SEATTLE -- At about the midpoint of the 2004 season, right before Rich Harden started turning his electric potential into electric performances on a regular basis, Mark Mulder and Tim Hudson were asked how Harden stacked up with what was then Oakland's vaunted Big Three of Hudson, Mulder and Barry Zito.

"He's got better stuff than all three of us," said Mulder, now of the Cardinals. "I mean, that's the bottom line. ... Once he matures and gets more big-league starts, I wouldn't put it past him to be better than all three of us at some point. ... I mean, he could be that guy who honestly could pitch 200 innings and give up 100 hits. It's that kind of silly stat that you could see out of this guy."

Added Hudson, now with the Braves: "I think he probably has the best arm out of all of us. Shoot, he throws almost 100 mph. Where we differ is, he's more of a power pitcher, and we're just more polished as far as knowing how to pitch and using our game. I think we probably understand our game more so than he does, but that's gonna come. ... When you've got pitches like Rich, you don't need to be as polished."

The time to which Hudson referred seems to have come in a hurry. Harden, who entered Thursday's game against the Mariners with a 0.68 ERA in two starts, lowered that mark to 0.44 with seven shutout innings of five-hit work in a 3-0 victory.

So after watching Harden strike out eight, giving him 21 strikeouts in 20 1/3 innings this year, A's manager Ken Macha, who was with Oakland when each of the Big Three made his big-league debut, was asked if he agreed with his former aces.

Might Harden really be better than Hudson, Mulder and Zito some day?

"I'm gonna say yeah," Macha said. "There's certain things he can do that the other guys couldn't."

Things like throwing 96 mph on his 119th pitch of the game, as Harden did Thursday while striking out Miguel Olivo with two runners on to end the seventh inning. Hudson is the hardest thrower and most accomplished of the Big Three, but he's a sinkerball specialist who generally tops out at 95.

"He might have another dimension that Huddy didn't have; the ability to elevate [in the strike zone]," Macha said. "[Harden] can pitch at 94 and get two strikes on a guy, then jump it up to 97."

Making Harden even more dangerous this year is the development of a changeup that was routinely clocked at 88 on Thursday. That's a decent Zito fastball.

"He's been pretty much unhittable," said A's outfielder Mark Kotsay, whose two-run homer in the third inning padded the lead that Mark Ellis' RBI triple gave Harden in the second.

And he's been that way for a while now. While Hudson, Mulder and Zito staggered to the finish line last season, Harden was emerging as the team's true ace. He went 8-2 with a 3.49 ERA after the All-Star break.

"Last year down the stretch, it wasn't Hudson, Mulder or Zito," Kotsay said. "It was Rich Harden who picked up the workload. Rich Harden was the show in the second half, and he's continued that [this year]."

Only two balls were hit with authority against Harden, who has a 16-inning scoreless streak. Randy Winn doubled down the right-field line in the third and Wilson Valdez lined a single in the sixth, but Seattle's other hits were an infield single by Ichiro Suzuki and a bloop single by Bret Boone.

Harden even got Ichiro to hit into a double play. He hit into only six double plays in 2004 and hadn't yet hit into one this year.

Rich Harden  /   P
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"That never crosses your mind," Harden said of doubling up Ichiro. "Any other time, yeah, but with him, that's a pretty rare thing."

"That's pretty cool," said Ellis, who made a lightning-quick turn after getting the feed at second from shortstop Marco Scutaro. "When he's up, you just think about getting one."

Seattle got two runners past first base against Harden, and each time he powered his way out of the jam. With runners at the corners in the third, he struck out Jeremy Reed to end the inning, and with runners at first and second and one out in the seventh, he struck out Winn and Olivo.

"My arm's feeling pretty good out there," said Harden, who is to boastful what Ali was to modest. Ask Harden about how great he's throwing the ball and he talks about veteran catcher Jason Kendall instead.

"He's been really great for me," said Harden, who threw fastballs and changeups almost exclusively Thursday. "He mixes it up really well and keeps the hitters off my fastball."

But if Harden is unwilling to toot his own horn, there's a whole brass section of admirers waiting to chime in. And the man he beat Thursday, Mariners starter Ryan Franklin, has joined the band.

"We have a great hitting ballclub, but their guy threw a great game against us, and that's about all you can say," Franklin said.

And then he said one more thing: "He probably has the best arm in the big leagues."