Jansen not reliable as a closer
The Dodgers are the best team in the National League, but that alone doesn’t always translate to a place in the World Series.
Which is why the other part of their October odyssey is critical. Luck is on their side.
They continued their postseason stampede Thursday night by overwhelming the division rival San Diego Padres, their 12-3 victory at Globe Life Field in Arlington, completing a sweep in their NLDS.
The triumphs have been more perfunctory than noteworthy, except in one regard: They will enter the NL championship series against the Atlanta Braves with the justification to remove Kenley Jansen as their closer.
Roberts replied, “I’m not going to make that decision yet.”
The Dodgers can’t depend on Jansen to close here, they can’t depend on him to close there, they can’t depend on him to close anywhere.
Julio Urias has the arm and the stomach to close, but the Dodgers are committed to developing him as a starter.
Blake Treinen, who was signed as a free agent, was basically a $10million reclamation project. Brusdar Graterol, who was acquired in a trade with the Minnesota Twins, had only 10 games of major league experience.
The first two rounds of these playoffs might have spared them. Jansen’s diminished velocity against the Brewers in the wildcard round was alarming, so much so that Roberts said that while Jansen was still the closer, that didn’t mean the ninth inning was his.
The kinds of games that cost closers their jobs typically are painful defeats. The Dodgers were provided with the evidence required to make a change without losing a game.
Problems remain, however. They don’t have a clear-cut replacement. Treinen has days when he can’t throw strikes. Graterol doesn’t miss enough bats.
Without any days off scheduled in the NLCS, Urias probably will be required to start or pitch the bulk of the innings of a game.
But the Dodgers will at least be free of their long-standing obligation to call on Jansen to record the final outs. This is a victory for them, arguably more valuable than any of the five games they have won so far.