The Dodgers Apologized To Closer Kenley Jansen For The Team Not Giving Him Any Save Opportunities
Poor Kenley Jansen (and Kenley Jansen fantasy owners). Jansen has appeared in 10 games in the month of May and has just one save to show for it, and it’s not because he’s struggling, either. In those 10 appearances, he’s allowed one earned run in 10.1 innings with 18 strikeouts and zero walks. He’s been phenomenal. The problem is that the Dodgers offense has been phenomenal, too.
This month, the Dodgers have averaged 5.85 runs per game, which is tied with the Mets for the best mark in the majors, and their 19-8 record trails only the Astros (21-7) for MLB’s best record this month. It’s certainly a good problem to have, especially since not all closers can perform as dominantly in non-save situations as they do in save situations for whatever reason. That has yet to derail Jansen’s dominance, but that also didn’t stop Yasiel Puig from apologizing on behalf of the Dodgers for Jansen’s lack of save opportunities lately with some snacks and an apology note as a peace offering.
I’m not sure that Puig was the right guy to be the frontman for the team’s apology, though. He’s hitting .222 with a .646 OPS this month, while Chase Utley, Chris Taylor, Yasmani Grandal, Cody Bellinger, and Enrique Hernandez off the bench have combined to hit .306 with a .921 OPS in May. The Dodgers have now won six straight games, and have gone from 3.5 games out at the start of the streak to alone in first place, a half-game up over the Rockies.