John Smoltz isn't quite ready to hang up his cleats.  Apparently, the St. Louis Cardinals don't believe he is, either.

The NL Central leaders signed the 42-year-old former ace on Wednesday, shortly after he was dismissed by the Boston Red Sox with a 2-5 record and 8.33 ERA over eight starts.  The Cardinals are hoping Smoltz can fill the void as the fifth starter or maybe even move to the bullpen for some right-handed relief.

And what do they have to lose?  Um, pretty much nothing.  Boston is responsible for a huge portion of Smoltz's contract while St. Louis only needs to fork out the prorated share of the major leauge minimum, which ends up being roughly $100,000 for the rest of the year.  A sweet deal for St. Louis, getting a dirt-cheap utility pitcher, and a sweeter deal for Smoltz: he gets to pitch.

Plus, he’s the only pitcher in baseball history with 200 wins and 150 saves, compiling a 212-152 record, 3.32 ERA and 154 saves over 21 seasons in the game.  He's also an eight-time All-Star, and holds the record for postseason wins.  That could come in handy in the playoffs, where the Cards are almost certain to end up.

The former Cy Young winner will join his new team Thursday when St. Louis plays the San Diego Padres.

Fantasy advice time!  So, just because the good folks over in St. Louis think Smoltz can still pitch (a risk worth taking) doesn't mean you should run out and add him to your roster.  Heading to the National League will help ease up on that god-awful ERA of his, but he proved in Boston that he's starting to struggle against left-handed bats.  However, as long as his velocity and movement don't fall completely out of whack, he could be worth a look if your pitching is in desperate need. 

Desperate need.

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