Kenley Jansen's struggles have been a loud topic of conversation on social media. Many have called for him to be removed from late game appearances, but others have gone as far as to say he shouldn't even be on the roster.
Fans also have a tendency of overreaction, and that's more of what's happening here than any overarching issue with the Braves' closing pitcher. That isn't to diminish the issues he's been having on the mound, however, because he hasn't been himself as of late. So could Raisel Iglesias see an increased role come October?
Grant McAuley joined the Midday Show on Tuesday afternoon ahead of the Braves' series opener with the Oakland Athletics to discuss the outlook of the closing role as the postseason inches closer.
"Iglesias could see some reps there, and I don't think it would be the worst idea either," McAuley told Andy and Randy. "This is why you go get a guy like that, too. [That move] was trying to look at ways to make the bullpen stronger."
At the time of the move, the Braves had just moved on from 2021 closer, Will Smith, in a trade with the Houston Astros for Jake Odorizzi. The Braves were then in a situation that they needed additional depth at the back-end. The move to acquire Igelsias was not one to supplant Jansen, rather it was one supplement him.
"Having someone like Raisel Iglesias come in, just in the pure numbers game, and Kenley Jansen already throwing the ninth inning, made your club better," McAuley said. "In the event that you have a health issue for Kenley Jansen or an injury of some sort to somebody that might destabilize things, you've got Raisel Iglesias right there."
Despite sharing the league lead in saves (31), Jansen has been struggling with allowing baserunners in high-stress moments due to an issue with the movement on his cutter. When a pitcher is struggling with a pitch that he throws 60-percent of the time (per Baseball Savant), then that is a recipe for problems.
His current 3.75 ERA would be the highest of his MLB career. Despite pitching in 18.2 fewer innings, he has already fallen his numbers in allowed hits (38 to 36), runs (22 to 21), and home runs (six to four) from his last season with the Dodgers.
An option that Grant McAuley proposed was that the Braves could lean on Iglesias for a series or two until Jansen figures that mechanical issue out, and that's the luxury of having a guy like this on your roster.
Ultimately though, the "best case scenario" is that he does fill that role come October.