Papelbon has millions of reasons not to disrespect Phillies

Shane Victorino was asked Thursday night if he still felt like a Phillie after two full seasons in Boston, including one that ended with a parade down Boylston Street celebrating the second World Series title of his career. The question was intended as a joke in light of the latest Papelgate incident that surfaced Wednesday night in the home clubhouse at Citizens Bank Park.

The Flyin' Hawaiian opted to answer seriously and he essentially said something similar to what Phillies pitcher Jonathan Papelbon had told the Boston Globe, which predictably triggered another in a series of controversial episodes involving the highest-paid closer in baseball.

The biggest difference in the answer given by Victorino was that it had a touch of class, a ton of diplomacy.

"I love it in Boston," he said, "but so much good happened and I learned so much when I was here that I'm always going to be a Phillie. I've been so fortunate to play for both organizations and the Dodgers, too. But this place is always going to be special to me."

In many ways that's the message Papelbon was trying to send in his comments to the Globe. But he was incapable of doing it without taking a swipe at the organization that has set up his kids, his grandkids, and his great, great, great grandkids for the rest of their lives.

"The Red Sox are part of who I am, man," Papelbon told the Globe. "I don't really feel like much of a Phillie. Boston's where I was born and raised. It's kind of like that, you know. It's the city you were born and raised in."

We get it. We've seen it before with players who came here and players who have left. It's really about winning more than anything else. Curt Schilling became more of a Bostonian after winning a couple of World Series with the Red Sox. Win with dignity in multiple cities and you can become an icon in both places, as Victorino has done in Boston and Philadelphia.

Papelbon's problem is he wanted his money and the victories, too. Make no mistake, however, he wanted the money more than anything because he already had won a World Series ring with the Red Sox in 2007. Four years after signing his $50 million deal with the Phillies, Papelbon remains the highest-paid closer in baseball, and he has learned the hard way that money can buy a lot of things, but absolute happiness is not one of them.

To his credit, he has mostly pitched well in his three-plus seasons with the Phillies, and that includes the four-out save he recorded in Wednesday night's wind-chilled win over his former team. His arm does not have the same life it once did in Boston, but he has used his brains and ultracompetitive fire to keep getting the job done on the mound.

But his good deeds as a closer are always overshadowed by his idiotic actions (see crotch grab, 2014) and words (see "I didn't come here for this," 2013).

Wins are going to be hard to come by this season, as we saw again Thursday night when David Buchanan suffered a third-inning meltdown in a 6-2 loss that allowed the Red Sox to win the game and the season-opening series at Citizens Bank Park. When the Phillies do get a win, they should enjoy it.

Instead, the focus Wednesday shifted away from the victory and onto Papelbon and his poor, poor plight.

"It's been a tough transition over here," he said. "I'm not going to lie. It has been tough. Tough getting used to the way it is here. It's two totally different organizations. The way they're run, the way they're coached, the players that are on them. Two totally different styles of baseball. I don't know if I can honestly tell you if I'm even used to it yet."

You'd think the Phillies would be at least a little offended by their closer's disrespect, but they did not seem to be, either publicly or privately.

"I don't read the Boston Globe, so I don't know what was said," manager Ryne Sandberg said. "All I know is he has been a good influence here. He's done everything asked of him and he's one of the veteran guys that's on board with helping to lead the young players and he's doing his part in that."

Papelbon declined to speak before Thursday's game other than to say he did not get any backlash from the front office about his comments.

The brass are used to Papelbon by now. We all are. We understand that as bulbs go, he's quite a few watts short of 100. The person he hurt the most with his words Wednesday was Jonathan Papelbon. He wants out and he tried to play the role of good, compliant citizen throughout spring training, but that did not last through the first series of the regular season.

His contract and reputation, in that order, are why the Phillies have not been able to trade him even though he has remained an elite closer. Should he finish 47 more games this season, the Phillies will owe him another $13 million, bringing his total earnings in Philadelphia to $63 million.

You'd like to think that kind of dough would at least buy you some sort of heartfelt attachment.

@brookob