Los Angeles Dodgers to Re-Sign Kenley Jansen to Five-Year Deal

The Los Angeles Dodgers will reportedly retain closer Kenley Jansen on a five-year, $80 million deal.

The Los Angeles Dodgers breathed a sigh of relief on Monday, reportedly agreeing to terms with closer Kenley Jansen on a five-year, $80 million contract. ESPN’s Jim Bowden had the confirmation:

Jansen’s deal to return to the Dodgers comes $6 million shy of the contract Aroldis Chapman signed with the Yankees last week, which set a record for relief pitchers.

According to Yahoo Sports’ Tim Brown, Jansen can opt out of the contract after three seasons, a feature shared with Chapman’s new deal. Brown also says that Jansen left money on the table with offers from other clubs.

L.A. really wanted Jansen back, but with many teams interested in the closer’s services, it was never exactly a guarantee. Ultimately, the Dodgers did what they needed to do to ensure that Jansen would remain in their bullpen to take the ball in the ninth inning.

It’s not hard to understand why the 29-year-old right-hander was such a hot-ticket item on this offseason’s free agent market, with some even arguing that he was best closer available. Jansen notched a career high 47 saves this year to the tune of a stellar 1.83 ERA, 0.67 WHIP and 9.45 K/BB ratio.

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Since 2012, Jansen has collected 180 saves, good for third most in Major League Baseball over that span, behind Craig Kimbrel (209) and Aroldis Chapman (181). His 11.4 fWAR is second over that same period, trailing only Chapman’s 13.0.

Jansen has thrived on maintaining high strikeout rates while limiting walks. He boasts a career 13.9 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9. In the past two seasons he has gotten even better at avoiding free passes, posting a 1.4 BB/9 each year. Aroldis Chapman and his 105 MPH fastball get a lot of attention, but you could certainly speculate whether Jansen’s stuff and attributes as a pitcher will age better.

That’s what the Dodgers will be hoping at least, as they could have pursued any of this winter’s big name free agent closers but elected to stick with their guy. This could turn out to be a significant day for the franchise, as reports have indicated that L.A. may be nearing a deal to re-sign third baseman Justin Turner as well.

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The Marlins and Nationals were known to be two of the other teams in serious pursuit of Jansen. They will now need to search elsewhere for their closer needs. Despite missing last season to injury, former Royals closer Greg Holland is generating interest in free agency. Names like the White Sox’s David Robertson and the Rays’ Alex Colome have also surfaced in trade rumors.