Braves closer Kenley Jansen has been placed on the 15 Day IL due to an irregular heartbeat the team announced Tuesday afternoon.
The closer signed a one-year deal with the Braves this past off-season after three all-star selections with the Dodgers. Jansen is a two-time reliever of the year and in 10th on the all-time saves list with 370.
This season, the Braves closer has a 3.58 ERA with 20 saves.
This is not the first time Jansen has had to go on the IL due to his condition. The right hander had heart surgery back in 2018 and was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat back in 2011. Jansen has gone on the IL numerous times for this over his career.
The Braves are just five games back of the NL East-leading Mets with the two teams scheduled to meet 15 more times during the season.
Jansen’s impact on the field
No-one wants to see great players go down with an injury, especially with something as serious as a heart condition like Jansen.
But to say that Jansen’s injury will affect the division race will be an understatement. Recover from this condition is usually never set and stone. In 2018, Jansen missed over a month of the season for the same issue and was never the same pitcher after coming back that year.
One of the best closers in the game, Jansen’s absence will mean an already depleted bullpen will get much thinner once July and potentially August roll around.
The Braves made up close to six full games on the NL East standings thanks to a relatively easy June while the Mets played their hardest part of the schedule. With a much easier July and August awaiting New York, Atlanta will have to keep pace without their closer.
Atlanta does have options to replace their closer in the bullpen. Will Smith was the closer for the team last season, notching 37 saves and a 3.44 ERA. AJ Minter could also be in consideration with a 1.69 ERA in a league-high 34 appearances.
Either way, Minter or Smith are highly consistent options that could close out games for Atlanta. Regardless of who closes, the Braves will have a much thinner bullpen without Jansen and it could cause problems for the team the longer he is out.
Off the Field
The Mets bullpen is currently 12th in baseball. While that doesn’t seem too bad, the team could be looking for more dependable arms in the pen once the trade deadline rolls around.
While names like Mark Melancon, David Robertson and Daniel Bard are all options the Mets could trade, with the Braves injury woes in the bullpen, they could also be buyers at the deadline as well.
Atlanta needing bullpen arms will only jack up the price tag for others around the league which means the Mets could be in a bidding war for some of the league’s top targets.
Again, Jansen’s injury affects the Mets both on and off the field, but the hope is that he can make a recovery from a very serious condition.
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