Paps has made it pretty clear, he wants the money. Most likely the Yankees are going to be the one to give it to him. When he is finally eligable for free agency in 2011 the Yankees will need a closer (I don’t think Mo has that many years left in him).

Paps has seen the recent pay upgrades for closers lately and wants to get paid BIG bucks. As far as I am concerned he can go for it, that is what the yankees are for, players who want to get paid more then they are worth and don’t want to play the game hard.

We have alot of relievers waiting in the wings to take over the closer role for a much cheaper price. I think Theo will give him an offer that we see fair, Paps will not accept and will be gone.

Prepare yourself Red Sox Nation

I am absolutely furious with Papelbon’s comments. I don’t know who he thinks he is, but to come out and say this, and referring to the Red Sox’s biggest rivals (THE YANKEES) makes me want to take back the jersey I just bought a mere two days ago.

All he cares about is the money, not the fans. I am disgusted.

I would trade him now. Send him to the Pirates. I really don’t care. Daniel Bard is the new closer from now on.

If you read the interview, it was a lot more innocent than this snippet that MLBTR pulled out of it. The question was like-if you don’t sign in Boston, would you consider the Yanks. I think Pap was trying to say that he’d consider everywhere to get a nice salary, notice how he said “not only the Bronx but anywhere”. So let’s worry about this in 2011, but a lot could change between now and then, including Pap’s age and majority. The other thing is that Theo can come up clutch with players he feels loyalty from and feels are a necessity for the club. Theo and Pap are tight, and he is a presence on the mound and in PR (Manny didn’t want a part in representing the club in ads and around the community, so less remorse there). Also, Pap was a player that Theo drafted. So if the Pap deserves a big contract (which he probably will)-I think that the Red Sox will be fair in negotiating with him to come to agreement on what he deserves.

Do I want to hear this during the season? No. But ultimately we’ve known this all along that he’s looking to get paid and that’s it. I don’t think he’s approaching the game differently than the organizations do. It’s a business in which he knows he can get paid big bucks. If that’s what he wants, so be it. There’s no loyalty in baseball so why should this come as a surprise. It just so happens that the team who’d pay him the most is our rivals. I don’t necessarily take it as he wants to be a Yankee. He wants the Triple Crown – money, power and respect. Sox won’t offer the money (I’m assuming) so the next best fit is the Bronx.

Really has not been that good this year. His K/9 is his lowest since 2005 and his BB/9 is his highest since 2005. HIs K/BB has dropped to a relatively unimpressive 2.21, his WHIP is 1.34, and his FIP has jumped to 3.93. I wouldn’t be all that opposed to trading him after the season if it got us a nice prospect such as Matt LaPorta, or, dare I dream, SS Alcides Escobar.

He’s basically an immature guy who makes a number of stupid statements. This isn’t the first time he has said this about money with threats to leave, nor is it the first time he’s put his foot in his mouth. Papelbon a great competitor and the Sox need him….and will pay him big bucks, I assume, to keep him, but those comments are not necessary, especially during the middle of the season. Can you imagine guys like Derek Jeter or Albert Pujols saying something like that? No…….they have more class. Unfortunately, guys like them are in the small minority.

If a team like the MFY are willing to give him a large sum more than we are willing to offer it only make sense for him to go where the money is.

People will talk about loyalty to the team, how he is a sell out, and only cares about money. But what about the organizations part in this, it’s loyalty to it’s players? A player who was home grown and helped win us a World Series. If the organization isn’t willing to pony up when the player is no longer under team control, why should a player settle for less?

Also, people see to miss the part in the interview where he says, “Because nowadays that is very, very rare and hopefully we can because there’s no question I would love to stay in a Boston Red Sox uniform”

He wants to stay a Red Sox, but it’s unfair to him to expect him to stay a Red Sox at the expensive of millions of dollars.

In regards to his comments being said during the season. I personally like players like Paps who are honest, and willing to answer questions when asked.

Regarding Pap’s making the comments in the first place during the season. I personally prefer a player who is honest and answers questions asked to him by reporters. I find it very disingenuous when players dodge questions with cliché answer like,

"I’ll make that decision at the end of the year. Right now I’m just focusing on this season. I got to go out there an play one game at a time, one save at a time."

Ok,Ok,im a NY fan, BUT fan of the game much more.You guys need o forget this kid and sighn Bay.He by far will become the best trade Boston will make in there history, again im NY fan,like your team,SIGHN BAY!! he will take ya all the way, have fun

A lot of people defend comments like Paps saying “it’s his job, if you were offered a higher salary at your job wouldn’t you take it?”, fine, okay, but if we are making that comparison you have to fully make the comparison, and here’s the difference, if I was in the middle of a huge project at work, and wasn’t due for a raise for at least another 1.5 years, and said not just privately to a co-worker, but publically, knowing that everyone in the company would hear about it that “If I don’t get the raise I feel I deserve in a year and a half, I’m finding a new job” that would be classless, unprofessional, and I would definitely get disciplined. There’s nothing wrong with having that opinion, or even expressing that opinion privately to close co-workers and friends, but it’s selfish to announce it in a public interview because it’s basically saying “I don’t care about the success of the projects we’re laboring on right now, all I care about is me and whether I get paid down the road”. Like others have said, it’s the timing that is bothersome.

The other annoying part is that when there was discussion of whether to make him a starter or leave him the closer, and they decided to leave him a closer he said “In my heart that’s what I wanted. I want to be for the Red Sox what Mo is for the Yankees. I want to be the red sox closer for years to come and retire a sox” or something like that….and then he saw how much closers were making on the FA market and suddenly all loyalty seems to have gone out the window

Loyalty brings $$$,kids just dont want to waite

maybe im just a bit to old , but i bet Wakefield is very Happy.$$$ is not everything.

yep.i agree with that

Well, as i said before im a NY fan,so i better get going before i get hurt,lol.My main point was to give the kid a decient contract BUT put your $$$on BAY!!!!!.sighn him 4-6 years and you will get a few more WS.Tc all,see ya in the play offs

Let’s root the Yankees against him.

Baseball is a business. Sentimentality in the baseball biz is expensive, because it means teams overpay fo keep talent when comparable talent is available elsehwere more cheaply. The Red Sox are one of the most ruthlessly unsentimental teams in the biz. If they weren’t, Derek Lowe, Johnny Damon, even a fan fave like Kevin Millar, and would probably still be around.

As ticked off as we may be at players like Johnny Damon, we need to remember that they are behaving like businessmen, just as the Red Sox owners are. They’re trying to get the best deal possible. Papelbon wants huge bucks, and can probably command more than the Red Sox mgt thinks he’s worth. If that’s true, he’s gone.

If NY gives him the best offer, why wouldn’t he go there? The only reason might be if he wants to win championships and will give up some $ to optimize his chances. if so the disarray and thin minor league talent of the NYY organization should give him pause. He’s the best RP in Red Sox history, and I hope we can keep him.

It’s a lot better than saying “I definitely wouldn’t play for the Yankees.” He’s just being realistic and honest and I respect Paps all the more for that.

He answered a question (from what I know). If he says enough crap like… I wanna be in a Red Sox uni for life… the FO will start thinking hometown discount. He may just want fair market value when he gets his free agency… which I can’t blame him. (how far away is that again?)

I don’t think its in anyones best interest to spend much time disseminating the words of Jonathan Papelbon.