Detroit Tigers closer Kenley Jansen secured his 479th career save Tuesday, passing Hall of Famer Lee Smith for third place on Major League Baseball's all-time list. He preserved a 2-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals by pitching a scoreless ninth inning. Jansen now trails only Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman.
Detroit Tigers closer Kenley Jansen worked the ninth inning Tuesday against the Kansas City Royals, allowing a leadoff single to Lane Thomas before inducing groundouts from Salvador Perez and Vinnie Pasquantino. Starling Marte then flied out to end the game, giving Jansen his third save of the 2026 season and lowering his ERA to 2.45. The Tigers had rallied for two runs in the eighth on a wild pitch and a Dillon Dingler double after the Royals took an early lead. The victory marked Detroit's fourth straight win, improving their record to 8-9 as they pursue a third consecutive postseason appearance. That save vaulted Jansen past Lee Smith into third place all-time with 479 saves. The updated leaderboard stands as Mariano Rivera first, Trevor Hoffman second, Kenley Jansen third, Lee Smith fourth and Craig Kimbrel fifth. Jansen, a 38-year-old Curacao native in his 17th MLB season, addressed his teammates postgame on perseverance, emphasizing treating each game independently. When you do that, it doesn't matter what people think about you or if they think you don't have it anymore, Jansen said, via the Detroit News. It shows you have the consistency. Here I am today, still doing it at a really good level. I'm proud of myself and I'm proud of my teammates for grinding this game out. Tigers manager A.J. Hinch lauded Jansen's longevity. It takes a lot to be in this room in general and then on top of that to have the longevity and legacy that he has, Hinch said. He's at the back end of games that matter and he's done it for a really long time. And now he's third all-time in the entire history of the sport. Jansen has a career 2.57 ERA, 155 ERA+, 1,284 strikeouts over 931 innings and four All-Star selections.