Major League Baseball

Harden, Rangers agree to one-year deal

Published Dec. 11, 2009 12:48 a.m. ET

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Ken Rosenthal

The Rangers are putting their savings from the Kevin Millwood trade to good use.

News and notes

The Rangers have signed free-agent right-hander Rich Harden to a one-year contract with a mutual club option.

"When he's out there, this is a guy with No. 1 ability. He's a stopper in the true sense of the word. That's something we felt we needed," general manager Jon Daniels said on a conference call.

The financial terms were not disclosed, but are valued at $7.5 million according to published reports, which qualifies the deal as one of the biggest surprises of the winter meetings.

The Rangers, in the middle of an ownership transition, will save $9 million by trading Millwood to the Orioles. Most of that money will be reallocated to Harden.

When healthy, Harden is a dominant, top-of-the-rotation starter. However, he has been hampered by injuries throughout his career.

"We understand we're going to have to take some steps to keep him healthy," Daniels said. "We understand the risk involved."

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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