ESPN

Can you believe how clever that headline is? We can guarantee that no one has ever made a money-related joke out of Brad Penny's last name. New ground is broken every day here in Bristol.

Boston fans probably aren't laughing (no part of this post so far has made fun of Alex Rodriguez, for instance). In the past week, both Penny (5.61 ERA in Boston) and John Smoltz (8.32 ERA in Boston) had perhaps their best starts of the year ... in the National League. Smoltz is 1-0 with a .82 ERA for the Cardinals, while Penny has a sterling 0.00 mark in one start with the Giants. Both of these are a far cry from watching balls fly over the Green Monster with increasing frequency.

What gives? Did Penny, a 10-year veteran, and Smoltz, a future Hall of Famer, simply forget how to pitch while in Boston? Maybe it was the pressure? More than likely, it was going from the constant artillery barrage that is the American League East to the gentler climes of the NL Central and West. All we know is that, with Penny, the Giants have gotten a pretty good return on investment. Ha! We can't think of any clever puns for Smoltz's last name.

• Perhaps due to Smoltz's illustrious career, a small majority of SportsNation thinks he'll be better going forward.
• Member tyler-shuey ranks each pitching staff and thinks Smoltz could make the Cardinals nasty.
• Groups: The San Francisco Giants Group | Redbirds Nest | BOSTON RED SOX

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Moral of the story: If you're an AL GM, don't sign National League players and expect them to produce. I wouldn't even bet on Pujols to hit 40 homers in the AL.

” -- monsterdog5