2:44pm: Talks between the Nationals and Phillies are “very complicated” and the sides still have plenty to work out, Jim Bowden of ESPN.com tweets. Papelbon is still likely to be sent to D.C., but there are “hurdles” to be dealt with, Jayson Stark of ESPN.com tweets.
11:53am: A source tells Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com that Papelbon “will be traded” at the deadline.
10:31am: The Nationals are making progress on a deal that would bring closer Jonathan Papelbon to D.C. from the rival Phillies, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports on Twitter. It’s unclear how far off the teams are from reaching agreement, let alone what kind of return is under contemplation.
There had been indications that Papelbon’s market was cooling, but it seems that action has kicked back into gear in recent days. Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com tweets that he’s been left with the impression that the team is confident in getting some kind of deal done involving the controversial closer.
With Philadelphia reportedly amenable to covering some of Papelbon’s costs — which include a $13MM salary this year and a $13MM option for 2016 that will soon vest — he’s a good fit for a Nationals team that is said to be disinclined to absorb salary in the middle of the year. But Philly’s willingness to pay down some obligations also makes Papelbon palatable to other clubs. MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki noted yesterday that the Blue Jays and Cubs have also expressed keen interest in the veteran righty.
Lets see if Amaro can actually pull this off……
Austin voth? Victor Robles?
I could see them packaging Voth, but not with Robles. Rizzo tends to win deals so I’m always pretty confident he won’t give up too much, especially to an idiot like Amaro.
Would they let him close?
They better not!
Ken Rosenthal @Ken_Rosenthal
Sources: #Nationals making progress on acquiring Papelbon from #Phillies. Papelbon has said he will only approve deal if he can close.
I just don’t get him. He doesn’t want to be on a team that loses, but won’t tone down his ego in order for him to get traded to a contending team if he wouldn’t close. Seems like a guy like him would be a “I’ll do anything to win” kind of guy.
He still wants his vesting money. If he goes to DC and Storen keeps finishing games then Papelbon won’t get the opportunities for his option to vest. The winning is secondary. He’ll remain with the Phils if that’s what it takes to make his $13M option kick in.
That is true, I forgot about that part. Although, with how he performed he would be making money regardless, but not 13 mil.
Ego? He is smart to decline the trade if he is going to lose out on 13mil. And name me a closer who has been closer for as long as he has. Saying I don’t mind if I am not the closer on my new team?
I forgot about the option that hinged on him closing, my fault.
Would you give up $13 million to win? Neither would he. That’s not a character flaw.
I don’t really believe that it is just about money, although that is a big factor. I think it also has to do with pride and the fact that at his age, 34 years old, he has shown no sign of significant loss of talent. He did hit a bump in 2012 when he lost some velocity but he learned how to pitch instead of throw. He is 34 years old and has 342 saves. At 34 years old Mo Rivera had 336 saves. I don’t think that anybody here we can honestly say that Paps is not a competitor and I don’t doubt that he believes he can pitch for quite a few more years and challenge Mo for the saves record. I am not saying that I believe the can, I am just saying that any competitor worth his salt would believe in himself and believe that he could challenge for the record.
@agreed – paps is wanting to prove his worth on a hall of fame level. He has a better chance to chase records on a playoff team, as its closer than on the phillies. He wants to go period… but he wants to be paid along the way. Its a shame money is an issue for him, or he would have been gone by now,
I’ll be pleasantly surprised if the Phils actually get anything of value for Paps.
He’s been one of the best closers over the last 8 years. If they eat most of the contract they should get value.
They should atleast get something of value regardless.
Not a move I feel like the Nats have to make
I bet Amaro wants Werth back! haha
I don’t think Papelbon would care if he closes or not once he’s on a winning team. I could see him and Storen sharing saves.
He absolutely does. He has 13 million reasons why.
Incorrect- he has one reason why
Hes a pretty safe bet to get a contract around 10 mil next year so really only 3 mil reasons why.
he could just demand that next year’s contract be guaranteed as part of him approving the deal… heck while he’s at it he should request an extra year on top of that with a buy out option for the team.
I think if the Phillies cover a good amount of his contract and the Nationals don’t have to give up a significant prospect, the Nationals should make this trade. Drew Storen has been good no doubt, but having a lot of saves isn’t always good down the stretch. The reason is because sometimes it can mean your closer has been overused and they can tire later on.
Pretty sure he’d accept a trade to a contender and not close if they guaranteed his ’16 option. Give something of value and pretty sure the Phillies would cover $6.5M of that $13M option.
That said, if the ’16 option isn’t guaranteed there’s no way he accepts a deal where he’s not gonna get a real shot for that option to vest. He needs 14 more GF for that to happen.
