Papelbon picked to close Red Sox games

Dodgers' Furcal, Twins' Mauer, Angels' Figgins receive good news

Boston reliever Jonathan Papelbon delivers against Philadelphia in the Red Sox's 4-all tie Thursday in Clearwater, Fla. The Red Sox have named Papelbon their closer.

Jonathan Papelbon should be able to sleep again now that he’s going back to closing games for the Red Sox. Rafael Furcal, Joe Mauer and Chone Figgins were also relieved Thursday because their injuries did not appear serious.

Papelbon is heading back to Boston’s bullpen to fill a major void. But he said the move has nothing to do with the fact that Mike Timlin’s injury left the Red Sox in dire need of late-inning relief.

“I haven’t been sleeping well because there’s been that feeling deep down in my heart that I wanted to close,” Papelbon said after the Red Sox and Phillies tied 4-4 in 10 innings.

Papelbon is coming off a sensational rookie season in which he had 35 saves and a 0.92 earned-run average. But he was shut down with a month to go because of shoulder problems, and the Red Sox had planned to use him in the starting rotation to keep him on a more regular schedule and ease the stress on his arm.

Papelbon decided to tell manager Terry Francona how he felt about returning to his closer’s role earlier this week after consulting with his family and speaking to catcher Jason Varitek.

“He’s unique,” Francona said in Clearwater, Fla. “He’s at the top of the list of relievers in baseball. He impacts the game like no other. I’m thrilled we have a young guy that feels enthusiastic about doing a job.”

At Vero Beach, Fla., Furcal sprained his left ankle when he collided with Los Angeles Dodgers teammate Jason Repko after catching a fly ball in short center field, but doesn’t figure to miss much playing time.

“I thought I had broken it, but I’m glad it’s only sprained,” a relieved Furcal said after Steve Trachsel pitched six sharp innings to help Baltimore beat the Dodgers 8-0.

“I had a similar injury in 2002 with the Braves in spring training,” Furcal said. “I may be out four or five days. I could play if it’s 80 percent. You don’t always play at 100 percent – sometimes you play hurt.”

Stan Conte, the Dodgers’ director of medical services, said he thinks Furcal will be sidelined for about a week.

Mauer, last season’s AL batting champion, has a stress reaction in his left leg, and the Twins’ catcher will sit out a few days for treatment.

“We’ll give him some therapy for the next four or five days,” Minnesota general manager Terry Ryan said. “He came in this morning a little sore. He didn’t know exactly what it was.”

The Twins described the injury as a precursor to a stress fracture. An MRI found nothing more serious.

“He should be OK after a little treatment,” Ryan said. “That would be the hope. I think we’re OK.”

At Tempe, Ariz., the Angels said Figgins would be sidelined indefinitely after fracturing the middle finger on his throwing hand. He still hopes to be ready by opening day.

Figgins was injured during the Angels’ 8-3 victory over Arizona on Wednesday. He will be examined Friday by hand specialist Steve Shin at the Kerlan-Jobe clinic in Anaheim, Calif. X-rays taken Thursday confirmed the fracture.

“I’ll be ready as soon as the swelling goes down,” said Figgins, who hit .267 with an AL-leading 62 stolen bases last season. “It’s pain, but not a lot of pain.”

When asked if he would be ready to play when the Angels begin the season April 2 against Texas, Figgins said: “If it’s up to me, yeah.”

Maicer Izturis played third base Thursday, when the Angels’ game with the Rangers was canceled after two innings with Los Angeles leading 1-0 on Shea Hillenbrand’s homer.

Marlins 2, Cardinals 1

At Jupiter, Fla., just hours after his arrest on a drunken driving charge, St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa got a show of support from fans watching his team play the Marlins. The 62-year-old manager was arrested early Thursday.

Reds 8, Yankees 7

At Sarasota, Fla., Bobby Abreu played outfield for the first time in spring training and hit a three-run homer for the Yankees.

The game was briefly delayed in the bottom of the fifth inning when a swarm of bees crossed the infield, sending Yankees fielders scurrying for foul territory to avoid getting stung.

“I’ve never seen that before,” third baseman Alex Rodriguez said. “I was actually pretty scared. It was thick.”

Braves 7, Mets 1

At Kissimmee, Fla., Chipper Jones played after being held out for almost a week with a sore muscle in his right side. The Braves slugger went 1-for-3 with an RBI double.

Diamondbacks 6, Giants 0, 6 innings

At Scottsdale, Ariz., NL Cy Young Award winner Brandon Webb limited the Giants to four hits in six innings. He struck out three.

Blue Jays 5, Pirates 3

At Dunedin, Fla., Toronto ace Roy Halladay had a so-so outing in his next-to-last spring start, allowing three runs over six innings.

Padres 1, Cubs 0, 5 innings

At Peoria, Ariz., Mark Prior had his best outing of the spring, allowing one run in four innings for the Cubs. Greg Maddux tossed five shutout innings for the Padres.

Mariners 11, White Sox 6

At Tucson, Ariz., White Sox slugger Jim Thome hit a two-run drive for his fourth homer of the spring.

Tigers 5, Indians 4

At Lakeland, Fla., Detroit’s Jeremy Bonderman yielded two runs and four hits over five innings. He struck out four and walked three.