Harden Probably Not Going to the Twins

The Twins may not be the team who claimed Rich Harden, says Joe Christensen. Twins officials Saturday would not confirm or deny that they are the team that placed a claim on Cubs pitcher Rich Harden, as ESPN Chicago has reported. I don’t really think it matters who claimed Harden. The only question is whether or not the Cubs have the intention of re-signing Harden and if they do, he won’t be traded. If they don’t have intention then it becomes an issue of getting more in return than they would get from the 2 additional draft picks. Considering he would be a one-month rental that is unlikely. But two people close to Harden said they doubted Harden is heading to the Twins. To their knowledge, the Cubs had yet to open a window for the Twins to negotiate a long-term deal with Harden, who is a pending free agent. The Cubs would be silly to trade Harden.