Jeremy and Joshua Papelbon

Jeremy and Joshua Papelbon are the younger twin brothers of RedSox all star pitcher Jonathan Papelbon. They both attended and played baseball at the University of North Florida. Joshua was drafted in the June 2006 draft by the Boston RedSox and Jeremy in the same draft by the Chicago Cubs. Joshua played his 1st season of professional baseball for the Lowell Spinners and Jeremy for the Boise Hawks.

Joshua was the 2006 Lowell closer and finished with 13 saves and a 1.86 ERA. He is a right handed pitcher who throws a submarine style pitch.

Jeremy is a left handed relief pitcher who ended with a 4-0 record and a 1.83 ERA.

Jeremy and Joshua speak about what it takes to get to their level, what it's like to be a member of the Red Sox and Cubs organizations, what it was like to grow up with Jonathan among many topics.

Paul: How did you get to playing baseball?

Jeremy: When we were younger we all played sports. As we got older we filtered the other sports out. We stuck with baseball as we grew up because that was the one sport the three of us (Jonathan, Jeremy and Joshua) were pretty much the best at.

Paul: Did weather have anything to do with that? You're both from the south.

Jeremy: We grew up in Florida. Weather didn't really have anything to do with that. Down south you can play whatever sport for however long.

Paul: What other sports did you have interests in?

Joshua: We played every sport: Soccer, Football, Basketball, street Hockey. Once we got to high school it was pretty much baseball and football. That was it.

Paul: Obvisiously, Jonathan is older. Did you tag along with him that much?

Joshua: We all hung out with him a lot. He's only two and a half years older than us. Because there wasn't too much of an age difference we hung together a lot. It seemed like we were always together doing something.

Paul: Did either of you have any mentors since high school that guided you toward baseball?

Joshua: My head coach at University of North Florida. He's the one that showed me the submarine pitch. He showed me the way in the beginning. I can't say enough about him. He really gave me a chance when my career was almost over.

Jeremy: For me, going through high school and then college each coach helped me to show me the way. I would say all the coaches I came into contact with helped me out, Big Time!!!

Paul: What was your welcome to professional baseball moment this year?

Jeremy: Going to Boise was kind of a culture shock. I expected a lot of farm land out there. The city didn't have that much farm land. Playing in front of a lot of people for the first time was definitely interesting.

Joshua: I remember the 1st day that I was here at Lowell, when we had media day. The media swarmed me. I was like, Ok, I guess this is what you have to do if you want to be a professional athlete. It was kind of overwhelming. I felt like a little rock star. I was surprised because I haven't even done anything yet. It was all thanks to Jonathan. I had to say to myself, ok, I'm a professional athlete now. Now I have to start acting like it.

Paul: During the season how often did you communicate with each other and how often did you communicate with Jonathan?

Joshua: I would say on a pretty regular basis.

Jeremy: With cell phones it was very easy to get in touch with each other. Even when I was for Boise we were playing in Everett, Washington and Jonathan was in Seattle. So it worked out for us to hook up for lunch that day. I spoke to Jonathan and Joshua regularly, especially with the technology nowadays. It made it a lot easier to stay in touch.

Paul: Did you talk about your performances, or talk about your teammates, or clubhouse gossip?

Joshua: It was easier for us to find out what Jonathan did because of the larger media outlet. For the two of us we would just tell each other what we did. Jonathan would find out how we did.

Jeremy: He would check it on the internet.

Joshua: I would say, Jonathan was watching me because I wanted to do better than he did when he pitched at Lowell. It was good because I got to share experiences with him that he already experienced. It was cool.

Paul: As his competitive brothers were you surprised by Jonathan's major league success?

Joshua: I guess I am a little bit. With his work ethic and how competitive he is. I had no doubt that he would succeed, I didn't know it would be this quick.

Jeremy: Just the way he works and the talent he has, we kind of knew he'd make it, but not as quickly.

Paul: What advice do you have for kids that want to be involved with baseball?

Jeremy: Don't give up.

Joshua: Practice, Practice, Practice!!!

Jeremy: Stay Healthy, Don't give up. Anybody can make it as long as they have the will, the want and the heart to want to make it.

Joshua: I didn't have great opportunities in college. That's when I decided that I was going to make something of myself and become something. I ended up earning a scholarship. If I didn't have that hard work and dedication, I don't think I would've made it.

Paul: How was your experience in the Cubs and Red Sox organizations?

Jeremy: (Speaking about the Cubs) The Cubs have provided a great experience so far. Boise was a good time. We had a lot of great coaching. I learned a lot from their pitching coordinator who is their bullpen coach in the big leagues now. I got sent to the instructional league a month after the season ended in Mesa Arizona. That was a great time to because I got to meet a lot more of the coaches, see and use the Cub's facilities. To that point I had only gotten a 2 day tour of the facilities after I was drafted. It was good to get my feet wet before spring training.

Joshua: (Speaking about the Red Sox) I can't say enough. The fans here are awesome. The Red Sox organization is top class. It's been nothing but great since I've been in the organization.

Paul: What other hobbies do you have outside of baseball?

Jeremy: I love playing golf.

Joshua: We all play golf. I feel like me and Jonathan are the ones who have more hobbies. Jeremy is more relaxed.