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The Indians have signed veteran right-hander Aaron Harang to a minor-league deal, pending a physical.
Harang, 35, spent most of 2013 with the Mariners, before being released and signing with the Mets to end the season. For the full season he posted a 5.40 ERA (68 ERA+). His strikeout and walk rates were reasonable, but he gave up 26 home runs in 143.1 innings, which works out to 1.63 per 9 innings, the highest rate of any pitcher with 140+ innings.
Harang was better than that in both 2011 and 2012 (spent with the Padres and Dodgers, respectively), with an ERA+ (102) and FIP (4.15) both right around league average, but at his age he seems unlikely to turn things back around.
| Year | Age | Tm | G | SHO | IP | HR | BB | SO | ERA+ | WHIP | HR/9 | BB/9 | SO/9 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 32 | CIN | 5.32 | 22 | 0 | 111.2 | 16 | 38 | 82 | 77 | 1.585 | 1.3 | 3.1 | 6.6 |
| 2011 | 33 | SDP | 3.64 | 28 | 0 | 170.2 | 20 | 58 | 124 | 98 | 1.365 | 1.1 | 3.1 | 6.5 |
| 2012 | 34 | LAD | 3.61 | 31 | 0 | 179.2 | 14 | 85 | 131 | 105 | 1.403 | 0.7 | 4.3 | 6.6 |
| 2013 | 35 | SEA/NYM | 5.40 | 26 | 2 | 143.1 | 26 | 40 | 113 | 68 | 1.347 | 1.6 | 2.5 | 7.1 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com
Harang did manage to throw two complete game shutouts in 2013, one of which featured 10 strikeouts and just 2 hits, so on the right day, he can still be quite effective. I can't see him winning the fifth spot in the rotation, but if he's willing to go to Columbus to begin the year, he could be called upon to fill in for a spot start here or there if the rotation suffers an injury or two.
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