Kenley Jansen had the chance to compete from the outset of the World Baseball Classic this spring for Team Netherlands.
But the Boston Red Sox newcomer chose to bypass that opportunity.
Instead, Jansen wants to get acclimated with his new team, but more importantly, he understands he has more work ahead of him than most pitchers when it comes to adjusting to Major League Baseball’s new pitch clock since he works at a very slow rate.
“As much as I want to compete for the World Baseball Classic, I just want to make sure — knowing that I’m the slowest guy in the league — I want to adapt to that quickly,” Jansen said Wednesday at the Red Sox spring training facility, per MassLive’s Christopher Smith. “That’s why I choose to make sure I’ll be here in camp. And like I say, get to know my teammates and also adapt to certain stuff.”
Jansen signed a two-year deal worth a reported $32 million this offseason with the Red Sox as he is a big part of Boston’s remodeled bullpen.
But the 35-year-old will have to work at a much quicker pace on the mound this season with pitchers getting 15 seconds between pitches with nobody on base and 20 seconds with runners on.
As Smith pointed out via stats from Baseball Savant, Jansen had the third-worst tempo among pitchers in the majors at 25.6 seconds, and the three-time All-Star was dead last in slow percentage at 22.3% when operating with empty bases.
Jansen, who led the National League with 41 saves a season ago, is part of Netherlands’ designated pool and could make a WBC appearance if they reach the semifinals. But that’s not his focus at the moment as he looks to gain comfort on the mound with the pitch clock.
“It’s gonna be challenging on both sides,” Jansen said, per Smith. “It’s not only going to be on pitchers but I think hitters are going to be uncomfortable, too. Sometimes when they fall behind 0-2 or 0-1 quick, they take their time, too. So it’s both ways. So both ways have to adapt.
“It’s not only pitchers. So it’s gonna feel fast, and we all gotta go figure out how to slow the game down in certain ways to not let the game speed up on you and things get out of hand.”
