Kenley Jansen was a key member of the Los Angeles Dodgers bullpen for over a decade, but that changed this year when the right-hander signed with the Atlanta Braves as a free agent.
Jansen reportedly sought a three-year contract but didn’t have many suitors. He eventually settled for a one-year deal after L.A. moved on by acquiring Craig Kimbrel from the Chicago White Sox.
Kimbrel is the only active player with more saves than Jansen, but he struggled to find consistency and ultimately lost his job at closer late in the 2022 season. As for Jansen, he enjoyed a solid year with the Braves that saw him log a National League-best 41 saves.
With Jansen set to hit the open market again, he revealed he is open to returning to the Dodgers next season, via TMZ Sports:
“Hey, we’ll see,” he said with a smile. “We’ll see what’s out there.”
While Jansen did not rule out a potential reunion with the Dodgers, he had nothing but praise for the Braves organization:
“I can tell you all great things about Atlanta,” Jansen said. “Atlanta is awesome. The fans, the people, the organization. I had a great time there, and we had a great season.”
Given the current state of their bullpen, the Dodgers could be in the market for an established closer this offseason. After Kimbrel was removed from his role in the ninth inning, L.A. went with a closer-by-committee approach that wasn’t always smooth at times.
Jansen would bring stability and familiarity to the Dodgers bullpen, but it is unclear if the interest is mutual.
Kenley Jansen hoped Dodgers & Braves would meet in 2022 MLB postseason
After meeting in the playoffs the past two seasons, Jansen hoped the Dodgers and Braves would face off again in October this year.
L.A. and Atlanta finished with the top two records in the NL, but were eliminated in the first round by the San Diego Padres and Philadelphia Phillies, respectively.
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