Kenley Jansen has been one of the best players on the Boston Red Sox during his two-year tenure with the team. With the Red Sox on the verge of missing the postseason this year, Jansen spoke out about his time in Boston.
Jansen gave a surprisingly honest reflection about how he feels about his Red Sox career as he approaches free agency in an interview with Chris Cotillo of MassLive on Saturday.
“I’m always gonna look for winning. Contending,” Jansen said. “That’s going to be my priority. My agent will do the rest. I want to be in a situation where we can contend for a title. That’s it.”
“I don’t know what to say,” Jansen continued. “For me, I’m a guy who always wanted to make it to the playoffs. Where I came from, it was always titles. We fell short last year. This year, we’re still in it but for me, it’s disappointing. That’s who I am. You want to get to the playoffs and play for a championship.”
The fact that Jansen feels so strongly about being part of a winning team is not surprising. Before joining the Red Sox in 2023, Jansen had spent the first 12 seasons of his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers and one season in 2022 with the Atlanta Braves. Jansen made the postseason every year from 2013-2022 with the Dodgers and Braves and won the World Series in 2020. When Jansen failed to make the it last year with the Red Sox, that was the first time he did not pitch in the postseason since 2012, his second season in the Major Leagues.
The Red Sox are currently 4 1/2 games back of the Minnesota Twins for the third and final American League Wild Card position, with the Detroit Tigers and Seattle Mariners also ahead in the standings and in close pursuit as well. Unless things dramatically change and the Red Sox are able to make a shocking comeback or have an excellent offseason and show that they are ready to be legitimate contenders, it looks like Jansen's days in Boston may be numbered.
Kenley Jansen's free agency
Even though he will be entering his age-37 season, Jansen will still be one of the most sought-after free agents this offseason. Jansen has shown that he is still one of the top late-inning arms in baseball. This season, he has 26 of 30 save opportunities and has a 3.48 ERA.
Jansen has publicly spoken about a potential Dodgers reunion, but other contending teams like the Yankees, Royals and Diamondbacks could all use an upgrade at closer. While a Red Sox reunion is not completely off the table, it may make more sense for Jansen to find a new home given the point he is at in his career.
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