewer strikeouts and more total outs. IMHO, a team that is counting on Rich Harden to be a high-quality, regular starter is a team that will not be going far in the postseason
I think I speak for everyone here when I say, "Wait, what the hell are you talking about?"
by Ross on Dec 9, 2009 11:18 PM CST reply actions 3 recs
Agreed
I liked Rich Harden, but his inability to go deep into games was a luxury the Cubs no longer could afford.
Good luck with the Rangers, but I can’t get too worked up about his departure.
by Not Bruce Froemming on Dec 10, 2009 12:24 AM CST up reply actions
rec'd
baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out
Can't completely agree with this.
Granted, a pitcher who typically can’t go deep into games creates a problem. But that problem can be solved by simply partnering said pitcher up with a decent long man (like, say, Sean Marshall). That said, I realize the Cubs have financial restraints and a fear of injury right now that precluded their ability to re-sign Rich.
Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.
But the problem with that is...
… Lou won’t use Sean Marshall as a long man.
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
Maybe that was another contributing factor to Hendry letting Rich go.
Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.
Right.
I really wonder, as I said above, whether the disinclination to work with fragile arms is Hendry’s view or Hendry accomodating his manager. Yes, for the one-noters, the buck stops with Hendry, I’m not nor is anyone ever, despite your constant blathering, saying otherwise. It simply remains interesting to dissect where the Cubs’ strategy is coming from. Is this Lou’s preference or is this Jim Hendry soured on the Prior years?
Is he traded yet?
My gut says it's Hendry.
If you look at how he rebuilt the rotaton after the ‘06 debacle, he seems to be really stressing durability (Marquis, Lilly). Now, granted, he did trade for Rich Harden, but I’d guess that was his “all in” on the 2008 postseason. Since then, we’ve seen Kerry Wood and Rich Harden both let go to free agency, at least partly because of injury concerns. (Hendry specifically mentioned Kerry’s injury history when asked about that decision.)
Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.
The problem with this theory,
which sounds good on its face, is if you have another starter blow up and go only an inning or two, then what do you do about a long man if Marshall (or whomever) already is used up for the week?
by Not Bruce Froemming on Dec 10, 2009 2:46 PM CST up reply actions
He wouldn't really be used up for the week.
If Harden goes only four innings, all Marshall has to do is pitch two to get you to the seventh. (Obviously, it will depend on how many pitches he throws.) And if Harden goes five, Marshall need only go one inning – or two, if he’s pitching well (which gets you to the 8th).
Plus, the team insists on carrying 12 pitchers. There’s got to be another guy in there who can go more than an inning. Plus plus, it’s not like Harden NEVER goes six or more innings. In fact, I just counted and he went six or more innings in 15 starts in 2009. So the long-man strategy wouldn’t even be necessary all the time.
Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.
I'm gonna miss Rich.
Prolly the best fastball I’ve ever seen leave a Cubbie’s pitcher’s hand.
"The riches of the game are in the thrills, not the money." --Ernie Banks
Well...
… no. We laugh at Kyle Farnsworth now, but when he could throw 100 MPH… man, that fastball was unbelievable. If only he had had a brain to go with that arm.
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
he may be the perfect example of Meat from Bull Durham
baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out
I think the ball leaves Rich's hand better than Kyle's.
It sounds just awesome.
"The riches of the game are in the thrills, not the money." --Ernie Banks
I'm going to miss him, too.
Rich is one of the more interesting starting pitchers in all of baseball. He doesn’t go at hitters with the typical fastball-curveball-slider mix. It’s just fastball and change-up, but that change can look like several different pitches depending on how he throws it. He seems like a very cerebral guy, too. I’m a little concerned about how successful he’ll be in a hot, hitter-friendly place like Arlington.
Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.
Maybe childhood memories are inflated
But Lee Smith had an unbelievable fastball. And ditto the Farnsworth mention.
by Orval Overall on Dec 10, 2009 11:57 AM CST up reply actions
It's too bad that our payroll situation is such...
that we can’t keep a guy like Rich. There are probably a lot of high risk/high reward type guys that we could bid on if we just had the room.
Proud recipient of a hot dog shot from the Iowa Cubs hot dog gun.
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