Rich Harden News

Cubs pick up fragile Harden's $7M option for 2009
0 Comment
October 9
Chicago Sun-Times
 
"The Cubs have made their first personnel decision for next season, choosing to balance Rich Harden's immense pitching ability against his high-maintenance shoulder and exercising his $7 million contract option for 2009 on Wednesday. A detailed MRI arthrogram this week on Harden's shoulder revealed no damage severe enough to require surgery -- good news in that he has no serious injuries, but news that also means manager Lou Piniella and his staff are right back where they were this summer, managing built-in instability in the rotation. The bottom line on the decision was basic, general manager Jim Hendry said. ''He has really world-class stuff,'' Hendry said. ''It's a situation where you ..."
Cubs' pick up $7 million option on Rich Harden
0 Comment
October 9
Chicago Tribune
 
"The Cubs made their first off-season move Wednesday, exercising the $7 million option for oft-injured right-hander Rich Harden. "Rich Hardens are hard to find," general manager Jim Hendry said. "If you told me today we were going to get 24 or 25 good starts out of Rich next year and we were going to have to push him back or miss a start or two here or there, I'd do that in a heartbeat." An MRI-arthrogram on Harden's right shoulder revealed no tears of the labrum or of the rotator cuff, Hendry said after team orthopedic surgeon Stephen Gryzlo and shoulder specialists examined Harden at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Hendry acknowledged Harden has "a long history" of shoulder problems ..."
No surgery for Harden; Cubs pick up option for 2009
2 Comment
October 8
Chicago Sun-Times
 
"Rich Harden will not need surgery on his right shoulder, and the Cubs exercised the $7 million club option on the right-hander for 2009. Harden went 10-2 with a 2.07 ERA for Oakland and the Cubs this season. But a significant decline in his velocity late in the season suggested his shoulder was ailing. Exams today indicated he will not need surgery and that he has regular wear and tear. "He had some rotator tendinitis in the past and some subtle instability. I spoke to Rich today and he seems excited about [an offseason strengthening program] and is very happy he won't have to undergo a procedure.""
Harden to visit shoulder specialist
0 Comment
October 8
Chicago Tribune
 
"Rich Harden will see a shoulder specialist before the Cubs have to make a decision Wednesday on his $7 million option. General manager Jim Hendry said Harden would be examined Tuesday afternoon or Wednesday. He received a cortisone shot in his right shoulder in early September and his velocity dropped after a 109-pitch outing Aug. 24 against Washington. Harden still was throwing in the 95-96 m.p.h. range in the seventh inning of that game when he struck out the side to finish with 11 strikeouts. One advance scout told Toronto's Globe and Mail newspaper that he believed Harden had elbow or shoulder problems: "I've had him consistently down at least 5 miles per hour from what he used to ..."
Harden took shot for shoulder pain
0 Comment
October 3
Chicago Sun-Times
 
"If Rich Harden pitches well in Game 3 on Saturday, one reason might be the cortisone shot he got in his right shoulder a month ago. Multiple team sources confirmed Thursday that Harden received an anti-inflammatory shot for the discomfort that sidelined him for 12 days between his Aug. 29 and Sept. 11 starts. It's not rare for pitchers to get anti-inflammatory injections, and insiders suggest it can be considered maintenance as much as injury relief for a pitcher with a history of problems but no structural damage. Harden's cortisone shot first was reported in Buster Olney's blog on ESPN.com. Harden, who has spent time on the disabled list in four consecutive seasons -- including early ..."
Harden strong if not sharp
0 Comment
September 19
Chicago Sun-Times
 
"As big as the win itself was for the Cubs, the strength of their starting pitcher Thursday might have been bigger for their October plans. In his second start since missing almost two weeks after experiencing shoulder ''discomfort,'' Rich Harden had his velocity touching the upper 90s again and had strikeout stuff. But he also struggled with his command at times, and partly because of a misplayed grounder in the first, he needed 115 pitches to get through five innings, tying his season-high pitch count. Manager Lou Piniella liked enough of what he saw to be encouraged that Harden will be sharper when he makes his next start Tuesday in New York. And even more important, Harden said that ..."
Harden's health gets big test today
0 Comment
September 18
Chicago Sun-Times
 
