The Detroit Tigers are making some headway this winter on a few key offseason decisions. It began with Gleyber Torres returning on a $22.025 million Qualifying Offer, and continued with their re-signing of Kyle Finnegan.
But the Tigers still needed to address a few key areas of their roster going forward. Infield and pitching are still big needs, even another reliever.
And according to ESPN's Jeff Passan, the Tigers have landed a new back-end reliever who can take over the closer role. The longtime Los Angeles Dodgers and recent Boston Red Sox closer is coming to the Tigers on a one-year deal.
Tigers sign former Dodgers, Red Sox closer to one-year deal
"Reliever Kenley Jansen and the Detroit Tigers are in agreement on a one-year contract, pending physical, sources tell ESPN." Passan reports. "Jansen will be the second reliever the Tigers have locked up this week after re-signing Kyle Finnegan to a two-year deal at the Winter Meetings."
Kenley Jansen is a very experienced closer, making his MLB debut back in 2010 with the Dodgers. He's pitched in 16 seasons, and after a 12-year stint with the Dodgers, he joined the Atlanta Braves for one season, the Red Sox for two, and, most recently, the Los Angeles Angels for 2025.
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In his long MLB career, Jansen has a career 2.57 ERA in 933 games, the most by any active pitcher in Major League Baseball. With the Angels in 2025, Jansen showed that at age 37, he still has it.
In 62 games for the Angels, Jansen had a 2.59 ERA, finishing with 2.4 bWAR, 29 saves, 57 strikeouts, and a 0.949 WHIP in 59 innings pitched.
He's the active leader in saves with 476, and has 1,278 career strikeouts during his potentially Hall of Fame MLB career. His 476 saves are the fourth most all-time, and he has a chance to pass Lee Smith's 478 in 2026 with just three more saves. He's three saves from being third all-time in saves in MLB history.
Jansen is now joining the Tigers on a one-year deal to bolster the bullpen and pair with Finnegan to be a pair of dominant righties. A four-time All-Star, World Series champion, and now, a Tigers pitcher.
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