The Washington Nationals could look to cap off their offseason with the addition of a living baseball legend.
Though originally predicted by some to spend big in free agency, the Nationals have mostly improved around the edges this offseason. They signed veterans Josh Bell, Mike Soroka, Amed Rosario and Jorge Lopez to low-risk, one-year deals and made a savvy trade with the Texas Rangers for first baseman Nathaniel Lowe.
Despite these moves and an emerging collection of young stars, the Nationals roster still feels incomplete. One weakness in particular is the back end of the bullpen, as the club still hasn’t replaced Kyle Finnegan, who was non-tendered in November 2024 despite his 38 saves in 2024. With this in mind, Bleacher Report’s Tim Kelly predicts they will land future Hall-of-Fame closer Kenley Jansen on yet another short-term deal.
“A team like the Washington Nationals—who have a lot of young talent and could be a sneaky contender this season—makes sense,” he wrote. “They could offer Jansen the opportunity to close, utilizing Jorge López as his primary set-up man.”
Jansen is coming off two up-and-down seasons with the Red Sox, during which he flashed dominance at times but faltered down the stretch. Last season’s drop-off was particularly drastic, as he posted a 5.06 ERA in the second half compared to a 2.16 mark before the All-Star break.
Despite the late-season struggles, Jansen continues to post K/9 rates over ten and ERA’s below four, which is a profile that any team would be happy to have in their bullpen. The bigger hold-up may be whether teams still view him as a closer, which is clearly Jansen’s desire as he approaches career milestones. With 447 career saves, he is just 31 away from passing Lee Smith for third-place all-time and just 53 away from joining Trevor Hoffman and Mariano Rivera as the only closers to register 500 saves in their career.
Given his stellar career, Jansen is widely considered a lock for the Baseball Hall of Fame when he becomes eligible.
While teams with established closers like the Mets have balked at adding Jansen, the Nationals can offer Jansen the job without any real competition. In return, Jansen can give the Nationals a proven option in the ninth inning and immediate credibility as they chase their first postseason appearance since 2019.
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