Dodgers: 3 options to keep the closer spot warm if Kenley Jansen isn’t ready

Dodgers who could fill in for Kenley Jansen at closer: Blake Treinen

If manager Dave Roberts is looking for experience to take on the closing duties in the absence of Kenley Jansen, he has an option in newly-signed reliever Blake Treinen.

The 32-year-old signed a one-year, $10 million deal with the Dodgers in the offseason and both sides are hoping he can still shutdown opposing lineups as he did in Oakland in 2018 when he recorded 38 saves.

After one of the strongest relief seasons in baseball, the right-hander came back down to earth last year, seeing his ERA ballon to nearly five runs (4.91). After walking only 2.4 batters per nine innings in 2018, his walk rate more than doubled in 2019 to 5.68 BB/9.

Even if Treinen doesn’t return to his spectacular form from two seasons ago, the Dodgers would be happy to see him regress to the mean, as he was an adequate bullpen arm for the Nationals from 2014-2016 when his ERA never reached above four runs.

The veteran is hoping some “subtle tweaks” in his delivery will lead to a bounce-back season.

“It’s nothing crazy,” Treinen told the OC Register in March. “There’s two steps. Some of its mechanical. Some of its usage. That’s about the gist of it I’ll lay out there.”

If a few mechanical adjustments prove effective, Treinen might be the best option to fill in for Jansen if the long-time Dodger closer isn’t ready to start the season.

Dodgers who could fill in for Kenley Jansen at closer: Joe Kelly

While this isn’t the most ideal option, when you start going through the alternatives, if Kenley Jansen and Pedro Baez are both unavailable to start the season, Joe Kelly quickly becomes one of the top candidates for the closer role, especially if you want someone with a little bit of experience pitching in high leverage situations.

Granted, if you watched the 2019 postseason, you are already having scary flashbacks. But if you also watched the 2018 postseason, when Kelly was pitching for the Red Sox, you know what he can do in big spots. In the World Series against the Dodgers, the right-hander didn’t allow a run in five appearances.

If Roberts needs someone to take on the closing duties for a few weeks without impacting their role for the rest of the season, perhaps a veteran like Kelly is the right man for the job. He has pitched in all types of situations, he could handle the adjustment, and could easily slide back to his set-up role when Jansen or Baez return.

While Kelly might not get you excited about the alternatives to replace Jansen, this next potential candidate will.

Dodgers who could fill in for Kenley Jansen at closer: Dustin May

This is an intriguing option, especially since the Dodgers will be carrying extra pitchers on their roster to start the regular season. Teams are allowed to carry 30 players for the first two weeks of the schedule. If manager Dave Roberts wants to provide top prospect Dustin May regular work without putting him in the rotation, perhaps the closing role is a good spot for him.

May was already hitting 99 MPH on the radar gun in summer camp this week. He has electric stuff to mow down hitters at the end of a game. Imagine a 6-foot-6 right-hander barreling down on opponents with a heavy sinker and nasty curveball to keep them off balance.

The 22-year-old made his major league debut last season, appearing in 14 games (10 in relief) and pitched to a 3.63 ERA with strong underlying numbers contributing to his 2.90 FIP (fielding independent pitching). His sinker produced a 44.4% ground ball rate and when hitters did get lift on the ball, May mostly kept them in the ballpark with a 7.4% HR/FB rate.

If the Dodgers have to go a short while without Kenley in the back of the pen, perhaps no other option would be more exciting than seeing Dustin May get the final three outs.