Rich Harden

by escroll on Nov 6, 2009 3:12 PM EST

My bad if this ground has already been covered.... but would Harden be a good move for the Pirates? his contract is going to be hard to predict, given his injury issues, but say for a two-year contract? The Pirates have enough spare payroll lying around that they could afford the risk, say 7 mil for two years, with some incentives?

On a simlar note, how about Ben Sheets? He'd probably be worthless until midseason or later, but who is better positioned right now than the Pirates, to take a risk like that? Risk: waste some money, and burn a roster spot while he shows he's toast. Upside: Get an ace for cheap.

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I’d love to see either of these guys in a Pirates uni.

Harden more so than Sheets, but Sheets would probably be more likely because as you mentioned, he’s going to be useless until midseason. He’s the kind of player who may take a 1-2 year deal just to prove he can bounce back. If we’re still not competetive, he would make awesome trade bait. If we become competitive in that time, he’d probably be more amenable to staying long term…and facing his former team multiple times every year.

Harden would make a lot of sense as a great power pitcher in the prime of his career. He’d be awesome for the Pirates to take a flier on.

The issue with both of these guys, of course, is if they’d come here. Both are probably going to be in reasonably high demand. AJ Burnett showed last year that a good top of the rotation pitcher is always welcome on a big market contender, injury issues or not. I have to think teams like New York (either of them) or Boston would want someone like Harden or Sheets as well, and those teams would give him a chance to win a World Series.

So, would it be awesome? Yes. If the front office can somehow pull it off, it would probably be their best move to date. Is it likely? Probably not.

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by Nate Rose on Nov 6, 2009 9:26 PM EST reply actions