CHICAGO | The 47 strikeouts Rich Harden has recorded in 30 innings in his five starts with the Cubs aren't results of rearing back and throwing as hard as he can.

More than any other Cub, Harden might have greater understanding of the science of kinesiology -- how muscles and tendons work together to produce a positive athletic result.

No wonder Harden on Saturday showed off a baton-like device, with ball-like structures at each end and a hollowed-out middle in which a small metal structure moves back and forth. The cutting-edge Oakland Athletics, his former team, use this device to help condition pitchers, and Harden swears he can gauge his mechanics with the faux baton when he holds it up going through his pitching motion.

"I've always been a firm believer that lot of power for pitchers comes from the legs, core strength," Harden said. "It's being able to put it all together, being able to get your body to work together, to get your legs to work with your core and shoulder. There's a whole kinetic chain involved. When you push off your legs, your core goes up diagonally into shoulder, and then you use your arm like a whip."

Harden has good reason to play strict attention to the fine mechanics of pitching. He has a gift of maximum speed that few others possess. Harden has been recorded as throwing 101 mph this year.

The caveat is that any flaws in his delivery could damage his shoulder and elbow. He's already experienced a myriad of injuries, few of which he said can actually be linked to the act of throwing a baseball hard.

Throwing at his fastest is "definitely" just like playing catch, free and easy without much effort, Harden said. But it has to be accomplished correctly.

"Too many people try to create the velocity too early," he said. "They'll really muscle up and try to throw too hard. When I'm really throwing it up there in the upper 90s, I'm free and easy, and at last minute, I whip my arm through. That's the different between 92 and 99 mph. At the end, you want to fire it and whip it. It's a great feeling.

"You can still be maximum effort, but still probably expend less effort than someone else who is really muscling up, arms going this way, legs going that way instead of being almost effortless in it. With me you're putting a lot of effort into it, but it's only at the finish."

Harden has continually worked at refining his mechanics for maximum efficiency without wasted effort.

"When I first came into the league, it was a real big deal for me," he said of throwing hard. "I think as a young pitcher you can get too into it, too concerned about it. Try to throw the ball as hard as you can, and throw even harder. It puts a lot of strain on your body.

"The older I get, the more I learn to back off and pitch at a lower velocity. And when I need it, give it a little extra. I've been most successful doing that."