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Kenley Jansen’s absence from Dodgers is noticeable. Will it become permanent?

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Kenley Jansen’s absence from Dodgers is noticeable. Will it become permanent?

For the final decade, the Dodgers have been in a position to depend on two folks on their pitching workers: Clayton Kershaw to begin video games and Kenley Jansen to shut them. This 12 months could also be totally different.

Kershaw reported to Camelback Ranch on Sunday recent off agreeing to a one-year contract to increase his Dodgers profession to a fifteenth season. However Jansen, for the primary time because the facility opened in 2009, is nowhere to be discovered for the followers crowding the again fields. The Dodgers’ all-time saves chief, a 6-foot-5 fan favourite synonymous with the group’s return to prominence, stays a free agent three weeks from opening day.

“You’ll be able to undoubtedly inform he’s not right here,” Kershaw stated.

Jansen, 34, seeks a three-year contract and a assure to shut video games. Groups have an interest. The Dodgers stay within the combine, in response to two folks with information of the state of affairs, and haven’t shut the door on retaining him.

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“He and (spouse) Gianni have put themselves in place to exit and search out the most effective alternative for them and our position on this — simply as with a whole lot of different necessary Dodgers previously — has been to sit down again and allow them to run out that course of,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman stated. “Loads of occasions it finally ends up with the participant coming again. Typically it finally ends up with the participant not. However we couldn’t be extra supportive, clearly, of them doing what’s finest for them and their household.”

If Jansen returns to Los Angeles, he would slot proper again into the position he first seized in 2012 — the final time the Dodgers failed to achieve the postseason. With out him, the Dodgers are ready to proceed with a closer-by-committee to at the least begin the season in the event that they don’t add one other nearer.

“He’s been my teammate since I’ve been right here,” Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes stated. “Loads of these guys, we’ve had some heart-fought battles with him. We’ve been in a whole lot of powerful spots with him and a whole lot of good spots and folks come and go. It’s form of loopy.”

One attainable alternative is buying Craig Kimbrel. Chicago White Sox supervisor Tony La Russa stated Sunday he believes the 33-year-old Kimbrel might be on the membership’s opening day roster, however the White Sox have already got Liam Hendriks, an All-Star nearer final season, to shut video games. That might make Kimbrel — the one lively main leaguer with extra saves than Jansen — out there for the suitable worth.

Kimbrel had a 0.49 ERA in 39 appearances for the Chicago Cubs final season earlier than he was traded to the group throughout town. He struggled with the White Sox as a set-up man for Hendricks, posting a 5.09 ERA in 24 video games. He has one 12 months and $16 million remaining on his contract. The Dodgers’ willingness to soak up the contract would probably rely upon them not touchdown land free-agent first baseman Freddie Freeman.

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Craig Kimbrel struggled as a set-up man final season after the Chicago White Sox acquired him from the Chicago Cubs.

(Paul Sancya / Related Press)

Because it stands, the Dodgers would cut up closing duties to start the season. Proper-handers Blake Treinen, Daniel Hudson, Brusdar Graterol, and Tommy Kahnle are among the many selections for a committee.

“Simply coming at it from who’s out there that evening,” Dodgers supervisor Dave Roberts stated, “and what provides us the most effective probability to win that recreation.”

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Treinen was an All-Star nearer with the Oakland Athletics in 2018, however he’s been invaluable for the Dodgers in a fireman position the final two seasons. Hudson’s most intensive expertise as nearer got here in 2019 after the Washington Nationals acquired him on the commerce deadline. Three months later, he recorded the ultimate out in Recreation 7 of the World Sequence.

Kahnle and Graterol have by no means been full-time closers. Kahnle, 32, missed final season after present process Tommy John surgical procedure. Graterol, 23, possesses a straightforward 100-mph fastball, however the Dodgers want to see him enhance towards left-handed batters.

On Wednesday, Graterol, who added a cutter to his arsenal final season, stated he’s added a fourth pitch to his combine. He declined to share particulars. However he did say he’d like to shut video games.

“It’s one in every of my desires,” Graterol stated.

A decade in the past, Jansen was the hard-throwing teen thirsting for the position. He was a promising reliever with a nasty cutter who had signed as a catcher out of Curaçao in 2004. The Dodgers have been a group with out journey to the World Sequence in 24 years. Three pennants, one World Sequence title, three All-Star nods, and 350 saves later, the Dodgers are gazing a possible future with out him.

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Dodgers avoid arbitration and agree on a deal with left-hander Alex Vesia

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Dodgers avoid arbitration and agree on a deal with left-hander Alex Vesia

The Dodgers won’t have an arbitration hearing after all this offseason.

The team agreed to terms with reliever Alex Vesia on Wednesday, according to a person with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly, settling on a contract with the last arbitration-eligible player on its roster.

