Red Sox's Kenley Jansen: Throws live batting practice
Rotowire
Jansen (illness) threw 17 pitches to live hitters Thursday in Red Sox camp, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports.
Jansen missed a scheduled Grapefruit League appearance earlier this week because he wasn't feeling well, but he's scheduled to return to exhibition action Saturday and could join Team Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic if they advance out of their group. The veteran reliever is slated to serve as Boston's primary closer in 2023.
... See More... See Less
Red Sox's Kenley Jansen: Could join WBC in quarterfinals
Rotowire
Jansen is expected to join Team Netherlands in the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic if the club advances, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.
Jansen is still in spring training with Boston and just made his spring debut with the Red Sox on Monday. The long-time closer will remain in Florida as an option for the Grapefruit League, but he could be a late-inning option in the WBC if Team Netherlands advances. Jansen is coming off a 2022 campaign in which he recorded 41 saves along with a 3.38 ERA and 1.05 WHIP over 64 innings in 65 appearances.
... See More... See Less
Red Sox's Kenley Jansen: Makes spring debut
Rotowire
Jansen pitched a scoreless inning in Saturday's spring game against the Astros.
Jansen made quick work of the Astros in his Grapefruit League debut, setting down the side in order. Most notably, he easily beat the pitch clock on all 14 of his pitches, according to Ian Browne of MLB.com. Jansen is notorious for his slow pace, averaging 25.6 seconds between pitches with the bases empty and 31.4 seconds with runners on last season. He vowed the new pitch clock would not be an issue for him, saying he's been working on it since December. The right-hander noted that his slow pace was a product of the environment and throwing in high-pressurized situations. The real test for Boston's closer comes during the regular season when those high-pressure situations become the norm.
... See More... See Less
Red Sox's Kenley Jansen: Throws bullpen with timer
Rotowire
Jansen threw a bullpen session Sunday and was on time in his delivery, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.
Jansen is one of the slowest pitchers in the league, so he'll have to adjust to the new rule that pitchers must begin their delivery within 15 seconds with the bases empty (20 second with runners on). He had the third slowest tempo (25.6 seconds) between pitches last year.
... See More... See Less
Red Sox's Kenley Jansen: Behind due to offseason illness
Rotowire
Jansen is a bit behind in Red Sox camp due to an offseason illness, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.
Jansen had to put a pause on his winter workouts because he and his family got sick. However, there's plenty of time for the veteran reliever to play catch-up and be at or near 100 percent come Opening Day. He inked a two-year, $32 million free-agent contract with Boston in December and projects to serve as the club's primary closer in 2023.
... See More... See Less
Red Sox's Kenley Jansen: Contract with Boston official
Rotowire
Jansen's two-year, $32 million contract with the Red Sox was formally announced by the team Tuesday.
The deal was first reported last week and Jansen was officially introduced at a press conference Tuesday. The longtime closer will slide into the ninth inning for Boston, with the hope that he'll provide more stability than the club had in 2022.
... See More... See Less
Red Sox's Kenley Jansen: Catches on with Boston
Rotowire
Jansen and the Red Sox agreed Wednesday on a two-year, $32 million contract, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
Even though the 35-year-old Jansen is on the downslope of his career, he remained a solid closer in 2022 with Atlanta, converting 41 of 48 save chances while posting a 3.38 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 85:22 K:BB in 64 innings. He'll now add some stability to the back end of the Boston bullpen, after the Red Sox had mostly taken a committee approach to the ninth inning last season. Jansen's contract and ample experience as a closer -- he'll enter 2023 with 391 career saves -- means he should have a decent amount of leash as Boston's ninth-inning man even if he endures some early struggles.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Notches 41st save
Rotowire
Jansen pitched a perfect ninth inning, striking out two batters on his way to a save in Tuesday's 2-1 victory against the Marlins.
Tasked with protecting a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the ninth inning, Jansen retired the Marlins in order while striking out two batters. The save was his 41st of the campaign and the closer has now converted eight straight save opportunities. Since Sept. 13, Jansen has posted a 0.82 ERA and 0.55 WHIP with 16 strikeouts over 11 innings in 11 appearances while going 8-for-8 in save chances.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Notches third save of weekend
Rotowire
Jansen saved Sunday's 5-3 win against the Mets, tossing a perfect ninth inning.
With Atlanta possessing a tight lead over their divisional rivals for the third straight night, manager Brian Snitker turned to Jansen, who once again delivered. The 35-year-old recorded three quick outs on seven pitches -- all of them strikes -- and has now converted seven straight save opportunities, permitting just one earned run while striking out 14 during the 10-inning stretch. Jansen reached 40 saves for the fourth time in his career and first since 2017, and he ranks one behind Emmanuel Clase for the MLB lead.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Strikes out two for save
Rotowire
Jansen picked up the save Saturday against the Mets, allowing no runs on no hits while striking out two and walking none over one inning.
Jansen now has saves in back-to-back appearances and in six of his last eight appearances. The veteran is one save shy of tying Emmanuel Clase for the most in baseball. Jansen needed just 11 pitches to finish out the game Saturday, lowering his ERA to 3.48 in the process.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Strikes out three for save
Rotowire
Jansen picked up the save Friday against the Mets, allowing a walk and a hit while striking out three in a scoreless inning.
