Recently, the Mets closer Edwin Diaz made an entrance from the bullpen to the field that went viral online and reached very high viewership numbers. So, former Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon couldn’t hold it in and made a bold claim during a podcast. He stated that his entrance music when he was an active player was the best one in MLB history.

Jonathan Papelbon Thinks He Had the Best Entrance in MLB History

Papelbon said that while everybody wanted to talk about Diaz and his entrance these days, he had to let people know where the walk-out song came out and who was the all-time number one, meaning himself. He pointed out that when people would hear “Shipping Up to Boston”, they knew what was going on. Still, many believe that was a bold claim because Former Yankees closer Mariano Rivera would go out on the field to Metallica’s “Enter Sandman”, and his entrance is still considered one of the best in baseball history by many. Despite that, Papelbon would put his “Shipping Up to Boston” entrance over the one of Rivera.

Mets Closer Edwin Diaz Managed to Go Viral With His Entrance Video

For Jonathan Papelbon, Edwin Diaz’s entrance was going just behind his own in the hierarchy. He didn’t even want to put Mariano’s entrance as the second one. For him, there was no question that “Shipping Up to Boston” was the best of all time. He clarified that people had to look at many different factors. Most important of all was the reaction of the fans when the music would come into play. According to him, the fans in Boston went nuts when it would start, while Yankee Stadium with Mo was just not that great and didn’t have the same effect.

Whether or not Jonathan Papelbon had the best entrance in baseball history is something the fans will have to decide. He played 12 seasons in MLB and won the 2007 Delivery Man of the Year Award with the Boston Red Sox to become a 2007 World Series champion.

Home field advantage is something that baseball teams are often hoping for, but it’s one of the sport’s great unquantifiables. Atmosphere certainly impacts the events on the field, but does it give the home side an added advantage? MLB’s 2020 season is initially set to be played in front of no fans, so will that home advantage count for anything in the coming months?

A Different Ball Game

The 2020 MLB season is going to be like nothing we have ever seen before. There will be just 60 regular season games, with no fans in attendance for at least the very beginning of the season. Teams will be traveling much less, with 40 of those 60 games to be played in their own division.

Familiarity may breed contempt between MLB franchises this season as tensions arising from game to game will be escalated the more they play each other. The hastily-put-together MLB schedule has thrown up some interesting quirks, like how the Red Sox play seven of 10 games against the Yankees in New York.

Home Advantage

A 2014 study conducted by the Encyclopedia of Sport and Exercise Psychology, discovered that MLB teams win just 53.6 percent of their home games. This is hugely different from NBA teams who win 61 percent of their home games. Those MLB figures are with crowds having minor influences on umpires and opposition fans. With players less weary from their travels, and less intimidating atmospheres in 2020, it’s unlikely there will be as much fear for the road team.

Should fans be allowed back into the stands for the later part of the season, we will be able to compare results and see how big an advantage they really bring. Considering there is only a small home advantage in MLB according to reports, that could completely diminish this season. Perhaps we’ll even see road teams winning a higher percentage than home teams.