Papelbon likens Manny to that thing Jon Lester survived

On the surface, Jonathan Papelbon's interview with Esquire is an intriguing one because of the jabs the Red Sox closer takes at former teammate Manny Ramirez. But here at The Big Dead Sidebar, we try to find that thing that seems to be overlooked.

In this case, it's a few select words from Papelbon that made me turn my head just a lil' bit:

It just takes one guy to bring an entire team down, and that’s exactly what was happening. Once we saw that, we weren’t afraid to get rid of him. It’s like cancer. That’s what he was. Cancer. He had to go. It sucked, but that was the only scenario that was going to work.

Cancer. Really?

Cancer is a serious deal. In sports, the term "clubhouse cancer" is thrown around a lot. Whether it be by the players, coaches or media ... it's been an acceptable term because of the aptness of the analogy. But when you're close friend and teammate actually survived cancer ... actual cancer ... not Mannydoesntwannarunoutagroundball cancer ... I think you might want to choose your words more wisely.

Jonathan Papelbon Grinds His Teeth [Esquire]