Phillies' Papelbon records 300th career save
It wasn't the cleanest outing of his career, but Philadelphia Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon hit a major milestone Tuesday when he got San Diego Padres first baseman Tommy Medica to ground out with the bases loaded to end the game.
Handed a 5-2 lead in the ninth, Papelbon allowed runners to get on the corners with one out before striking out Yonder Alonso and forcing Medica to ground out.
It took the 33-year-old 552 appearances to earn save No. 300, and now has 14 on the season.
Papelbon took over as the closer of the Boston Red Sox in 2006 and was the last man on the mound when he secured the team's seventh World Series title a year later.
The five-time All-Star signed a four-year, $50-million deal with Philadelphia in 2011 and has since saved 81 games.
All-time MLB saves leaders:
Rank | Pitcher | Saves |
---|---|---|
1 | Mariano Rivera | 652 |
2 | Trevor Hoffman | 601 |
3 | Lee Smith | 478 |
4 | John Franco | 424 |
25 | Jonathan Papelbon | 300 |