The Boston Red Sox have jumped into the late-inning relief market, as they've inked left-hander Aroldis Chapman to a one-year, $10.75 million deal. The signing likely signals that Boston will be moving from their previous closer, Kenley Jansen, this winter.
Red Sox, LHP Aroldis Chapman agree to 1-year deal, per multiple reports including https://t.co/Z3s2EpgF39's @Feinsand. pic.twitter.com/yApfLoZWf5
— MLB (@MLB) December 3, 2024
The Red Sox signed Jansen to a two-year, $32 million deal following the 2022 season. Over those two years, he pitched to a 3.44 ERA in 105 appearances and saved 56 games in 64 chances. He was named an All-Star in his first year as Boston's closer. In 2024, he pitched to a 3.29 ERA and 27 saves in 31 opportunities as the team finished with an even 81-81 record.
Chapman and Jansen are similar pitchers with under-the-hood differences
Age is hardly a factor in the Red Sox's decision to move on, as both Jansen and Chapman will enter their age-37 seasons in 2025. However, the decision likely came down to how the two pitchers handled the second half of last season, as well as the team's desire to add more swing-and-miss to their bullpen.
Jansen pitched to a 5.06 ERA and allowed four home runs in 22 appearances after the All-Star break in 2024, while Chapman allowed just one home run and pitched to a 3.33 ERA.
The Red Sox are banking on the second-half version of Chapman showing up next year. In total, he had a 98-39 strikeout-to-walk ratio with the Pirates. That pitcher would be one heck of an upgrade in the back-end of their bullpen.
Beyond Chapman, Liam Hendriks, who the team signed to a two-year deal in February while he was recovering from Tommy John surgery, is another option with the credentials to pitch the ninth inning. While Hendriks did not pitch for Boston in 2023, the upside play was always with 2025 and beyond in mind. A former All-Star in his time with the Chicago White Sox, Boston has their pick of experienced closers to solidify the ninth inning.
The one issue with Jansen is the quality of contact significantly declined along with his velocity. His cutter velocity dropped nearly two ticks, from 95.3 to 93.6 MPH, and that led to the highest barrel rate of his career at 11.1% of the balls put into play against him.
Despite the large spike in the barrel rate, Jansen is still a tough pitcher to make contact against, with a 27.0% whiff rate against all swings and a 28.4% strikeout rate in 2024. That still plays in the back-end of a bullpen, where teams are always looking for swing-and-miss pitchers that can escape jams.
Like with Chapman, Jansen should see a healthy market for his services. The best fit would be contending clubs that are looking to upgrade their late-inning situation.
With 447 career saves, making him the current active leader, he needs 32 to pass Lee Smith for third place on MLB's All-Time Saves leaderboard. Passing Smith would strengthen his case to be inducted into the Hall of Fame once his career is over, as he has long been one of the most dominant closers in the sport.