Austin Voth would be a nice get. Its not very hard to please the mutual Phillies fan with a deal of Papelbon, considering as long as you get him out of town, they’d be happy. As for me, not the case. They shouldn’t just give him away to just give him away. If they could get someone in the 8-13 top organizational prospect and a lotto pick, I’d be okay with that I guess.
I know its probably very wishful thinking, but wouldn’t Michael Taylor look swell with Roman Quinn and Aaron Altherr in the Phillies outfield?
I actually like Papelbon, dude’s a competitor. Do I like that he’s so outspoken all of the time? No, of course not, but he’s been great on the field, apparently as a mentor for some of the young guys, and is an entertaining personality on an otherwise boring team right now (until their play lately that is). I’m with you that unlike many Phils fans, I’m not going to be happy just to ship him out of town. If they eat some money, they should be able to get back a decent prospect. Michael Taylor would look great patrolling the OF at CBP, but don’t get your hopes up :/ I’d be happy with a guy like Voth.
I’d trade Taylor for Kimbrel or Chapman in a heartbeat; I’d rather have Taylor over Papelbon however.
It was wishful thinking, and I’d understand the Nationals not wanting to part with Taylor considering Span is a FA at the end of the year.
I’m a bit curious as to why the Nationals are interested given that they already have Storen. My guess is they are still worried about Storen in the postseason, given that is the reason they signed Soriano before.
Still, if that was the case, I’d rather see them go get Kimbrel.
I agree. This might be a very good season for Papelbon, but his strikeout rate isn’t what it used to be. Plus, he’s just not likable. :p
How has no one traded for Paps yet? It’s just like he has no value and RAJ really should trade him because he is currently having arguably his best season at age 34!
If Toronto or the Cubs traded for him in June they’d prob have a few more wins
The Cubs are 37-2 when leading after the 8th inning. The Blue Jays are 43-0 in the same situation. Yea, both teams have bullpen issues… but I don’t see how Papelbon would’ve made a huge difference since 1) The Cubs have seemingly overcome the lack of a closer and 2) The Jays blown saves all come in the 6th or 7th inning (as opposed to the 9th where Papelbon would pitch.)
But you also have to factor in that the 6th or 7th inning guy would be replaced by the former 8th inning guy and the former 9th inning guy becomes the new 8th inning guy. So it might have impacted those blown saves as well. But that’s all speculation because it is just as possible that Papelbon would have blown 3-4 of those games. Baseball players do not exist in a vacuum, so just because he pitched well in Philly does not mean that he would have been just as effective in Toronto under completely different circumstances. .
But the problem for a team like the Cubs is that there’s no difference between Rondon, Strop, Motte or Soriano. They’ve all had some success anywhere between the 6th-9th innings… and they’ve all had failures between the 6th-9th innings.
but it’s only July..Cubs with 2 blown saves in last 4 games, and Toronto going all in to win, and you’re going with a 20 year old closer?
not* like he has no value
Sources: Papelbon or his agents talking to Nats about a potential trade. Issues to resolve: no-trade, being a closer and 2016 club option- This is from Todd Zolecki.
If its getting to the agent stages that tells me the compensation has pretty much been agreed upon. I am really interested to see what Rizzo is willing to give up
Well the NTC is an issue because his contract for next year won’t vest if he’s not a closer… So he’s basically throwing away $13 million by simply waiving his NTC. Easiest solution is for the Nats to simply guarantee next year’s option now. That way, it won’t matter if he closes or not.
amaro also wants Teddy Roosevelt in the deal but so far Rizzo has only offered William Howard Taft.
I’d rather have Taft. Teddy Roosevelt is almost blind. Taft just needs to lose weight.
–> Money
–> Vesting Option
–> Return
–> Pap wanting to close
I’m sure there is a ton to work out, and this is where Amaro gets worked over by Rizzo.
Questions: Is the new guy McPhail already in the front office? Will he have an influence on Amaro?
Oh definitely. Amaro is just a puppet at this point. I highly doubt he has any say in anything.
Supposedly the way Phillies trade negotiations are going is Ruben Amaro Jr calls and makes offers. Those offers are then given to Pat Gillick for approval. McPhail then is also in the loop and gives input.
No idea what happens if/when McPhail and Gillick disagree. McPhail is technically replacing Gillick… but Gillick actually has some shares of the team so he’s a limited part owner.
Thanks to both of you.
Mets own Papelbon.
2.77 ERA, 8-for-10 in saves, .194 opponent batting average
As a Braves fan, I would love to see Pap in WSH. Need a reason to hate WSH even more.
Washington loves former Phillies
Werth, Lidge, Stairs, Frandsen, Schierholtz, Gio Gonzalez and now Papelbon.