Harden hoping to stay healthy

[February 16, 2009]  MESA, Ariz. (AP) -- Rich Harden's $7 million option was picked up by the Chicago Cubs, shortly after he was the losing pitcher in their final playoff game last fall.

Next up was a winter in Arizona, conditioning and strengthening the right shoulder that has caused him trouble over the past two seasons.

And the Cubs, as they did in the final month last season, are prepared to take a conservative approach with the hard-throwing right-hander this spring.

On the first workout Saturday for pitchers and catchers, Harden practiced his hitting but did his throwing on flat ground, not off the mound like most of his fellow hurlers.

"Don't read anything into it. We've got a much longer spring than normal, so we don't really need to rush anybody," manager Lou Piniella said. "He's been throwing and feels nice and strong and healthy. Basically we're just holding him back a little."

Harden was acquired in a trade from Oakland last July and went 5-1 with the Cubs -- the same record he had with the A's.

He made 12 starts for Chicago, pitching well at times with five double-digit strikeout games. But he was limited in the final month to only three starts before his playoff appearance. He finished the season with 25 starts, a figure he hopes to surpass this season.

Harden, whose fastball can hit 100 mph, realizes those days of raring back and letting loose could be a thing of the past if he wants to stay healthy for an entire season.

"The older I get the more I get away from that. I used to go out there and try and put up the big numbers and it was fun," Harden said. "But I think those times are over. Every once in a while, yeah. It's more about pitching now, location and changing speeds."

And he also knows there could be some skipped starts along the way to ensure his arm stays sound. He's made six trips to the disabled list in his career, three of them in the past two seasons because of the shoulder

"You can't really worry or think about it the way it used to be," Harden said. "Just deal with it. I got through last year and had success and hopefully I can build on that. I'm feeling better and stronger."

The 27-year-old Harden is in a rotation that also includes Carlos Zambrano, Ryan Dempster and Ted Lilly. He'd like to reach 30 starts, a figure he's hit once -- when he made 31 for Oakland in 2004, his second big league season.

"I got to learn to back off and try to pace myself and take a day off if that's what I got to do. It's tough, but you kinda of learn to manage yourself that way," Harden said.

A report in the Chicago Sun-Times says Harden actually has a tear in his right shoulder.

"Nothing that bad," Harden said without elaborating.

General manager Jim Hendry said Harden had the option of rehabbing his shoulder or having surgery that could cost him a year or a year and a half.

"He has an area in his shoulder that you either continue to rehab it or if you go in and operate on it you may miss 12 to 18 months," Hendry said. "But it's certainly nothing that he hasn't been able to pitch with, at least the amount of time he pitched last year, 24 or 25 starts.

"He's obviously had issues and we knew he had issues when we got him. So all you can do is keep building and try to strengthen the areas where he has his issues and move on."

Harden said he initially hurt his shoulder on a fielding play that occurred "a while back" during his career.

"I threw a pitch, had a comebacker. It was a one-hopper. I tried to barehand it and it was over my head and over my throwing shoulder," he said. "That's when I did it. It really wasn't throwing."

Piniella said Harden will pitch in spring training games eventually and he is expected to be ready for the beginning of the season.

So, can he match his 25 starts from a year ago?

"He might pitch 32. You never know," Piniella said. "We're going to watch his pitch count, keep him strong. The kid loves to compete, but at the same time we're aware he's had some physical problems and we're not going to overtax him."

Notes: Piniella said left-hander Sean Marshall has the edge in the competition for the fifth starter's role. Aaron Heilman, Jeff Samardzija, Chad Gaudin and rookie Mitch Atkins, who won 17 games in the minors last year, will also get a look. ... Ryan Dempster, who said on the first day of spring training last year that he thought the Cubs would win the World Series, didn't have a similar prediction Saturday. "I boldly predict that we're going to have a breakfast spread tomorrow and peanut butter and jelly for lunch," he said. Dempster, a 17-game winner who issued seven walks in Game 1 of the playoffs, turned serious and said of winning: "At least believe it, you know. I think saying it is obviously a lot more powerful."

[Associated Press; By RICK GANO]

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