Brad Penny was greeted rudely by the American League this year, but he pitched well in four of five starts for the Giants after being released by the Red Sox in late August. Penny had kind words for the Giants, speaking to Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News. Penny's thoughts on re-signing with San Francisco:
"We'll see. I've loved it here, but I haven't thought about next year yet."
Baggarly notes that Penny does prefer to pitch for a West Coast team. A return to the Dodgers is presumably out, so if Penny wants to stay in the NL and sticks to his geographic preference he's looking at the Giants or Padres. Baggarly senses Penny will "let market forces determine his fate." Despite a 5.15 ERA in 164.3 innings this year, Penny remains intriguing and will be guaranteed millions. With a 94.0 mph average fastball velocity this year, he's easily the hardest-throwing free agent starter.
