Jim Hendry isn't a small guy. Rich Harden's agent Arn Tellem isn't a quiet guy, considering he helped change the way money works in baseball negotiating huge contracts for Albert Belle and Mike Mussina in the late '90s/early 2000's. So how is that these two totally missed each other this week at O'Hare? Tellem only has one of the biggest pitching prizes on the market, and Hendry only has to pull a rabit out of his hat to make up for the 2009 mess. Oh, and he might want to shore up on pitching because the mystery that is Ted Lilly's shoulder can't be counted on right now.

The fact they didn't even have five minutes of conversation is very concerning. Justin touched on this yesterday, but I thought I would flush it out. It is very possible that Hendry is so completely preoccupied with dumping Milton Bradley on someone that he is neglecting the rest of the team. Milton is probably the hottest potato in major league baseball, but he does have a ton of baseball skill and teams he has been on have made the playoffs before. There will always be interest in him, all Hendry has to do is determine whether or not the Ricketts family is willing to bite the bullet on his salary.

Rich Harden doesn't have the leverage to negotiate a giant deal that would make returning to the Cubs impossible. Very few teams are going to be willing to  give him $8-10 million a year with his injury history. One of the two teams that actually could, Boston, is apparently showing interest now, which I hope isn't amplified to Harden and Tellem because of the Cubs apparent lack of interest. Seattle is the other team supposedly interested, and that is bad for the Cubs too because that is a pretty nice situation for Rich. He would get to be back in a division he has had success in, play in a way less intense environment (just ask Lou) and have even more pressure taken off him pitching in the same rotation as Felix Hernandez.

The Cubs aren't going to get any better pitching-wise by losing Harden. As Justin has noted before, he is poised for a breakout year. He was healthy for the most part last season and his strikeout rate was off the charts (10.91). He did have a rollercoaster like season, but with 1 1/2 seasons to get to know him, Lou, Larry and the training staff can utilize him better next year and make sure he is in situations to succeed.

What frustrates and tears me most about the Milton situation is that the guy is supremely talented. The Cubs haven't won in 101 years because teams have lacked talent rather than any curse or black cat running in front of Ron. Chemistry and clubhouse rapport play a part, but at the end of the day talent is one of the most important elements to winning. The Yankees won this year because they were the most talented team in baseball, or at least had a great talent in the right spots. Rich Harden is amazingly talented, and he isn't a "clubhouse cancer" like Milton, so why not keep him? The benefit of him reaching his potential next year far outweighs the risk of injury and replacing him with Tom Gorzelanny or another less-talented pitcher.

Photo courtesy chrisoleary.com.

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