News
Harden baffles Brewers in 2009 debut
Righty fans 10; homer one of few mistakes in stellar start
By Carrie Muskat / MLB.com
04/10/09 9:30 PM ET
MILWAUKEE -- Rich Harden hasn't been very forthcoming about what type of pitches he throws. The Brewers were just as confused on Friday.Harden struck out 10 for his eighth career 10-K game in the Cubs' 4-3 loss to the Brewers. He was in line for the win until Milwaukee rallied in the ninth.
"He did a good job," Cubs catcher Koyie Hill said of the right-hander, who gave up three hits and walked one in six innings. "I caught him pretty much all through spring, and this was by far the best he was out there. He kept us in the ballgame. He was in full control of all his stuff. It was a lot of fun."
Not for the Brewers.
"His off-speed pitch is a changeup, but sometimes it [acts like] a slider; sometimes it's a splitter, and his fastball is really explosive," Milwaukee's Ryan Braun said. "His arm action is a little different from most pitchers, so it's difficult to pick the ball up."
Braun did single off Harden in the first inning, driving in Rickie Weeks, who had reached on a throwing error by shortstop Ryan Theriot. The late afternoon sun created weird shadows and bright spots on the field at Miller Park as the light shone through the upper-deck windows. It was tough for Theriot to see first baseman Derrek Lee in the first.
"It was tough to see everything early," Theriot said. "I think that just comes with playing here, and the 3:05 start is a little bit different, so you're not quite used to it. There's no excuse. You go out there and figure it out, and if you have to, you put on some sunglasses."
The light didn't bother Harden, who threw 96 pitches, 63 for strikes, in his first game of the regular season.
"I felt good out there," Harden said. "There's more intensity out there at the start of the season, and you get that extra bit of adrenaline. Overall, I felt good, but it was a tough finish."
The Brewers scored two runs in the ninth for the win, taking advantage of a one-out walk. Harden's only mistake was a 2-2 pitch to Corey Hart with two outs in the third that the slugger launched into the right-field seats for his first home run.
"It was a two-strike pitch, [but] got a little too much of the plate," Harden said. "It's still a decent pitch, but two strikes, I want to get something out of the zone a little more. I just kind of left it there for him, and he hit it."
This was the fourth 10-strikeout game Harden has had with the Cubs that he didn't get the win. Last year, he fanned 10 each in three consecutive starts on July 12 vs. the Giants, July 21 vs. the Diamondbacks, and July 26 vs. the Marlins, but was 0-1 in that stretch. And in the one loss to Arizona, he gave up one run on one hit in seven innings.
The Miller Park radar gun readings showed Harden hitting the mid-90s with consistency.
"I was never really too concerned about the velocity in spring," Harden said. "It's a lot different once you get out here. It's a game that means something. You can bring more intensity. Overall, I was happy with the way I felt today. I still felt like I could've thrown more pitches."
It's all encouraging.
Carrie Muskat is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