Vesia’s deal will reportedly guarantee him $2.3 million and includes a club option for 2026. The Athletic first reported the news.

The agreement came three weeks after Vesia filed for a $2.35-million salary and the team filed at $2.05 million, setting the stage for what would have been the team’s first hearing — in which a panel of independent arbitrators would have selected one of the salary numbers after hearing arguments from both sides — since before the start of the 2020 season.

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Instead, Vesia is now locked in for the 2025 campaign, hopeful of building off a standout 2024 performance that saw him post a 1.76 ERA and 0.995 WHIP as the Dodgers’ top left-hander in the bullpen.

Vesia, a former 17th-round draft pick out of Cal State East Bay, was originally acquired by the Dodgers in 2021 and has a career 2.89 ERA with the team.

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Aaron Glenn and Darren Mougey bring the Jets hope — if Woody Johnson stays out of their way

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Aaron Glenn and Darren Mougey bring the Jets hope — if Woody Johnson stays out of their way

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Woody Johnson walked along the front of the New York Jets’ media conference room — bigger than the usual one, to accommodate a bigger crowd — and kept stopping to chat with some in attendance. He approached a group of photographers and asked what they thought about the team hiring Aaron Glenn and Darren Mougey. He spotted some former Jets, teammates of Glenn from the ’90s, and shook their hands. When Johnson finished chatting with the media after the news conference, he lingered as Glenn was surrounded by a media horde. He bounced around the room, giddy.

Johnson hasn’t been part of a coach introduction in a while — not since 2015, when Todd Bowles was hired as the new head coach and Mike Maccagnan the GM — so maybe there was some pent up jubilance. He was in the United Kingdom when the Jets landed their last two coaches (Robert Saleh and Adam Gase) and general manager (Joe Douglas). All of them failed. But he’s convinced Glenn, a veteran Jets cornerback when Johnson bought the team in 2000, and Mougey are the tandem to pull his franchise back into the playoffs.

“Did you see the two guys we just introduced? That’s why,” Johnson said. “It starts from that. If you want to have sustained success you have to have the right people.”

Glenn said all the right things. Mougey has the experience, and references, to suggest he can thrive in his first stab as a general manager. They both have a plan to get the Jets back to the postseason, presented individually over multiple three-hour interviews that were part of the Jets’ wide-ranging search process. The team interviewed more than 30 general managers and head coaches, and landed on this duo.

But the only shot the Jets really have at success starts at the top: If Johnson doesn’t learn the right lessons from the failures of the Saleh-Douglas era, then the Jets will maintain their place in the NFL’s dumpster, reserved for teams that find more dysfunction than function.

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“Absolutely. I have to look in the mirror. I have to be a better owner,” Johnson said, the most self-reflective statement he’s ever made as the Jets owner. “I’m trying to be better. And I do self scout, and a lot of people scout for me. … I think I did it today by introducing the two leaders of this team, the second is to — I’ve got to have patience. I’ve got to let them evolve in these positions, which I think they will. I think it’ll be quick, but I think they’ll evolve.”

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The Jets are Aaron Glenn’s show now

Johnson has been prone to overzealous, impatient decision-making in recent years, demanding results while often skipping the process that leads to them. He was prone to micromanagement, pushing the GM to make moves for players who ultimately weren’t great fits, dictating changes to the day-to-day schedule, listening too much to media and social media and even, at times, meddling in lineup decisions, as he did in forcing interim coach Jeff Ulbrich to bench safety Tony Adams in 2024. Johnson’s impatience led to an impromptu firing of Saleh after a 2-3 start, which spectacularly backfired as the Jets lost nine of their final 12 games to finish 5-12 in a season that started, in Johnson’s eyes, with Super Bowl aspirations.

“You don’t believe those reports, do you? There was a lot of exaggeration, hyperbole. There really was,” Johnson said. “And you really have to take all that stuff with a grain of salt, because you don’t know how much — nobody knows how involved I was. Yes, I want Aaron Glenn to coach the team and I want the general manager to manage the assets and players and I’ll take an owner’s position. That’s what I’d like to do.”

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That Johnson is saying these things is certainly a good sign, as was the team’s interview and hiring process, a thorough one guided by former Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum and former Vikings general manager Rick Spielman, representing The 33rd Team. Johnson, vice chairman Christopher Johnson and team president Hymie Elhai were in on every interview. During those interviews, Johnson addressed his reputation.

“Getting to know Mr. Johnson and Christopher throughout this process, it’s clear that the Jets ownership is fiercely competitive, cares deeply about the players and the fans, and is committed to winning,” Mougey said. “I felt that in the interview process each time we met.”