Jansen picked up his 38th save Friday, the second-most saves in baseball this season. He allowed two baserunners and needed 24 pitches, 15 of which were strikes, to get the job done. After allowing two runs in an outing on Sep. 11 that ballooned his ERA to 3.91, the veteran has steadily lowered it to where it sits now at 3.54.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Earns 37th save
Rotowire
Jansen did not allow a baserunner and struck out one over a scoreless inning of work to earn the save in a 6-3 victory over the Phillies on Saturday.
It was business as usual for Jansen, who made quick work of the Phillies on 12 pitches, 10 of which he threw for strikes. He ended the game emphatically with a high heater that caused Bryson Stott to go around with an off-balance swing. Jansen now has 37 saves, second most in all of MLB behind only Emmanuel Clase.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Holds on for 36th save
Rotowire
Jansen earned a save after he pitched one inning, surrendering an unearned run on two hits and a walk while striking out two in Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Nationals.
Jansen was called upon to protect a 3-1 lead in the top of the ninth, but quickly ran into trouble. The first two batters he faced reached base before he registered two strikeouts in a row, but a two-out Luis Garcia singled scored a run. After an intentional walk to Joey Meneses, Jansen was able to get Luke Voit to fly out to end the contest, earning his 36th save of the year. The 34-year-old has pitched four straight scoreless appearances since he blew a save and got the loss Sept. 11 against the Mariners. Jansen now owns a 3.63 ERA and 1.11 WHIP with 75 punchouts over 57 innings in 58 appearances while going 36-for-43 in save opportunities this year.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Notches 35th save
Rotowire
Jansen struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Monday to record his 35th save of the season in a 5-2 win over the Nationals.
There has been chatter recently that Raisel Iglesias might bump Jansen from his closer role, but that hasn't come to pass as Iglesias worked the eighth Monday and collected his 11th hold, while Jansen reeled in his second straight save and fifth in seven September chances. The 34-year-old's 3.68 ERA on the month might be fueling the speculation, but it comes with a 0.82 WHIP and 8:1 K:BB through 7.1 innings. With Atlanta hot on the heels of the Mets for the NL East title, it might take a total meltdown from Jansen for him to lose his grip on the ninth.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Sharp in 34th save
Rotowire
Jansen struck out one in a perfect inning to earn the save in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Phillies.
Jansen was reportedly unavailable with a finger issue Friday, but he was deemed good-to-go ahead of Saturday's contest. A save chance arose, and he needed just nine pitches (seven strikes) to convert it. This was his first save opportunity since he blew a chance in Seattle last Sunday. Jansen now has a 3.76 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 72:19 K:BB through 55 innings while converting 34 of 41 save chances. Assuming the finger soreness doesn't resurface, he should remain Atlanta's primary closer the rest of the way.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Available despite finger issue
Rotowire
Jansen was unavailable Friday against the Phillies due to a sore right pinky finger but is available Saturday, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.
Atlanta didn't wind up with a save chance Friday, as a six-run eighth inning gave the team a 7-2 leading heading into the ninth inning. Raisel Iglesias handled that final frame, but Jansen should be available in the event of a save chance Saturday.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Takes loss, blown save
Rotowire
Jansen (5-2) took the loss and blew a save during Sunday's 6-5 defeat at the hands of the Mariners, allowing two runs on two hits in two-thirds of an inning.
Jansen's services were necessitated after Atlanta rallied for five runs in the top of the ninth, but he served up solo shots to Julio Rodriguez and Eugenio Suarez to suffer his third blown save and second loss in his last seven appearances. During that stretch, the 34-year-old has surrendered seven runs in 5.2 innings to increase his season ERA from 3.04 to 3.91. Despite a league-leading 33 saves, Jansen's seven blown saves are tied for second-most in MLB.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Regains saves lead
Rotowire
Jansen saved Friday's 6-4 win against the Mariners, striking out two in a perfect ninth inning.
Jansen made quick work of the bottom of Seattle's lineup to record his MLB-leading 33rd save. The 34-year-old has now recorded two scoreless outings following a pair of recent poor efforts and possesses a 3.61 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 52.1 innings across 53 appearances.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Tosses perfect ninth for save
Rotowire
Jansen pitched a perfect ninth inning, striking out two batters on his way to a save in Tuesday's 10-9 win over the Athletics.
Jansen was called upon to protect Atlanta's 10-9 lead in the bottom of the ninth frame, producing a 1-2-3 inning while registering two punchouts. He has now converted 32 out of 38 save opportunities this season. After a rough stretch from late August to early September, Jansen has now tossed perfect innings in his last two appearances.
... See More... See Less
Braves' Kenley Jansen: Can't complete save
Rotowire
Jansen blew the save during Saturday's 2-1 win against the Marlins, allowing one run on two hits and a walk in two-thirds of an inning.
Jansen entered in the ninth inning to protect a 1-0 lead and immediately faltered, surrendering three straight baserunners prior to recording an out. A Jerar Encarnacion sacrifice fly brought in the tying run and the 34-year-old recorded an additional out before he was removed following a lengthy delay due to an injury to the home plate umpire. Jansen has now surrendered five runs in three innings across his last four appearances and has suffered two blown saves in the process, increasing his ERA from 3.04 to 3.75.
