Thread: Article: Twins Ink Rich Harden to Minor League Deal

Good article. I wonder how much they are paying him.

Originally Posted by andrewberg

The love for guys with a .0001% chance of a big payoff here shows me why casinos have so many more slot machines than poker tables.

Your analogy is off because you seem to be missing the asymmetry.

If I'm betting $1, I will take 10-1 odds when the payoff is $10 before I'll take 2-1 odds when the payoff is $1. One is more likely, but the other is far preferable.

Originally Posted by glunn

Good article. I wonder how much they are paying him.

It's a minor league deal so he will get paid the same as the rest of the minor leaguers (around $50k).

Originally Posted by USAFChief

Not too many years ago, I would have thought this was a good idea.

That was before you went senile?

Originally Posted by Danchat

That was before you went senile?

Haha BOOM!

$52,000? i'd say this is amazing. I do think though that this means we have very little faith of him coming back and staying healthy... Either we hope to get 6-8 solid starts before he goes down, or put him in the pen and milk him springily.

Originally Posted by twins4121

$52,000? i'd say this is amazing. I do think though that this means we have very little faith of him coming back and staying healthy... Either we hope to get 6-8 solid starts before he goes down, or put him in the pen and milk him springily.

No, the real purpose is show that the FO is "not satisfied" with what they have and will continue to add limited risk (limited reward also) to show the fan base that "they're trying". Yes, this is a CYA manuever.

Let Mike bitch about 75 wins are not enough--but this team needs so much help to get to 81, much less 97 (60%), that to think it could be done in one year is total fantasy. To consider Marcum (or any other SP on the FA market) is total BS.
This team won't get turned around until the minor leaguers mature--and are the real deal! I think if half of the "top ten prospects" amount to quality major leaguers there would be cause for a major celebration.

The two year deal is the only one that bothered me. If May and Meyer are not ready by 2014 second half or one of the other Twin minor leaguers we are in deep trouble with a total pitching staff rebuild needed again

Let's accept this move for what it is... a low risk move (50k) with a high reward, but the odds of it panning out are likely less than 10%. I doubt at this point that Ryan expects the Twins to contend, and to be honest, even if Harden is a gold mine, they still would be a fringe contender at best. The flip side is that if he is money this spring, he gets flipped for something decent at the deadline. Pitching is always in demand at the trade deadline, and a healthy Harden should fetch a nice price.

I don't get why people are complaining, this is exactly the type of move they shoudl be making... It's the same reason why they should get Bedard (though he will cost more).

Let's not kid ourselves--none of these "marginal" pitchers signed can be "flipped" for someone useful--remember Livan Hernandez and his 10 wins in July '08?--nobody wanted him!

I agree, fixing the team in 1 year is unrealistic. That is why signing one legit pitcher this year made sense. He can either be here in 2 or 3 years, or be traded for more prospects. As for the 75 win number, do people think a team like that will sell tickets? And if their revenue drops, do you think they will buy players next year?

I have had three rotator cuff surgeries in the past 11 years. The first was described as large, the next was bigger, and the last one (all by the same surgeon) was was said to be way bigger.

I do not know how these compare to what Harden had, or anyone elses either. In fact it was never explained to me why my tears were considered large to huge.

I would say returning to high performance would be very ambitious unless his is a small tear. Lets hope for the best.

I think I read the Twins will have 34 pitchers in camp this spring, looking to give a lot of arms a look and see what sticks.

-P

[when in Texas, Harden was known as the "Club Douche". It is another low risk move by TR.

Originally Posted by Paul Pleiss

I think I read the Twins will have 34 pitchers in camp this spring, looking to give a lot of arms a look and see what sticks.

-P

That's not enough. I'd like at least 40.

I love this signing! Nearly no risk and great reward if Harden succeeds. I'm never against a minor league deal as long as this isn't the Twins only move (which it is not for SP ... even though the other moves ... especially Correia... are questionable at best). I've been a big fan of Harden.

A bit worry hearing Ryan said the Twins medical staff examined him and said he was worth a look. The medical staff does not give me any confidence with what the team has been through with injuries.

Originally Posted by Kwak

Let's not kid ourselves--none of these "marginal" pitchers signed can be "flipped" for someone useful--remember Livan Hernandez and his 10 wins in July '08?--nobody wanted him!

There was never a chance that Livan pitched like a number 2... and he still got flipped. Harden, if healthy, WILL be in demand come June... It's a big IF, but he could net something decent if he's pitching well.

Interestingly enough, the injury’s origin, Harden believes, was sustained in 2007

I did a bit of research on Harden's injury history, and you can find a complete history of his injuries (at least in the MLB) here. His first R shoulder problems started in 2004 and he had already missed 88 days because of his shoulder before the 2007 situation. He had a total of 22 injuries and lost more than 758 days in his career. What concerns me the most about his history is that he has been diagnosed with a UCL "sprain" in 2006, which made him lose 108 days (of RnR). His shoulder has given up before his elbow each season after, so if the surgery (capsule btw, not labrum) fixed his chronic shoulder condition, the elbow might go a la Joel Zumaya. Hope the best. This can be a really great signing if he is healthy.

Originally Posted by thrylos98

I did a bit of research on Harden's injury history, and you can find a complete history of his injuries (at least in the MLB) here. His first R shoulder problems started in 2004 and he had already missed 88 days because of his shoulder before the 2007 situation. He had a total of 22 injuries and lost more than 758 days in his career. What concerns me the most about his history is that he has been diagnosed with a UCL "sprain" in 2006, which made him lose 108 days (of RnR). His shoulder has given up before his elbow each season after, so if the surgery (capsule btw, not labrum) fixed his chronic shoulder condition, the elbow might go a la Joel Zumaya. Hope the best. This can be a really great signing if he is healthy.

When are the Twins annoucing the Scott Baker signing?

Originally Posted by SpiritofVodkaDave

When are the Twins annoucing the Scott Baker signing?

Same time the Cubs will announce the A. Sanchez signing and the Haren and cash for Marmol trade. "Done deals" get undone some times. Mea Culpa. Move on...