Papelbon Musings

In the Spring of 2006, I foolishly joined a Rotisserie Fantasy Baseball league. I say “foolish” because I was at the University of New Hampshire finishing my Masters degree in Museum Studies and really did not have the time or resources to begin to understand the rules or really grasp the commitment involved. As you can guess, my season was a disaster. No podcast could salvage the ashes of my terrible draft. I drafted one good player, third baseman David Wright, who was having a break-out season. I only made one other good move that year. I picked up Jonathan Papelbon just as he was becoming the Red Sox go-to Closer. It is for this reason that I have nothing but warm feelings for the guy.

Living in Vermont, I am surrounded by very vocal Red Sox and Yankees fans. I follow both teams because I genuinely enjoy the rivalry between the two. But, as a Phillies fan, I usually don’t engage in the rhetoric Sox and Yanks fans throw at each other. Yankees fans hate Papelbon. I think they see him as a Mariano Rivera wannabe and for a time they had trouble cracking his strong 9th inning performances. Last year, I couldn’t help but notice Red Sox fans hating on Papelbon, too. Some of them put the weight of last season’s collapse on his shoulders. Very unfair, in my eyes. The entire organization was responsible for the epic collapse, not just one guy.

So, when the Phils signed Papelbon, I should have been happy. A rational Phils fan should have realized we just got one of the best Closers in the biz. The move from the American League would make him an even stronger Closer because National League players are unfamiliar with his pitching style. But the rumors and the eventual signing left me feeling uneasy. Upon reflection, I think all the Red Sox fan negativity got to me. The collapse and the thought that perhaps, like Lidge, Papelbon had seen his best days. I am also presently uneasy because of Papelbon’s remarks about how the Phillies clubhouse is similar to the Red Sox clubhouse. On one hand, that is a tremendous compliment. The Red Sox, for years, were known to have a cohesive team-player dynamic. A chemistry even the Yanks could envy. On the other hand, this same team of brothers imploded when the pressure built up resulting in one of the worst team collapses in recent memory. I know Papelbon meant it as a compliment, but it has me worried that perhaps the seeds of collapse are also present in the Phil’s clubhouse.

I will try to stay positive and continue to hope Papelbon still has the stuff. But, that ever present fan doubt has me on the edge of my seat and the season hasn’t even begun.