Pagliaroni was born in Dearborn, Michigan, and grew up in Long Beach, California. He was contracted by the Boston Red Sox as an amateur free agent out of Wilson High School in Long Beach, California in 1955. He was only 17 years old when he made his debut with the Red Sox that same year. Although he didn\'t get much opportunity to play during his first season, he received valuable instruction from former catcher, Mickey Owen. Pagliaroni then joined the United States Army from 1956 to 1958, when he was discharged in time to report to spring training with the Red Sox. Pagliaroni spent the next three seasons playing in the minor leagues before rejoining the Red Sox in August 1960. He was standing in the on deck circle during a game at Fenway Park on September 28, 1960, when Ted Williams hit a home run in his final at bat in the major leagues.\n', '

In 1961 Pagliaroni appeared in 120 games, more than any other Red Sox catcher and posted a .242 batting average with 16 home runs and 58 runs batted in. Pagliaroni was the hitting standout on June 18, 1961 when he hit a grand slam home run to tie the game as the Red Sox rallied from 8 runs down with two outs in the ninth inning to defeat the Washington Senators. Pagliaroni shared catching duties in 1962 with Russ Nixon and Bob Tillman. He once again led the Red Sox catchers in games played with 90 appearances. He was the Red Sox catcher on August 1, 1962 when Bill Monbouquette threw a no-hitter against the Chicago White Sox.\n', '

On November 20, 1962, Pagliaroni was traded by the Boston Red Sox along with Don Schwall to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Jack Lamabe and Dick Stuart. When the Pirates\' regular catcher, Smoky Burgess, was sidelined by an injury, Pagliaroni alternated with catcher Ron Brand to fulfill the catching duties. Pagliaroni himself was injured in June when, a fractured ring finger on his right hand made him miss three weeks of the season. He ended the 1963 season with a .230 batting average with 11 home runs in 92 games.\n', '

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