"The last big piece of the Cubs' playoff puzzle could snap into place this afternoon if right-hander Rich Harden fares well enough against the Milwaukee Brewers to ease any lingering doubts about his shoulder. Harden made a successful return to the mound last week in St. Louis after the Cubs had him skip nearly two turns in the rotation as a precaution against shoulder ''discomfort,'' and he's still not sure why people have made such a big deal out of it. The big deal, of course, has to do with the big first impression Harden made -- his 97 mph, 10-strikeout stuff upon his arrival from Oakland in July. He pitched six solid innings last week but didn't have the same velocity he showed in his ..."
Harden not quite what he was
0 Comment
September 12
Chicago Tribune
 columnist Phil Rogers
"When the Cubs were discussing a trade for Rich Harden, first internally and then with the Oakland Athletics, Jim Hendry leaned heavily on the counsel of his top scout, Gary Hughes. Hughes, according to Hendry's estimate, scouted Harden in person five or six times and caught some other games on television. He was as impressed as you can be, given this was a pitcher who hadn't been healthy enough to start more than 19 games since 2004. "He kept calling in," Hendry said about Hughes. "He said, 'You never know if it will last forever, but it's world-class stuff.' " Hughes, it seems, might have been right on both accounts. Harden was effective, if not dominant, over six innings against St. ..."
Discomforting list now includes Harden
0 Comment
September 4
Chicago Sun-Times
 
"After three days of dancing around the questions and being sternly non-specific, Cubs manager Lou Piniella finally said Wednesday that starter Rich Harden has ''discomfort'' in his pitching arm, which is why the Cubs chose now to skip him a full turn in the rotation. Harden confirmed Piniella's description but insisted the discomfort in his right shoulder is ''nothing serious'' and that -- contrary to what Piniella said -- he could have taken his turn if the team wanted. Regardless of the severity of Harden's condition or the contradictions built up the last few days, the timing of the media circus building over the pitching staff couldn't be worse for the Cubs, coming on the heels of ..."
Harden pushed back in rotation, says he's not hurt
0 Comment
September 3
Chicago Tribune
 
"What was supposed to be the Cubs' new-look "rested" rotation is in shambles now after Carlos Zambrano's apparent arm pain during Tuesday night's 9-7, 11-inning loss to Houston. Ted Lilly, Jason Marquis and Zambrano were supposed to pitch the weekend series in Cincinnati, with Ryan Dempster starting the first game in St. Louis next Tuesday. But it appears Sean Marshall will take Zambrano's place, like he did in Sunday's loss to Philadelphia. As of now, Rich Harden will start after Dempster, although it is not clear whether it will be one or two days later and, despite Harden's insistence the day before that he was not injured again, the subject was up for debate Tuesday. "I feel good," said ..."
Harden just fine with Cubs' caution
0 Comment
September 2
Daily Herald
 
"Rich Harden said Monday he'd rather be pitching but that he agrees with the Cubs' decision to rest him until next Tuesday's series opener in St. Louis. The Cubs say they're playing it cautiously with Harden's right shoulder, which put him on the disabled list earlier this year when he was with Oakland. "Yeah, let's make sure I'm feeling good and fresh for the stretch here, the last few games," said Harden, who is 4-1 with a 1.50 ERA as a Cub since coming over from the A's in July. "I've been feeling pretty good. I haven't felt too much strain or anything from throwing the ball. "With a couple of days off, I definitely feel stronger. It can make a difference, especially late in the season ..."
Getting Harden has made Cubs harder to catch in NL Central
0 Comment
August 26
USA Today
 
