THURSDAY, 3:22pm: Harden's deal with the Rangers is official, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The medical info checked out.
WEDNESDAY, 9:39pm: Ed Price of AOL FanHouse has the specifics: Harden makes $6.5MM next year, with $3.5MM in incentives based on innings pitched. The deal includes an $11MM mutual option for 2011 that includes a $1MM buyout in case either side wants to decline. So the deal, which is still pending a physical, guarantees Harden a minimum of $7.5MM.
5:10pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says Harden is close to signing with the Rangers.
4:24pm: Harden is close to signing with the Rangers, reports MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. NBC Sports' Craig Calcaterra had it first on Twitter, and says it's for $7.5MM with an $11.5MM option for 2011. As Evan Grant wrote earlier, Harden and Chris Ray would be risky but an upgrade on Kevin Millwood.
3:46pm: ESPN's Buster Olney has heard that Rich Harden is on the verge of an agreement with an unknown team. Olney notes that Harden has been heavily involved in negotiations with the Mariners, so that's one possibility. Indeed, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets that Harden is in talks with the Mariners.
