RHP Adam Harben - AA?

RHSP Adam Harben - Tenn AA?

Position: P Full Name: Adam Benjamin Harben
Born: August 19, 1983 Little Rock,Arkansas
Height: 6-5 Weight: 210 Bats: R Throws: R
College: Westark Community College

Drafted - Selected by Detroit Tigers in 38th Round (1137th overall) of 2001 amateur entry draft (June-Reg) ... Selected by Minnesota Twins in 15th Round (452nd overall) of 2002 amateur entry draft (June-Reg) Jul 10,2002 - signed Sep 5,2006 - Traded by Twins to Cubs to complete Aug 31 trade

Acquired from the Twins in return for Phil Nevin, Harben is a tall, hard throwing pitcher with a lot of upside. He has a full repertoire of pitches, and definitely projects as a starter if he can bounce back from Tommy John surgery which caused him to miss most of the last year.

A pronounced ground ball pitcher, his hard sinker allows him to produce twice as many ground ball outs as fly ball outs.

Control has been as issue, he has always been a high walk guy (4.24 BB/9).

Was ranked as the Twins' 12th best prospect by Baseball America in 2006.

Repertoire
Sinker: Primary pitch, high 80s-90 mph.
Fastball: 90-96 mph, consistently in the lower 90s.
Curveball: Good breaking ball.
Changeup: Decent pitch, will probably need to develop it more after the Tommy John.

Pitchers who have undergone Tommy John Surgery in the Cubs’ system do not throw breaking pitches until at least 10 months after the operation, and Harben was limited to fastball-changeup late last year. Expect him to be eased back into his usual repertoire this season, building arm strength and stamina.

Delivery and mechanics




















Pretty much a straight over the top delivery, mid leg kick.

Career: 518.1 IP / 3.39 ERA / 474 K / 244 BB / 1.35 WHIP / 8.23 K/9 / 4.24 K/BB

Prospect grade: B- (good sleeper pick)