In the end, Red Sox make logical choice

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- No harm, no foul.

The Red Sox, who named Jonathan Papelbon closer yesterday, did their due diligence throughout spring training. They kicked the tires to see if someone could emerge as the closer, whether it was Joel Pineiro, Julian Tavarez, Brendan Donnelly, or Mike Timlin. They tried desperately to monitor the rest of baseball, employing a scout at virtually every venue every day to see if they could acquire someone who could do the job. In the end, they realized taking fliers on San Francisco's Armando Benitez, Arizona's Jorge Julio, or Washington's Chad Cordero made no sense.

They were shot down in attempts to pry one of Houston's three late-inning relievers and were told Milwaukee's Derrick Turnbow, who appears to have overcome his bout with poor mechanics, wasn't available.

If the disabled list-bound Timlin hadn't strained a side muscle, who knows if Papelbon would have walked into manager Terry Francona's office and expressed his desire to return to the closer role. Maybe the team's dream of having Papelbon as a dominant starter in the Roger Clemens mode was realistic, but finding someone to replace Papelbon at the back of the bullpen proved to be easier said than done.

Put it this way -- it's great that management failed in its pursuit of a closer. Because the best guy available -- and maybe the best, period -- is Papelbon.

On travels to camps in Arizona and Florida this spring, it was hard to find anyone who thought it made sense to move Papelbon out of the closer's role. Not one. Some never bought into the notion -- after speaking to doctors -- that the subluxation of his shoulder could recur if Papelbon closed as opposed to starting every fifth day. Not sure how that became the explanation for the team's decision. It appeared the decision was preference more than for medical reasons.

It was the Red Sox' preference to build this talented and powerful rotation with three 26-year-olds. It was Papelbon's dream to be a starter, as it would be for any kid who grew up idolizing Clemens. But Papelbon is a pretty unselfish player. There should never be any doubt that Papelbon is a team-first player, because while he might say all the right things, including that he hasn't "been sleeping well because there's been that feeling deep down in my heart that I wanted to close," it was evident how much he wanted to be a dominant starter. But to give up the chance to be something really special as a closer as opposed to the uncertainty of starting? Papelbon made the right call, as did the Red Sox.

What the Red Sox didn't want was a return to the bullpen-by-committee days of 2003 that was taxing, to say the least, on Grady Little. That committee ultimately led to Little's decision to keep Pedro Martínez in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series against the Yankees. In modern-day baseball, it's imperative to have a reliable closer. Now the Red Sox do, and that's why they are now the favorites to win the American League East.

Until the Papelbon decision was made, there was no clear-cut favorite. The Yankees had Mariano Rivera and pretty good setup people in Scott Proctor, Kyle Farnsworth, and Luis Vizcaino. Now the Red Sox, once Timlin gets back, have a threesome of Timlin, Donnelly, and Pineiro available before Papelbon. Suddenly, the weight of the world is back on Papelbon's shoulders.

The righty has proven he has the stuff and the mentality to carry it.

"I know that his dream was to be a starter, but what he likes about closing is the fact that he gets that adrenaline rush and he needs that," said Papelbon's brother, Joshua, a minor league pitcher in the Sox' system. "I know he loves that rush."

He thought he'd get that rush as a starter. In his last start, Papelbon said that when he had people on base, his mentality turned to his closer days, when he could bring a little extra to get out of the situation. There's no doubt here Papelbon could have been an elite starter. He might still be someday if Craig Hansen or Bryce Cox emerges to close.

This way, Tavarez takes the fifth spot for now, allowing the Sox to insert Jon Lester when he's ready.

The rest of the division wasn't taken aback by these revelations.

"I don't think any of us here are surprised," said Orioles vice president Jim Duquette. "I was asked the question a thousand times this offseason and I always answered it that I thought Papelbon would be the closer by May 1 at the latest. It doesn't make us feel any better because he's a great closer and it's going to be tougher on the whole league. They've got a guy back there who knows how to do it, who has done it, and [has] done it as well as anyone."

Toronto general manager J.P. Ricciardi said, "I'm not surprised. It is what it is. We can't worry about what other teams are doing. We have to take care of things in our own house. I think Julian Tavarez did a nice job for them last year as a starter and I think that was probably a good decision as well. I don't think this is a shocker to anyone."

"It never made sense to move him," said one Yankee, who asked not to be identified. "He's a great closer. We might have been looking forward to the late innings if he wasn't there, but now it's the same as last year. Now they have a great starting rotation and a great closer. At the end of the day, nothing has really changed. Every year we have to go up against them and they're tough. They're always tough. We're going to win our share and they're going to win their share."

But this morning a huge "if" has been lifted from the Sox prognosis for 2007.

Now they are the favorites.

Nick Cafardo can be reached at cafardo@globe.com.