Red Sox relievers posted a 4.59 ERA and 27 blown saves last season, both tied for fifth worst in baseball, so improving the bullpen was a priority this winter as their first two moves before Jansen included adding relievers Joely Rodríguez and Chris Martin (though Martin’s deal has yet to be finalized).
Signing Jansen is the definitive move of the offseason so far for the Red Sox but still a shocker as the club had given no indication they were pursuing a top-of-the-line closer but rather hinted they may pursue multiple established relievers to take on high-leverage innings late in the game. Nevertheless, Jansen makes the bullpen definitively stronger and has saved 38 and 41 games respectively the last two years. While he missed a few weeks last season with an irregular heartbeat and has dealt with heart-related issues throughout his career, Jansen has been a workhorse making at least 60 appearances every season since 2016 (not counting the shortened 2020 season).
As far as the rest of the bullpen, Rodríguez, Martin, Tanner Houck, John Schreiber and Matt Barnes will likely share the workload in the sixth through eighth innings ahead of Jansen.
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