Tigers Officially Reveal Contract Terms for New Closer Kenley Jansen
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The Detroit Tigers have released the contract terms for their new closer Kenley Jansen, and the veteran active saves leader across baseball is not coming to the Motor City for cheap.
As reported by Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic, Jansen is going to make $9 million in 2026 with a chance to make even more in 2025 if he performs as the deal contains a $12 million club option for 2027.
Notably, the 2027 option also includes a buyout of $2 million, effectively guaranteeing Jansen at least $11 million for one season in the Motor City to step into the highest leverage situations at the end of games. The question now of course becomes if this was a good deal for Detroit.
Are Tigers Overpaying for Jansen's Services?
On the surface, it seems like a lot of cash to hand over to a 38-year-old who is clearly on the back side of his career, but looking a little bit deeper into the numbers, this could prove to be one of the best values in baseball.
The Baltimore Orioles signed Ryan Helsley -- who was also pursued by Detroit -- to a two-year deal worth $28 million, and while Helsley is obviously younger, Jansen was better than he was in 2025 and statistically was one of the best relievers in baseball.
When comparing the stats of Jansen to equivalent or even more expensive contracts, it seems clear and obvious Scott Harris got some great value here.
Tigers Getting Real Value Out of Price if Jansen Can Keep Up Production
In 2025, Jansen had a bWAR of 2.4 over 62 appearances led by his ERA of 2.59 and WHIP of 0.949, racking up 29 saves on the year for a bad Los Angeles Angels team. Though he does not have the swing and miss stuff he once did that this bullpen needs, the veteran can still clearly get it done at a high level.
Compare that to Helsley who had just a 0.1 bWAR this season only to sign for $14 million annually and $11 million sounds more than fair for Jansen. Given that Jansen is coming off his best season in close to half a decade, most fans in Detroit are going to be fairly thrilled with the value.
Jansen still has to hold up his end of the deal, but if he can do that, the Tigers just landed themselves a new closer on a heck of a bargain.
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Michael Brauner is a 2022 graduate of the University of Alabama with a degree in Sports Media. He covers various MLB teams across the On SI network and you can also find his work on Yellowhammer News covering the Alabama Crimson Tide and Auburn Tigers as well as on the radio producing and co-hosting 'The Opening Kickoff' every weekday morning on 105.5 WNSP FM in Mobile, Alabama.