Meet Jonathan Papelbon

I feel like there are a lot of mixed feelings on the signing of closer Jonathan Papelbon.  Some people feel that he is past his prime and the Phils front office overpaid for him.  Still others feel that he was the best reliever on the market and say bravo to the Phillies for going out and getting their man once again.

When you look at the numbers, there is no denying the fact that Papelbon is one of the game's elite closers.  In 7 seasons with the Red Sox, he was 23-19 with a 2.33 ERA and 219 saves.  In 6 seasons as the Red Sox main closer Papelbon has posted 30 or more saves in all years and only had an ERA over 3.00 once.  And those are just regular season stats.  In 18 post season games, Papelbon is 2-1 with a 1.00 ERA and 7 saves.  In 3 World Series games in 2007, Papelbon allowed 0 runs and recorded 3 saves to help the Sox win the title.  Basically the man has been in the tough spots and has gotten it done.

Personally I would have liked to see the Phillies spend the money on more pressing offensive issues.  I still consider Jimmy Rollins a vital part of this offense and it would have been nice to see the Phillies bring him back first.  But at the same time I definitely feel that Papelbon is an upgrade over Madson.  I was never entirely sold on Madson as closer primarily because I didn't think he was a true closer.  In Madson's early years he was originally a starter and I think that over the course of his career the Phillies continued to try and force him into being something he wasn't.

Papelbon is a natural closer and he also shakes up the clubhouse.  He is very bold and has a lot of confidence, and his personality and talent will definitely help the Phillies next year.  Forget about what you are hearing from other baseball fans.  They will tell you that Papelbon was awful down the stretch last year and helped in the Red Sox collapse.  In reality, Papelbon had just 2 bad outings in September.  They are just trying to down play the fact that the Phillies just got a whole lot better with the addition of Papelbon.

I'm not going to lie, there is no getting around the fact that in the past, when teams go out and spend big money on a closer it usually doesn't work out.  But look at 2008.  Brad Lidge came in for the Phillies and was perfect.  Will Papelbon's contract be worth it if he comes in and gives the Phillies a perfect 2012?  I think so, and I think the Papelbon can come in and be that dominant lights out closer especially in the NL.  As for the rest of the off season I think RAJ still has something up his sleeve, and we will just have to wait and see how it all unfolds.