Joshua Papelbon

Joshua Papelbon (born June 24, 1983 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana) is a pitcher for the Greenville Drive, Class A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. Papelbon was a 48th round draft choice (1443 overall) in 2006 by the Boston Red Sox. He resides in Jacksonville, Florida, during the off-season. He is 6'1" and weighs 210 pounds. He bats and throws right-handed. Joshua is the younger brother of Jonathan Papelbon, the closer for the Boston Red Sox and 2006 Rookie of the Year award runnerup. He is also the twin brother of Jeremy Papelbon, who plays for the Boise Hawks, the Class A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.

High school
Papelbon attended high school at Bishop Kenny High School in Jacksonville, Florida, where he graduated with honors in 2002. He had an overall record of 4-1 with a 2.13 ERA and five saves.

College
Papelbon's alma mater is the University of North Florida, where he majored in business management, and was the all-time saves leader with 24 career saves. He wore the number 23 during his college career.

2004
In 24 appearances (all in relief) and 31.1 innings pitched, Papelbon compiled a 2-1 record and a 3.16 ERA with 24 strikeouts, 20 walks, 11 earned runs, 26 hits and 2 saves.

2005
Papelbon appeared in 33 games (all in relief) and pitched 66.2 innings, notching 14 saves (good for fourth in the country) and compiling an ERA of 1.48 (fifth in the country). He recorded 50 strikeouts while allowing only 11 earned runs, 46 hits, five extra-base hits, and one home run. He was selected as a member of the Division II National Baseball Championship All-Tournament Team. Papelbon was named the Peach Belt Conference's Pitcher of the Week for the weeks of February 8, 2005 and April 25, 2005.

2006
He led the 2006 team with eight saves and 29 appearances (all in relief). He finished the season with a record of 4-3 and a 2.81 ERA over 41.2 innings and an 8.64 K/9 (strikeout per nine innings) ratio. He recorded 40 strikeouts while allowing 39 hits, 14 walks, 13 earned runs, and two home runs. On August 8, 2006, Josh's and Jeremy's teams launched the 'Papelbon Papel-bet,' in which the twin with the lowest ERA at the end of the season will get to name a charity to which his brother's team must make a donation. For every half-run difference between the twins' ERA, the losing team will pay $50.

Minor Leagues
A scouting report on Papelbon says that he "throws a mid 60s slider, high 80s fastball, and a low 60s knuckleball," that he has a "similar style and approach to Chad Bradford [of the Baltimore Orioles]," and that he is "focused and intelligent". Papelbon is known for his submarine-style delivery, similar to Chad Bradford, who signed a ball with "To a fellow submariner" for Papelbon.

Lowell Spinners
Papelbon pitched the 2006 season for the short-season Class A Lowell Spinners. He finished the season with a record of 0-2 and 13 saves with an ERA of 1.86 in 25 games and 29 innings pitched. He struck out 36, walked 6, allowed 22 hits and 6 earned runs, and held opponents to a .195 batting average. Papelbon wore the number 19 during his stint with the Spinners.

Greenville Drive
Papelbon was promoted to the Class A Greenville Drive for the 2007 season, and serves as the team's closer. After 24 games, he's 2-2, has a 2.30 ERA, 20 strikeouts and has 9 saves. He currently wears the number 21.