Kenley Jansen Sends Defiant Message After Tigers Trade Deadline

Kenley Jansen is not interested in treating the Detroit Tigers’ deadline as a surrender.

Detroit traded Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize, stripping two major arms from the rotation while remaining within reach of an American League playoff spot. Jansen acknowledged the losses, but his message to the clubhouse was blunt: stop worrying about what is gone and take responsibility for what remains.

“If you’re going to worry about that stuff, you’re going to feel miserable,” Jansen said. “I’m not going to do that. It’s unfortunate we lost two great guys. But did the lineup change? Tell me, did the lineup change? The lineup is the same. Did the bullpen change? The bullpen didn’t change.

“At the end of the day, who plays the most? It’s the lineup and the bullpen.”

Jansen Puts Responsibility on Himself

Jansen did not attempt to push the burden onto Detroit’s younger pitchers or the front office.

The veteran closer said the bullpen’s response must begin with him.

“With the bullpen, it starts with me,” he said. “I need to step up and pitch better and I will be showing that. The rest of the guys need to step up and help the team do the job. You get paid to play a game we love. We just have to go out there with a chip on our shoulder, when it comes to the bullpen, and lock it down. It starts there.”

That is the kind of accountability Detroit needs after a deadline that changed the clubhouse and made the postseason path more difficult.

Jansen remains convinced the opportunity is still there.

“I will be honest, the American League is not that great. Everything is wide open. The division is wide open. And this team has it. This team has showed the last two years that it has it. And I still believe in that.”

“Put a Chip on Your Shoulder and Go Play”

Jansen’s message was not complicated.

The Tigers can spend the rest of the season thinking about Skubal and Mize, or they can use the outside doubt as fuel.

“To me, nothing has changed,” Jansen said. “Put a chip on your shoulder and go play. People are counting us out? Great. I love it. But we have to prove to ourselves what we are capable, not prove it to other people on the outside. Prove it ourselves. I’m going to prove myself to be better. … I’m still playing the game I love and I’m playing at a high level. That’s the mentality we all should have.

“Don’t get distracted. Don’t get bothered. There’s going to be some tough losses. That’s the reality of life. We’ve got to suck it up, put our big boy pants on and show up to work and do the job.”

The Tigers entered the post-deadline stretch still close enough to the playoff race to matter. Jansen clearly does not believe the remaining players should act like the season has already been decided for them.

Jansen Still Believes Detroit Can Reach October

Jansen has not pitched in the postseason since 2022 after appearing in October for 10 consecutive seasons.

He did not sign with Detroit to play out the schedule and head home at the end of September.

“I want to be back there,” he said. “I thought this team had a chance to get there and I still think that. I came here for a reason. I don’t want the season to end Sept. 28. I hope we play longer than that. But we can’t think about the future and we can’t think about the past. Thinking about the past will make you miserable and thinking about the future you will have anxiety.

“Just be great today. That’s the goal.”

Bottom Line

Kenley Jansen is not pretending that losing Skubal and Mize was painless.

He is refusing to let those trades become an excuse.

The lineup remains intact. The bullpen remains intact. The American League race remains open. Jansen believes Detroit still has enough to make a run, but only if the players stop looking backward and begin proving it on the field.

His challenge to the Tigers was simple.

Put a chip on your shoulder.

Show up.

Do the job.