Papelbon Gets $775K

Outspoken Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon signed a one-year deal for $775K for ’08.  That’s significantly more than the Sox had to give him, so it seems they value his happiness.  His new salary beats Mariano Rivera’s two-year service time closer record of $750K.

Papelbon’s salary will increase drastically a year from now, as he’ll be arbitration-eligible for the first time.  He probably won’t get the $10MM Ryan Howard did, but something north of $5MM seems possible.