Dodgers: Kenley Jansen Struggles in Debut with Atlanta Braves

Dodgers longtime closer Kenley Jansen was not at his best in his first outing with the Atlanta Braves.

When the Dodgers acquired Craig Kimbrel for AJ Pollock, it led to some second guessing. Mainly due to the fact that both Kimbrel and longtime Dodgers reliever Kenley Jansen, now with the Braves, will earn about $16M in salary this season. Some fans wondered why the Dodgers didn't just opt to sign Jansen and not trade Pollock. The answer is Jansen didn't want to wait for an offer from the Dodgers and decided to sign the official offer from the Braves.

Kimbrel recorded his first save as a Dodger, but it wasn't pretty. Kimbrel yielded two doubles and coughed up on earned run. He did record the save, but the Rockies did get the tying run to the plate in the Dodgers 5-3 Opening Day win.

Kenley's debut was just as rocky. Jansen entered the game with a four run lead that quickly evaporated. He walked the first batter and proceeded to give up three earned runs to cut the Braves lead to one run. He did end up collecting the save, but his final line wasn't pretty: three hits, three earned runs, and one walk.

Now, Kimbrel and Jansen won't be judged by their first appearances of the year, but it does serve as a reminder that both pitchers are not the All-Star, shutdown closers they used to be.