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Tigers' Kenley Jansen: Records another save Wednesday
Rotowire
Jansen worked around a hit to toss a scoreless inning of relief and earn the save in Wednesday's 2-1 win over the Royals. He struck out one.
Jansen recorded his second save in as many days, and he now has four this year in five opportunities. The veteran righty also has a strong 1.93 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and seven strikeouts across 4.2 innings so far. Jansen appears to be settling in with his new team, and the 38-year-old should remain a reliable fantasy option the rest of the way as long as he remains healthy in his 17th MLB season.
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Tigers' Kenley Jansen: Secures third save
Rotowire
Jansen worked around a hit to toss a scoreless inning of relief and earn the save in Tuesday's 2-1 win over the Royals.
After securing just one save through the first 13 games of the season, Jansen now has two in Detroit's last four contests. The lack of opportunities overall has limited the veteran to only 3.2 innings so far out of the bullpen, though he's looked sharp in the small sample with a 2.45 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and six strikeouts. The Tigers figure to pick up the pace, and Jansen would stand to benefit as the team's unquestioned closer.
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Tigers' Kenley Jansen: Collects second save
Rotowire
Jansen struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Friday to record his second save of the season in a 2-0 win over the Marlins.
The veteran closer continued a solid start to his Detroit tenure. Friday's appearance marked the first time this season that Jansen actually relied on his defense for outs, and through 2.2 innings he's posted a 3.38 ERA, 0.75 WHIP and 6:1 K:BB while converting two of three save chances.
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Tigers' Kenley Jansen: Blows save Tuesday
Rotowire
Jansen blew the save in Tuesday's 7-5 loss to the Diamondbacks, allowing a run on a hit while striking out one in one-third of an inning.
The veteran right-hander was called upon to preserve the Tigers' one-run lead with runners on the corners and two outs in the eighth inning, but he instead served up a three-run homer to rookie Jose Fernandez. Jansen punched out the next batter he faced to end the frame, but the damage was done. The 38-year-old is now 1-for-2 in save chances to begin the year, and Tuesday's outing isn't likely to affect his job security as Detroit's closer, barring additional struggles.
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Tigers' Kenley Jansen: Strikes out side for save
Rotowire
Jansen struck out three batters in a perfect inning to earn the save in Friday's 5-2 win over the Padres.
The Tigers earned the lead with an eighth-inning rally, and Jansen did his job in the ninth, throwing 10 of 11 pitches for strikes. Jansen did well on a bad Angels team last year, racking up 29 saves while pitching to a 2.59 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 57:19 K:BB over 59 innings. Jansen doesn't have the elite strikeout numbers he used to, but he's still capable of closing, and he should get plenty of opportunities with a Detroit team that will challenge for the top spot in the AL Central. Will Vest and Kyle Finnegan are veteran options to step into the ninth inning if necessary, but Jansen figures to get the majority of the save chances as long as his performance is good.
Tigers' Kenley Jansen: Named favorite to close by manager
Rotowire
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch indicated Wednesday on the Tiger Territory podcast that Jansen will open the season as the team's favorite to serve as closer.
Speaking about his high-leverage relief options, Hinch said, "I think they're all going to get saves," before adding that "I think we can pretty much guess how it's gonna go given that one of them has a historic number of saves." The latter comment was in reference to Jansen, who is 24 saves away from 500 for his career. It doesn't mean the 38-year-old will finish the 2026 season as the Tigers' closer, but it's a safe bet Jansen will open the year as Hinch's first choice to handle save opportunities. Will Vest and/or Kyle Finnegan would be next-in-line if Jansen slips up. Jansen's strikeout rate dipped to a career-low 24.4 percent in 2025 with the Angels, but he remained effective, posting a 2.59 ERA and 0.95 WHIP while notching 29 saves.
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