Kenley Jansen is doing his best to roll out the welcome mat for newest Los Angeles Dodger Manny Machado.
Addressing reporters on Wednesday after Machado was officially acquired from the Baltimore Orioles, the Dodgers reliever said that he had already offered to pay infielder Max Muncy to give up his No. 13 jersey to Machado, per Bob Nightengale of USA TODAY Sports.
LA #Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen has already volunteered to pay teammate Max Muncy a nice tip for giving up his No. 13 jersey to new teammate Manny Machado. “He deserves it.’’ Jansen says
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) July 19, 2018
Machado has worn the No. 13 jersey throughout his seven-year MLB career.
As for Muncy, who is only making the league minimum $545,000 salary this season as a pre-arbitration player, the offer to let Machado have his number could be an enticing one. Jansen is, after all, one of the highest-paid relievers in the league, having just signed a five-year, $80 million contract last year.
In any case, Machado will be a free agent after the season, so Muncy may only have to part ways with it for a few months (especially if you believe a recent report suggesting that Machado could be eyeing another NL team long-term).
