Harden Vs. Sabathia Revisited

In the weeks before the MLB trade deadline the Milwaukee Brewers made a big splash by trading for CC Sabathia in the hopes that the addition of Sabathia would be enough to get them into the playoffs. Not to be outdone the Chicago Cubs followed suit by trading for oft-injured Rich Harden hoping to keep the Brewers at bay. After both trades occurred I wrote an article, http://thesportsinformer.blogspot.com/2008/07/mlb-harden-or-sabathia.html, where I broke down the trade and claimed that the Brewers got the better deal.

Now almost one month later I have decided to come back and see if my analysis was correct of the deals. So lets look at these two aces side by side and see who most teams would rather have and see who came out on top.

Sabathia: Since being traded to the Brewers Sabathia is pitching like a man possessed. He is currently in his contract year and has claimed that the wants "Santana money" in the off-season. Before the deal people scoffed at this and said CC was worn out but he has turned heads since going to Milwaukee. He is 7-0 since the trade and has given up only 15 ER in 80 Innings. He has also pitched 4 complete games since being there, 3 in a row at one point, and has 81 Ks to only 17 BBs. He has brought his ERA down from the mid 5 range to 3.04 and is sporting a WHIP of 1.14. Not only are his numbers great but the team definitely plays well behind Sabathia and he has really kept them afloat during this pennant race.

Sabathia's teammate Corey Hart had this to say of CC after his most recent win. ''He's been everything we thought he'd be,'' Hart said. ''When he's out there, we feel like we don't have to score a lot because he's not going to give up a lot. When he's out there, there's a good chance we'll win.''

It looks like CC Sabathia was the perfect fit for the Brewers and may have found a new home in Milwaukee if they can show him the money at the end of the season.

Harden: The big question that everyone had coming out of the Harden deal was can he stay healthy? So far Harden has managed to stay off of the DL and has pitched pretty well for the Cubs. He is 3-2 for the Cubs and has given up only 12 ER in his first 10 games. He has also been striking out hitters all over the place as he has 74 Ks in just over 57 Innings including a streak of 3 games with at least 10 Ks. Harden has not gotten the run support however as in 2 of his losses the other team only score 2 runs. Harden has been what everyone expected him to be however and the Cubs haven't lost any ground since acquiring him so it looks to be a good deal for them.

Comparison: 7-0 compared to 3-2 is a huge stat in favor of Sabathia. Sabathia has also thrown 23 more innings than Harden in the same amount of games which means he is putting less stress on the bullpen. Sabathia has pitched at least 8 innings 7 of his last 10 games where has Harden has only gone past the 7th inning once. The Cubs may be wanting to save Harden's arm for the post-season but all of that extra bullpen work is not a good thing.

Winner: The Brewers. Sabathia has been better and is pitching better than Harden. They did have to give up top prospect Matt LaPorta for him but if they can resign Sabathia in the off-season or at least end their playoff drought then it will all have been worth it.