Former Red Sox Closer Sets (Very) Ambitious Bar With New Team

Longtime closer Kenley Jansen, formerly of the Boston Red Sox, doesn’t envision himself walking off the mound for good anytime soon.

Jansen signed a one-year, $10 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels this past offseason, and even though the four-time All-Star isn’t a spring chicken anymore, the 37-year-old intends to keep going. Jansen returned to Fenway Park for a three-game set against his former team and told reporters the plan is to play for another three to four years, according to MassLive’s Christopher Smith. It’s an ambitious goal to set that’ll see Jansen on a big-league bump in his 40s before walking away for good.

With 458 career saves to his name, Jansen sits fourth in MLB’s all-time leaderboard, right behind Hall of Famers Lee Smith (478), Trevor Hoffman (601) and Mariano Rivera (652). So, although Jansen has no shot of catching up to Rivera — even if he commits to “The TB12 Method” — the 2020 World Series champ can continue to strengthen an already impressive resume before submitting his case for Cooperstown.

During Jansen’s last All-Star season in 2023, the then-Red Sox bullpen chief spoke with Craig Kimbrel, who ranks fifth (440) on the all-time saves list. The two spoke at T-Mobile Park as members of opposing teams — Kimbrel represented the National League in the Midsummer Classic as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies. Jansen ran an equally ambitious goal to Kimbrel by ahead of the marquee exhibition contest.

“I told him, we’re not stopping here,” Jansen said, per The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Alex Coffey. “We’re going to 500 saves.”

Jansen made 54 appearances with the Red Sox last season. He recorded 27 saves, pitched to a 3.29 ERA over 54 2/3 innings and tallied 62 strikeouts. It’s been a slow start in 2025 over on the West Coast for Jansen, however, as he’s recorded a 4.91 ERA with 12 saves through 20 games with the Angels thus far.