Are we nuts? Harden? He right now is our most effective starter. Heilman stinks, so let him rot in the basement someplace, but keep Harden, if you dont want to pay him get the draft choices, lord knows we need to build our sucky minor league system.

We put them on waivers. It's basically a "feeler" process. In Heilman's case, they'll see what the offer is and, if it is good (at the very least, it'd be the other team just takes his contract off our hands), we take it.

In Harden's case, the only teams that are going to make a waiver claim on him are contenders, with this being his last year under contract. That being the case, they'll offer significantly more because they seem him as a missing piece to their team. If it is a halfway decent offer, the worst we'd get would be one high-end prospect. Only a contender that's not serious about Harden is going to offer an excess bench player or other useless player, because there's no incentive to make the trade. So, if whoever made the Harden claim is even a little bit serious, then yeah, you make that trade in a heart beat, draft picks be damned, because you'll be getting, at the very least, a prospect that will be close to producing at the MLB level this year.

There's no losing with these two.

There's only 1 way Harden is back with cubs in 2010. Thats if they offer arby and he accepts, which is not likely.

The cubs would be fools to give him a dempster type of contract. He's an injury waiting to happen.

But then again, the cubs (JH) have been fools for the last 3 years or so with dumb contracts, so why stop now ?

:-)

Bottom line - He gone.

this has to be the worst news out of the whole season!!!!! wtf why get rid of harden,he has the best stuff on our whole pitching staff!!!!

I was furious when I heard the Cubs put Rich Harden and waivers considering there is still a chance we can resign him because our pitching staff is not looking to good for next year. Carlos Zambrano has given us nothing this year once again, we need to trade him. Aaron Heilman well I would just gave him away for free.

Bruce levine is reporting it was the Twins. The Cubs should ask for Denard Sapan and another prospect for Harden.

Or just Span for Harden straight up. Sapn is 25 batting .306 in 111 games but most likely if he does get traded it will be for prospects (3 or 4)

here Neil regarding the "TRON" http://espn.go.com/chicago/columns/blog?post=4415361&name=levine

Neil is there anyway to email the users when the blogtalkradio is about to start, i always forget!

Heilman? I wish we would have kept Ronny Cedeno--hey, he's better than Aaron Miles by far.

JHendry doesn't know what he is doing. He could have two draft choices if he keeps Harden and offers arbitration; instead he'll let him go for a bag of used balls. And if anybody wants Heilman, just saving whatever is left of his salary ought to be compensation enough.

I don't like the Twins talent vs. our needs in a Harden trade. They would like to move Delmon Young (24-ROF) but his personality is iffy. His line is .266-8-44, and he was can't miss two years ago. The best prospect for us could be an excellent young catcher, Wilson Ramos (22) who has moved up to AA. His line is .298-3-22 in 171 AB's. (If we have too many catchers in the system, we can trade one or two.)

Young pitchers Gutierrez (a top 10) and David Bromberg, out of the top 20 for now, are interesting. The latter is 12-3, 2.64 at high A with 59 W and 133 SO in 143 IP. None of their outfielders have much power and their young middle infieders don't either. And, they are not hitting for average.

In the AL, the Red Sox, Angels and Yankees would match up better, imo.

Denard Span ?
I like it.

I noticed he plays LF....does anyone know if he can play CF ?

Neil is right about the Twins teaching outstanding fundamental basebal. But adding to the points of Gramps, Mauer would never make it through.

I put his value close to that of Teixeira, and the Twins may have to trade him in a blockbuster deal when he gets close to free agency. I think he is signed through 2010. He will bring three or four high profile young (inexpensive) regulars and prospects. We likely don't have what the Twins would want now.

I believe that is what is happening to
Boston and the Mets re the Wagner Deal.

The Mets are supposed to get 2 players back...including AAA Boston player
Chris Carter...
The Yankees claimed him...reportedly to
force Boston to carry Carter on their
40 man roster for the rest of the season.
(and make their playoff roster maneuvering uncomfortable.)

The Mets and Boston can complete the deal after the season is over...no problem.

In the case of the Cubs and the Twins...
the Twins are 4 1/2 games behind Detroit
and the Cubs are out of it...so they
may or may not be blocked in a deal.

Harden can be dealt...and the returning players can come back to the Cubs at the season's conclusion...if there is a blocking or corresponding claiming move
with another club.

I meant to add that Harden could well be pulled off the waiver wire if the claimant is the Twins. Their top prospects don't fit our needs that well, and the worst case is that we get a first round pick and a supplemental first round pick for him. Once pulled, a claimed player can't be put back on the wire.

I posed a couple of deals for guys like him and Z prior to the (free) interleague trading deadline at the end of July. Unfortunately, "the book" said that we were still contending at that time.