When Jonathan Papelbon signed a four-year, $50 million contract with the Phillies in November, Philadelphia thought it was getting a shutdown reliever who would be able to close out a ton of victories. After all, the Phillies led all of baseball in wins in both 2010 and 2011, and, despite injuries to Ryan Howard and Chase Utley, there was reason to think they'd threaten to do so again in 2012.
But so far, that hasn't been the case, as Papelbon's 25 saves and 2.93 ERA out of the bullpen haven't been able to prevent Philadelphia from slipping to 51-61, just half a game out of last place in the National League East. If the Phillies don't turn things around next year, Papelbon may end up regretting his decision to sign with Philly, as he's locked up through 2015, with a vesting option for 2016.
