As much as the Los Angeles Dodgers miss Kenley Jansen in their bullpen, his heart condition is a serious matter that the organization is handling with necessary care. President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman stated as much from Coors Field.
Upon filling his heart out of rhythm in Colorado, Jansen was taken to the hospital. He was unavailable for the series opener against the Rockies, and returned to Los Angeles for additional testing.
That required the Dodgers to place their All-Star closer on the 10-day disabled list, though the initial projection was that Jansen would miss at least four weeks.
While a timetable for his return remains somewhat unclear, Jansen did reveal that he likely will require heart surgery during the offseason, per Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times:
Jansen said doctors have told him there is a good chance he will need ablation surgery again this winter.
— Bill Shaikin (@BillShaikin) August 13, 2018
Jansen underwent a procedure to address his irregular heartbeat in October 2012 and missed roughly one week before he was able to resume workouts.
Jansen previously dealt with heart trouble in 2011, which he managed to still pitch at Coors Field but then was taken to a hospital after the game. That was where Jansen learned he had atrial fibrillation (irregular heartbeat).
He was administered blood-thinning medication and spent one month on the disabled list. Jansen suffered from an irregular heartbeat during a 2012 game at Coors Field, and in June 2015 had high blood pressure, felt fatigued and battled headaches.
Though in that instance Jansen was cleared to pitch and the symptoms were said to be a result of the high altitude, not Jansen’s history of heart trouble.
As for his current state, Jansen threw a bullpen session and appears to be in good spirits. He’s scheduled to throw additional bullpens this week.
