Soon after reports surfaced of Kenley Jansen agreeing to a contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, his agent, Adam Katz, mentioned Jansen’s wedding as a turning point of sorts.
Not only did Turner make the trip to Jansen’s native Curacao, but so too did Yasiel Puig and Scott Van Slyke. The players posted multiple photographs and videos on social media, which invariably raised hope Jansen and Turner would remain with the Dodgers.
While that did become a reality, it wasn’t as though Jansen’s wedding was used for recruiting purposes. “The first couple of days we were there, there wasn’t a single word spoken about baseball,” Turner said during a press conference at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday.
“It was all about going down to Curacao and Kenley showing us where he’s from. It was really refreshing, actually, to not have any baseball talk.” Instead, a conversation between Jansen and Turner on the possibility of re-signing with the Dodgers was rather impromptu.
“When it actually came up was in his room the day of the wedding, he was getting his hair cut and it just kind of came about. We were just talking about both of our situations and what was going on,” Turner explained.
“Neither one of us was trying to pressure anyone into a decision, we were just kind of laying out the options, situations and different experiences. Then Scott Van Slyke and Yasiel Puig came in, and I don’t know what their conversations were, but I got on a plane the next morning and saw [Kenley] agreed to be Dodger. I was extremely happy.”
Along with the Dodgers, Jansen reportedly had offers from the Miami Marlins and Washington Nationals. His five-year, $80 million deal with the Dodgers was less than what the Nationals offered.
Prior to his wedding, Jansen acknowledged there was a strong possibility he would not re-sign with the Dodgers. The 29-year-old closer ultimately couldn’t place a price tag on level of comfort for himself and his family, or on a desire to bring a World Series to Los Angeles.
“In talking to JT, Scott Van Slyke and Yasiel, it isn’t about the money sometimes,” Jansen said. “My family wanted to be out here, and from the bottom of my heart, I want to win a championship here. Winning a championship with the Dodgers would mean so much to me. That’s my dream.”
