Tigers May Need to Start Worrying About Star Closer After Another Blown Save
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The Detroit Tigers lost a devastating one on Wednesday night to drop the series against the Atlanta Braves despite holding a lead in the bottom of the ninth inning before failing to close it out.
With a 3-2 lead, free agent acquisition from the offseason and one of the supposed best closers in the game in Kenley Jansen came in and wound up blowing it, allowing a walk-off two-run home run to Matt Olson on a brutal pitch he left right over the plate.
This was already Jansen's third blown save of the season in just 10 appearances following what was a very strong start to the year. The question now becomes whether or not Detroit needs to be concerned about the potential future Hall of Famer.
Tigers Should be Concerned by Jansen's Struggles
In his first couple of appearances of the year, Jansen looked like he was dominant and back to the version of himself from several years prior. Through his 10 appearances, the right-hander has now posted a 6.14 ERA and 1.64 WHIP, and though his strikeout numbers are up, so are his walk numbers.
Last year, Jansen had a 2.4 bWAR with a 2.59 ERA and 0.95 WHIP with 29 saves on a non-contending Los Angeles Angels team, and if he could be anything close to that, the year would be a success.
Right now though, that is not looking to be the case in Detroit.
Tigers Could Go Another Direction with Closer Role
The good news here for Detroit is that they don't necessarily have all their eggs in the Jansen basket so to speak. Kyle Finnegan -- who they re-signed this winter after acquiring him at the deadline last year -- has been absolutely sensational so far and obviously has a ton of experience there.
With a 0.61 ERA, Finnegan already has a 0.8 bWAR through 14 appearances. He has however been a little bit wild, something which is not desired in the role of closer. In an ideal world, Jansen will get it together soon, but it has not been an encouraging couple of weeks for him.
Over the next few appearances, Jansen is going to have a much brighter spotlight on him than usual and if he continues to struggle, changes could be made. Whether that means Finnegan or someone else remains to be seen, but Jansen needs to find something, and find it quickly.
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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.