Jonathan Papelbon

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Jonathan Papelbon

Boston Red Sox — No. 58
Starting Pitcher
Bats: Right Throws: Right
Major League Baseball debut
July 31, 2005 for the Boston Red Sox
Selected MLB statistics
(through 2006)
Record     7-3
Strikeouts     109
ERA     1.50
Innings pitched     102.1

Jonathan Robert Papelbon (born November 23, 1980 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana) is a pitcher for the Boston Red Sox. He bats and throws right-handed.

Papelbon was drafted by the Red Sox in 2003 out of Mississippi State. Papelbon throws a fastball clocked as high as 99 mph, typically hitting the mid-90s, with great command. He has a good slider and a changeup, as well as a curveball. He also added a splitter to his arsenal, after some tutoring from teammate Curt Schilling.

He was the Red Sox closer during most of 2006. In early September, Papelbon injured his shoulder; when the Red Sox were eliminated from playoff contention, he was "shut down" for the rest of the season to rest. He is expected to be in the starting rotation in 2007.

Contents

[edit] Early life

Papelbon was a three-time All-City honoree while playing high school baseball. [1]

[edit] Career

[edit] Mississippi State

Papelbon was a closer at Mississippi State University. He had a 9-6 record, 13 saves, and 2.90 ERA in his three years on the team.

[edit] Minor Leagues

After a 13-10 record for Class-A Lowell and Sarasota from 2003-04, Papelbon was 5-2 in 14 starts for Double-A Portland in 2005. Promoted to Triple-A Pawtucket, he went 1-2 with a 3.57 ERA in four starts, walking two and striking out 21 in 22.1 innings.

[edit] Major Leagues

Papelbon made his major league debut with the Red Sox on July 31, 2005 against Minnesota, in which he went 5 1/3 innings, struck out seven batters, and issued five walks in Boston's 4-3 victory. He did not receive a decision. He earned his first major league win on September 12, 2005, pitching three scoreless innings in an extra-inning game against the Toronto Blue Jays. In two postseason appearances, he pitched four scoreless innings against the White Sox.

The Red Sox had plans of slotting Papelbon into their starting rotation prior to the regular season in 2006. However, the incumbent closer, Keith Foulke, proved to be ineffective trying to come back from an injury-plagued 2005. On April 5th, the second game of the 2006 season, Papelbon recorded his first career save in Texas. He went on to pile up 26 saves before the mid-season break.

The 25-year-old closer finished 2006 with one of the most dominant seasons ever for a rookie pitcher. Papelbon saved 35 games, struck out 75 batters in 68 innings, and held opposing batters to a minuscule .167 batting average.

[edit] Honors

[edit] Miscellany

  • Papelbon was drafted in the fourth round in 2003, a year after the Athletics picked him in the 40th round. He did not sign because he wanted one more year in college to pitch and a chance to get to the College World Series, which his team failed to do. The Phillies had called him in round six to ask if he’d sign if they drafted him, but he rejected the offer. Finally, the Red Sox drafted him the next year in the fourth round.
  • Papelbon was rated the Red Sox' No. 3 prospect by Baseball America in 2005 and 2006.
  • In April 2006, he received a Mohawk styled after Charlie Sheen's character Ricky Vaughn from the film Major League due to a wager with teammate Kevin Youkilis in which they bet whether he could start the season with 10 scoreless innings.
  • Papelbon, unhappy with his entrance music of Drowning Pool at Fenway Park, requested a fan poll from the Boston Herald. In the meantime, he entered to songs by AC/DC as well as the theme song of former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) wrestler Ultimate Warrior, and "The Enemy" by Boston-based rock group Godsmack. He now enters to "Wild Thing" by The Troggs, also Rick Vaughn's entrance music in Major League.
  • On April 29, 2006, he set a major league record with his 10th save, against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. No rookie in major league baseball history had recorded that many saves in the month of April.
  • From April 5, 2006 to June 8, 2006, Papelbon saved 20 consecutive games with an ERA of 0.21, allowing one earned run over 29 innings.
  • Papelbon's brother, Joshua Papelbon, was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 48th round on June 7, 2006; Josh's twin Jeremy was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 19th round.
  • Runner up to Justin Verlander for the 2006 AL Rookie of the Year

[edit] Sources

[edit] External links

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