With save No. 478, Jansen ties Hall of Famer Smith for 3rd all time

DETROIT -- From the day Kenley Jansen signed, the 38-year-old closer said milestones and the saves record weren’t the motivation for him. He joined the Tigers to win. Still, as he sat in the clubhouse Friday night, it was clear that his 478th career save meant something more to him.

This one tied him with Hall of Famer Lee Smith for third on the all-time saves list. The only two pitchers with more MLB saves than Jansen now are the titans of the role, Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman.

“It’s a great honor to be tied with [Smith],” Jansen said. “It felt great, man. This is the thing that makes you go and help my teammates win. It tells me that I’m still consistent out there, still doing it, and I’m going to do everything that it takes to help this team win ballgames.”

The 478th save was the first opportunity for Jansen as a Tiger at Comerica Park. His other save of 2026 came on the second day of the season in San Diego. His lone appearance during the Tigers’ first homestand last weekend was a rain-shortened ninth inning in an 11-6 win over the Cardinals.

The 2-0 lead over the Marlins that Jansen was tasked to protect Friday brought out the full show – lights down, then pulsating, music blaring, name dominating the giant video board as he entered from the bullpen. It was a production fitting of his resume, built from Los Angeles to Atlanta to Boston to Anaheim.

“I think it’s hard to really keep in perspective exactly what that number is like,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “I mean, that is an extraordinary amount of saves pitching a lot of big games. I’m not sure how many of my guys know Lee Smith, what he did in the game, but it’s good to get some attention to some guys before us who have done some really incredible things.”

Jansen made quick work of the top of the Marlins order – a cutter for a called third strike on Michigan native Jakob Marsee, a flyout to center from Xavier Edwards, then a fly ball to right from Agustín Ramírez to finish off a 12-pitch inning.

“The fresh version of him was electric,” Hinch said. “It was kind of our first rollout of him in a normal setting at home, crowd behind him, small lead. He does what Kenley Jansen has done his whole career.”

Not bad for someone who hadn’t pitched in six days. Not that Jansen is new to that.

“Just keep doing my routines,” Jansen said. “I’ve been in situations like this many, many, many times. Get out there, throw good bullpens, pay attention to the small details. Those are the ones that are going to help you. It feels weird to [not] be out there for a while. It’s always going to be that way when you don’t pitch for a long time. But you just have to manage it to get out of it.”

Once Jansen passes Smith, he’ll still be 122 saves away from Hoffman. The next milestone for Jansen will be 500 saves, within reach this season if he and the Tigers get rolling. But he insists it’s not at the front of his mind.

“I think once we get there, I’m going to probably, maybe celebrate it, or not. I don’t know,” Jansen said. “At the end of the day, we’re all here to try to help this team to get farther. The goal is to win a championship. That’s why we’re here.”