Tigers' Kenley Jansen: POBO won't commit to closer
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Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris stopped short of naming Jansen the team's closer Wednesday, saying that there are "at least three or four closer types" on the roster, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.
Jansen is 24 saves shy of 500 for his career and has been adamant about reaching that milestone, but it seems he was not promised the closer role in Detroit when he agreed to a one-year, $11 million contract. Harris said that who closes for the Tigers will be up to manager A.J. Hinch. While Jansen remains the favorite to see the bulk of the save opportunities, Kyle Finnegan, Will Vest and Tyler Holton could be in the mix, as well.
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Tigers' Kenley Jansen: Joins Tigers on one-year deal
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Jansen signed a one-year, $11 million contract with the Tigers on Saturday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
Jansen's new deal also includes a club option for the 2027 season, per Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic. The 38-year-old has yet to show signs of slowing down, as he finished the 2025 campaign with a 2.59 ERA and 0.95 WHIP over 59 innings while collecting 29 saves with the Angels. Now set to spend his 17th MLB season in Detroit, the right-hander will likely begin 2026 as the team's closer, moving Will Vest and Kyle Finnegan into setup roles.
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Angels' Kenley Jansen: Collects 29th save
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Jansen struck out the side in a perfect ninth inning Friday to record his 29th save of the season in a 4-3 win over the Astros.
The veteran closer stuck a dagger in Houston's playoff hopes, firing 16 of 19 pitches for strikes as he fanned Jesus Sanchez, Ramon Urias and Mauricio Dubon. Jansen hasn't blown a save since June 29, converting 14 straight chances since the beginning of July with a 1.19 ERA, 0.59 WHIP and 31:8 K:BB over his last 30.1 innings. Jansen should attract plenty of interest this winter in free agency if he doesn't elect to re-up with the Angels, and he needs only three more saves to pass Hall of Famer Lee Smith for third place on MLB's all-time list.
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Angels' Kenley Jansen: Shuts door for 28th save
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Jansen secured the save Wednesday against the Royals, striking out two in a clean ninth inning.
Jansen posted his 28th save of the season, and he hasn't permitted a single hit over his last nine appearances. Through 59 innings, the veteran right-hander has a 2.64 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 54:19 K:BB while blowing just one save opportunity. Jansen is headed for unrestricted free agency this winter, and he'll soon set his sights toward trying to become only the third member of the illustrious 500-save club along with Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman. Jansen has 475 saves for his career.
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Angels' Kenley Jansen: Notches 27th save
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Jansen struck out two in a perfect ninth inning Wednesday to record his 27th save of the season in a 4-3 win over the Twins.
The veteran closer has converted 12 straight save chances since the beginning of July, posting a 1.37 ERA, 0.65 WHIP and 26:7 K:BB in 26.1 innings over that stretch while also adding four wins. Jansen is up to 474 saves for his career, leaving him four behind Hall of Famer Lee Smith for third place on the all-time list.
Jansen pitched a perfect inning to earn the save in Sunday's 4-3 win over the Athletics.
Jansen has rebounded well after a rough patch in the middle of August that saw him allow four runs over five innings while going 1-2 with one save from Aug. 12-22. Since then, he's pitched five straight hitless innings with a 2:2 K:BB and earned three saves. He's up to 26-for-27 on save chances this year while maintaining a 2.83 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 50:18 K:BB through 54 innings.
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Angels' Kenley Jansen: Works scoreless ninth
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Jansen worked around a walk in a hitless and scoreless ninth inning in Tuesday's 5-1 win over the Royals. He struck out two.
The veteran closer got loose for what was going to be a save chance before the Angels tacked on an additional run with two outs in the top of the ninth. Interim manager Ray Montgomery still turned to Jansen despite it becoming a non-save situation, and Jansen needed 22 pitches to shut the door. Jansen has now worked three of the last four days and will presumably be unavailable for Wednesday's contest.
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Angels' Kenley Jansen: Snares 26th save
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Jansen picked up the save Tuesday against the Royals, walking one batter and recording two strikeouts during a scoreless ninth inning.
Jansen had gone four straight appearances without recording a strikeout -- his longest streak of the season -- but he nabbed a pair of Ks in Tuesday's save opportunity. The 37-year-old closer is now one save away from matching his 2024 total, and his current 2.89 ERA would be his best since the 2021 season.
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Angels' Kenley Jansen: Perfect for 25th save
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Jansen picked up the save Sunday against the Astros, throwing a perfect ninth inning. He did not record a strikeout.
Jansen became the ninth player in baseball to hit the 25-save milestone this season, and he did so by retiring Yordan Alvarez, Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa in order. Jansen has now fired three consecutive hitless innings, a streak that follows back-to-back losses during which Jansen yielded three runs across two innings total. He has a 2.94 ERA in 52 innings this season.
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Angels' Kenley Jansen: Locks down 24th save
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Jansen earned the save in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Astros, walking one a scoreless ninth inning.
The veteran closer was summoned to protect a three-run lead and worked around a leadoff walk to notch his 24th save of the season. The outing was another step toward Jansen's former self after he had given up four earned runs over his previous six appearances. Even with the few recent bumps, Jansen has still converted eight of his last nine save chances and looks to be getting back on track.
Jansen told reporters Wednesday that he is dealing with rib pain on his left side that he tweaked during a workout, Erica Weston of Bally Sports West reports.
The injury factored into his performance against the Reds on Tuesday, when he gave up two runs on two hits and a walk while striking out one batter in one frame. He'll be shut down from throwing for the time being, but the veteran closer is hopeful to avoid a stint on the injured list. Reid Detmers and Ryan Zeferjahn are the top candidates to step up into high-leverage situations while Jansen is sidelined.
Angels' Kenley Jansen: Dealing with possible injury
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Jansen said after Tuesday's loss to the Reds that he's dealing with "something physical" but declined to disclose the nature of the issue, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.
When asked if he would miss any time, Jansen said, "Just gonna take it day by day and see where we're at." Jansen took the loss against the Reds on Tuesday, allowing two earned runs on two hits and one walk while striking out one over one inning. Just 11 of his 22 pitches in the top of the ninth were thrown for strikes. Reid Detmers would be a candidate for saves should Jansen need to miss any action.
Angels' Kenley Jansen: Rebounds with save Wednesday
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Jansen notched a save against the Dodgers on Wednesday, retiring all three batters he faced in the ninth inning.
Jansen gave up a tiebreaking solo homer to Shohei Ohtani in the ninth frame Tuesday, breaking a 20-appearance scoreless streak. The veteran closer was right back on the mound against his former club Wednesday, this time with the task of protecting a one-run, ninth-inning lead. Jansen came through, retiring Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and Will Smith on a combined 10 pitches. Jansen has now converted 23 of 24 save opportunities on the campaign, putting him on track for his highest save conversion rate since he went a remarkable 41-for-42 in save chances with the Dodgers in 2017.
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