"The Cubs swore up and down their trade for Rich Harden was not a response to the Brewers' acquisition of CC Sabathia in early July.That may be, but without that move Chicago's lead in the NL Central - currently at 4½ games - could have been seriously jeopardized. The Brewers' surge since picking up Sabathia on July 7 - they're 27-16 in that span - might have been impossible to repel without a counter by the Cubs, who became the first team in baseball to reach the 80-win mark with Sunday's 6-1 victory over the Nationals. Harden's 4-1 record with Chicago is not as lofty as Sabathia's 8-0 mark as a Brewer, but he has been just as sharp as the 2007 AL Cy Young Award winner. Harden's ERA is ..."
Harden, homers lead Cubs past Nationals
0 Comment
August 25
Chicago Tribune
 
"Ryan Dempster got used to pitching in heavy humidity in Florida early in his career, while Rich Harden grew accustomed to pitching in cool, dry weather during his days in Oakland. So perhaps it was a good omen that the hot, sticky weather Dempster endured Saturday preceded a cool afternoon Sunday as Harden took the mound against Washington. Maybe someone up there really does like the Cubs. Harden did his usual thing, pitching seven solid innings in a 6-1 victory over the Nationals as the Cubs captured their eighth straight series and remained 41/2 games ahead of Milwaukee. "Man, it was a beautiful day, compared to [Saturday], with the heat and humidity," Harden said. "[Dempster] said that ..."
Falling on Harden times
0 Comment
July 22
Chicago Sun-Times
 
"The words were barely out of Lou Piniella's mouth, and the sign was already up near the exit from the Cubs clubhouse at Chase Field: ''Tuesday Time Change. No Batting Practice.'' After watching another night of meager offensive production -- this time against a 44-year-old former power pitcher using the Cubs for his personal Hall of Fame pass -- Piniella said he's taking the bats out of his hitters' hands before the game again. Not that they've done much with them during three of the first four games of this first trip out of the All-Star break -- especially Monday against Randy Johnson and the Arizona bullpen in a 2-0 loss that gave Johnson his 291st career win."
Harden can't win, thanks to punchless Cubs offense
0 Comment
July 22
Chicago Tribune
 
"When the Cubs acquired Rich Harden from Oakland two weeks ago, there were reports he hadn't been throwing as hard as usual. But with the Cubs, the 26-year-old Canadian has looked more like a Ferrari being driven away from the dealership than damaged goods. He has had plenty of velocity on his fastball, just not enough luck. Harden matched zeros with future Hall of Famer Randy Johnson on Monday night, taking a perfect game into the fifth inning and a no-hitter into the sixth. But Alex Romero lined a 1-2 changeup over the right-field fence for his first career home run, and Harden would depart trailing the Arizona Diamondbacks 1-0 in the seventh inning en route to a 2-0 defeat."
No worries for Harden, but plenty for Marmol
0 Comment
July 13
Chicago Sun-Times
 columnist Jay Mariotti
"Like foie gras, 10 Cane rum and the Bugatti Veyron sports car, Rich Harden is a delicacy best consumed in moderation. You build him a large lead. You yank him after 5 1/3 scoreless innings and 96 pitches. You slap him on the rump and thank him, as Lou Piniella did Saturday, and then you lock him in a hermetically sealed cocoon so his blowtorch right arm doesn't go limp before his next start. But the Cubs, right now, have a bigger issue than the Harden Health Watch. Would someone mind telling me what the hell happened to Carlos Marmol and why his once-unhittable pitches have turned to marmalade? The grand plan of letting the bullpen preserve Harden's would-be first victory was sabotaged ..."
Harden charts new path
0 Comment
July 13
Chicago Tribune
 
"General manager Jim Hendry and the Cubs are hoping Rich Harden travels better than former Oakland teammates Tim Hudson, Barry Zito and Mark Mulder have. The latter three led the Athletics to four consecutive playoff appearances, combining to go 275-144 with a 3.57 ERA while in Oakland. But that success hasn't translated elsewhere. Hudson is the only one of the three with an ERA below 4.90 since leaving the A's. The trio is a combined 89-81 with a 4.31 ERA away from the A's. All three moved to the NL, where they should have been positioned to be more successful, yet none has delivered. The common thread is that all three, unlike Harden, piled up innings before turning 29, possibly ..."
Harden gets first taste of Cubs craziness