When Kenley Jansen got back to the Boston Red Sox clubhouse after recording his milestone 400th career save in a 5-2 win Wednesday night over the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park, there was a celebration waiting for him.
Reveling in the accomplishment, which only six other pitches have reached in Major League Baseball history, alongside his teammates kept the special moment going for the veteran closer.
While Jansen in all likelihood will keep the ball he threw past Braves catcher Travis d’Arnaud to secure his monumental save, the Red Sox also made sure to get Jansen a couple of gifts to mark the occasion.
“That’s awesome, man. It can’t be better than that. Just be with all them boys. It’s unbelievable, man,” Jansen told reporters, as seen on NESN postgame coverage. “I appreciate all the gifts. I saw that 400 on that bass (guitar). I probably won’t play that one. Might play it one time. But they’re definitely going to go onto the wall as a souvenir.”
The Red Sox also had a tribute video ready to go as well, with plenty of former teammates congratulating Jansen. According to WEEI’s Rob Bradford, Joe Torre, AJ Ellis, Clayton Kershaw, Ozzie Albies, Russell Martin, Austin Barnes, Eric Gagne, Andruw Jones, Jurickson Profar, Jonathan Schoop, Rick Honeycutt as well as his wife and kids had messages for Jansen.
“It can’t be better, man, seeing all the old faces,” Jansen said. “Coaches plus my teammates, it’s awesome. It was a moment that I won’t ever forget.”
Justin Turner, who played with Jansen during their time together with the Los Angeles Dodgers, said the Red Sox have spent the last 10 days trying to come up with a way to honor Jansen and it seemed the tribute video was a home run of a gift for everyone involved.
“The most important thing was him seeing the video from so many people that share the same sentiment as I do and care for him and love him,” Turner told reporters, as seen on NESN postgame coverage. “I don’t think he anticipated that was coming. I didn’t watch the video. I was kind of watching him watch the video. I think that was pretty special, too.”
