@Philabaseball
According to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com, Jonathan Papelbon's days in Philadelphia may be numbered.
Papelbon, 33, pieced together a 2.92 ERA over 61 2/3 innings last season and is owed a minimum of $26 million over the next two seasons, plus there's a $13-million vesting option for 2016.
Long believed to be one baseball's premier closers, Papelbon notched a career low 29 saves in 2013 and some murmurs surfaced late last season that he was clashing with others in the clubhouse, so his value right now is on the low end.
Adding to the difficulty of moving Papelbon is the fact his contract has a partial no-trade clause, so he would need to have a say on where he's traded to.
With the money Papelbon is owed it's unlikely the Phillies and general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. will find a suitor, unless the club decides to cover a significant portion of his contract - a notion the Phillies front office rarely entertains.
- The Philadelphia Baseball Review is Philadelphia's premier blog outlet for Phillies news and analysis.
