After spending over $1 billion on new players this past offseason, the Los Angeles Dodgers may be turning to a familiar face to help complete the puzzle.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported this week that Boston Red Sox reliever Kenley Jansen is looking like a potential July trade piece. Heyman notes too that the Dodgers seem like a candidate for Jansen, who reportedly expected to be on a contender when he signed with the Red Sox before the 2023 season.
Jansen, a member of the 400-save club, will be 37 later this year but is in the last season of his contract. He pitched on the Dodgers from 2010-21, making four All-Star teams and leading the NL in saves twice. Though Jansen had some moments of shakiness over the years, he closed on their 2020 World Series-winning team and was generally the Dodgers’ most dependable reliever of the last decade or so.
Last season for the Red Sox, Jansen had a 3.63 ERA with 29 saves in 33 tries (also making another All-Star team). He continues to close games this year too, but those opportunities may be few and far between on a Boston team that is ultimately expected to be non-competitive.
As for the Dodgers, they have had a hodgepodge of relievers get ninth-inning work so far this year, including Evan Phillips, Daniel Hudson, and Dinelson Lamet. Jansen, who has already faced widespread trade rumors recently, might just get a chance to end his career where it began in the first place.
