Paul and Tim discuss the merits of the Keurig coffee machine, the contracts of Kevin Youkilis and Jonathan Papelbon, and look at the early returns from the infield in the 2009 "For Better or Worse" series on Fire Brand of the American League. Oh...and how could we forget banging our heads against the Varitek wall a few more times before a final decision is made.
All that and more on Episode #32 of Fireside Chats on MVN!
With the news that uber-closer Jonathan Papelbon has signed a record-breaking $6.25 million contract in his first year of arbitration, it's clear that Papelbon has to be considered one of, if not the, best closer in the game now.
But how long will that last?
Jayson Stark's latest piece has a look out on arbitration. Here are the relevant pieces:
There's one more groundbreaking case on this list, and Papelbon is it. From every indication, Papelbon will wind up with the highest salary ever by a closer with three years of service time. The only mystery is: How much?
"This one perplexes me," one NL executive said. "This guy has been so good, and that team has such deep resources, I don't know what I'm missing. Why haven't they signed him? If you're trying to pick out the next Mariano Rivera, wouldn't it be him? Plus, he's a guy who he handles that whole Boston scene so well."
All true. Yet this has the potential to be a tricky, maybe even explosive, case.
Papelbon has spent the past three years willingly sacrificing himself for the greater good, allowing the Red Sox to define his role outside the boundaries of common modern-day closer ground rules. His 22 saves of four outs or more since 2006 rank second only to Rivera's, and his 35 appearances of four outs or more rank third among closers, behind Rivera and J.J. Putz.
But now, in return, Papelbon is looking for a reward for his sacrifice, his workload and the toll that workload could take on his potential career longevity. The result is a philosophical difference about his value that the Red Sox haven't been able to resolve. You wouldn't think either side would want this to reach a hearing room. But follow this case carefully.
The Red Sox have had a lot of success convincing their players to take less money for the sheer joy of playing in Boston. But Papelbon and Youkilis are two who haven't been willing to play that game. Yet. One GM wonders whether Youkilis (now two years from free agency) is a victim of his do-it-ugly persona: "Teixeira gets his money because he produces AND he looks really good doing it. But if you look at the last two years, the guy who has outproduced him is Youkilis."
Some of the biggest signings that the Boston Red Sox make this offseason might not have anything to do with new faces set to make a splash in Boston. The biggest signings to happen, or "not" to happen, may be with some more familiar faces (and no, this isn't a sign Derek Lowe and take a flyer on Pedro Martinez and Curt Schilling post).
I'll throw out a few names for you; Jason Bay, Dustin Pedroia, Jonathan Papelbon, Kevin Youkilis, Jon Lester.
While each of these players is currently "under team control" for next season and in most cases beyond, each could pen to paper on a new contract this offseason. At the same time, each enters their respective negotiations with their teams under slightly different circumstances.
Now, the Boston Red Sox are playing like the defending champions they are.
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