Clearly, Glenn and Mougey were comfortable with what they were told. Of note, both will report directly to Johnson — a change from when Saleh reported to Douglas, who reported to Johnson.

“We had questions for each other,” Glenn said of Johnson. “I was here when Woody bought the team. My conversations with him back then were really, really positive. Coming back here on my second interview and sitting and talking with him, there’s no better person to work for when they sit there and talk, and strategize about having a winning commitment. He has that. That’s all I need to know. I look forward to it. I trust him with everything I have. I look forward to working with him.”

Maybe Johnson will actually give Mougey and Glenn the freedom to build their roster as they see fit. If he was enacting his will, he might force them to move on from quarterback Aaron Rodgers after the 41-year-old spent the second half of the season taking some subtle (and some not-so-subtle) potshots at the Jets owner. But Johnson, he said, is leaving that up to his coach and general manager.

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“They’ve got to take a look at how the team’s composed and what they think they need and put all that together,” Johnson said. “No, I’m not going to voice my opinion. That’s up to them.”

Again, the words are promising. The Jets have the seventh pick in the draft and, depending on how they handle the Rodgers and Davante Adams contract situations (trade, release or restructure), could have some cap space to work with this offseason. Mougey and Glenn are inheriting a roster with a core of intriguing talent — Garrett Wilson, Breece Hall, Quinnen Williams, Sauce Gardner, Quincy Williams, Will McDonald, Jermaine Johnson and an improving offensive line, in particular — with some obvious holes. There is a path to the Jets being competitive right away.

“I’m not going to tell you how many games we’re going to win,” Johnson said. “We’ll put the team together and maybe we’ll be in a better position. But they’re going to put a team together.” In his opening statement for the news conference, Johnson lauded Mougey’s ability to pick players both in college and on the pro personnel side, and was impressed with his emphasis on the importance of the relationship between the GM and the head coach.

At one point, Glenn turned to Mougey and said: “Darren, bro, we are in this thing together … we are going to do some magical things here.”

Even more important: The relationships between the owner and the coach, and the owner and the general manager. Maybe Johnson will stay true to his words and let Mougey and Glenn build out the team this offseason. But what happens if the Jets start slow? What if they lose a few games in a row at a key juncture? What if they miss the playoffs again?

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Only Johnson knows if he will, or can, stay the course.

“Strap on your seatbelts,” he said. “It’s going to be really, really fun going forward. I hope. I expect.”

(Photo: Ed Mulholland / Getty Images)

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UCLA star Maya Brady agrees to join upstart Athletes Unlimited Softball League: report

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UCLA star Maya Brady agrees to join upstart Athletes Unlimited Softball League: report

UCLA softball shortstop Maya Brady has committed to playing in the new Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL), ESPN reported.

Adding a player of Brady’s caliber and star power is expected to provide a boost to the upstart league that will conduct its inaugural draft this week. 

The 23-year-old is the niece of seven-time Super Bowl winner and current FOX Sports lead NFL analyst Tom Brady. 

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Maya Brady of the UCLA Bruins during a game against the Stanford Cardinal at Easton Stadium April 2, 2023, in Los Angeles. (Katharine Lotze/Getty Images)

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The left-handed UCLA Bruin also plays in the outfield and has received first-team All-American honors twice. Brady was also previously named the Pac-12 Player of the Year and was the Softball America Freshman of the Year in 2020.

UCLA has long boasted one of the top softball programs in the nation, and Brady ranks second on the school’s all-time home run list. 

Former Miami Marlins general manager Kim Ng is spearheading AUSL and was named a senior advisor last year. Ng has said the league will be “Major League Baseball for softball.” 

The league will feature four teams playing 30 games in six to eight cities in its first season.

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The Bandits, Blaze, Volts and Talons will be the league’s original four teams.

Maya Brady in the batter's box

Maya Brady of the UCLA Bruins against the Stanford Cardinal in the third inning at Boyd at Jill Smith Family Stadium April 20, 2024, in Stanford, Calif.  (Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

“Softball is poised for tremendous growth at the professional level, and the AUSL is meeting the moment by creating the action-packed, world-class softball league that this sport has deserved for so long,” Ng said. 

“The caliber of players vying to be drafted tomorrow — Olympians, Team USA veterans, All-Americans and NCAA champions — further exemplifies that the world’s best players are here together as a unit of founding members who will make the AUSL the next big thing in women’s sports.”

Maya Brady reacts after hitting homer

UCLA’s Maya Brady celebrates after a home run during the third inning of an NCAA softball Women’s College World Series game against Oklahoma June 6, 2022, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Alonzo Adams)

Brady hit 71 home runs with 246 RBIs in 249 games at UCLA.

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Last summer, two different four-team softball leagues held games, Women’s Professional Fastpitch and Association of Fastpitch Professionals.

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