Jonathan Papelbon wants to play for a contender. Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
LOS ANGELES — Right-hander Jonathan Papelbon will represent the Philadelphia Phillies at the All-Star Game in Cincinnati on July 14. Even so, he doesn’t expect to be wearing their uniform much longer.
“I would be surprised,” Papelbon said of an extended stay in Philadelphia.
The 34-year-old closer is one of a handful of assets the Phillies are almost certain to trade before the July 31 non-waiver deadline. Papelbon said he would be disappointed if the Phillies do not move him to a contender before Aug. 1.
He has a limited no-trade clause in his contract, but Papelbon said he gladly would waive it if it means going from the worst team in baseball (28-57) to a team in contention.
“Any team that wants me, I’m willing to go to,” he said. “I just think, for me, there are no doors closed right now.”
That is not entirely true. An All-Star for the sixth time in his career, Papelbon has 14 saves and a 1.65 ERA, and he only wants to close. He is not interested in a trade to a team that would use him as a setup man.
Perhaps not coincidentally, Papelbon is in the final year of his contract, but that contract includes a vesting option that will guarantee him $13 million in 2016 if he finishes 48 games this season. He already has finished 28.
“The front office knows where my heart is and where my mind is, and that’s to be with a contending ballclub,” Papelbon said. “The ball is in the Phillies’ court, the front office’s court.”
