Papelbon’s jig steals show at Sox celebration

Maybe you’ve seen it by now, maybe you haven’t. If you’re in the latter category, you need to keep reading below.

When Boston clinched the AL East with New York’s loss Friday night, there were a number of notable Sox players who went back out onto the field to celebrate with the scattered fans who remained in Fenway Park. Curt Schilling and Daisuke Matsuzaka show up in numerous photos, as do Tim Wakefield and David Ortiz, among others.

But while those players may have earned the most ink, no one could keep up with closer Jonathan Papelbon, who may have made a bigger ass out of himself than anyone since, well, George W. Bush. But don’t take our word for it, check it out yourself:

That’s right Red Sox fans, your closer of past, present and future is quite the Irish dancer. In fact, even Kevin Youkilis and Terry Francona were pretty taken with his moves, Youk in person and Tito, well, in the press, here via the Boston Globe.

“If he wasn’t, I’ll make sure Manny is aware we won today.”

But no one present last night, including Francona, missed Jonathan Papelbon’s wild Irish jig on the mound after the game.

“You mean, ‘The Riverdance’?” Francona said. “That’s one of the . . . he looked to me . . . I don’t want to call him a moron, but the only thing better than that was when he was inside dancing, wearing only a jock.

“That’s him. He’s young, carefree, a great kid. That said, when he gets on the mound, he’s all business. It’s a good mix.”

That’s right, a carefree kid with a nasty fastball, ridiculous splitter and a filthy new pitch which he calls a slutter. All puns intended, of course.

– Cameron Smith