Jonathan Papelbon's place in the hearts of most Red Sox fans is tenuous at best. He
did contribute mightily to the success of the 2007 World Series Championship team. But, those of us who were
there when 'Pap' blew a two-run, ninth-inning lead in the 2009 Division Series—giving the Angels the series win—have bitter memories. As we walked out of Fenway after the loss, my then 13-year old son solemnly intoned,
"Papelbon is dead to me." Now, in
an otherwise very good article on the differences between the Super Bowl cities of Boston and Philly, Papelbon may have made his case much worse. When discussing the relative quality of each city's fans, the reliever said this:
"There’s real passion in both cities, but Philadelphia fans are really in the game and not so much in Boston." Yikes! Had he been walking out of Fenway with us in 2009, he'd have seen some passion.
