It's Nice To Pitch In The NL
Brad Penny racked up a 5.61 ERA in the AL this year and a 2.59 ERA in the NL. Now the Cardinals have apparently given him $7.5 million to come pitch in the NL. Are the Cardinals insane or do they know something about Penny and the NL?
Looking at the stats, one would think they are insane. Penny suffered from a bit of bad luck in Boston, racking up a .327 BABIP, but that was completely reversed in San Francisco where it dropped to an amazingly low .206. When you combine that with his strikeout rate actually decreasing from the AL to the NL, this is not a very good signing for the Cards. It's also another important warning to AL GM's- beware pitchers from the NL.