Dodgers: Kenley Jansen vs. Clayton Kershaw — whose more dominant?

The Los Angeles Dodgers have one of the best pitching staffs in baseball. In large part due to having two of the most dominant pitchers in the entire MLB.

Dodger fans have been spoiled the last decade or so with some fantastic pitching. The Los Angeles Dodgers have been the gold standard for pitching over in recent memory; a trend that will likely continue into the 2018 season.

In 2017 the Dodgers ranked second in ERA (3.38), fourth in K/9 (9.65) and third in FanGraphs‘ Wins Above Replacement (24.3). Since 2010, the Los Angeles Dodgers have the highest overall WAR at 161.8.

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That, in large part, has been padded by the best pitcher on the planet, Clayton Kershaw. Kershaw is perhaps the greatest pitcher of this generation. With three Cy Young Awards and an MVP already under his belt, Kershaw, 29, still has enough to win at least two more Cy Youngs.

However, in recent years, the backend of the nine innings has been equally as dominant. Converted catcher Kenley Jansen has given fans a flashback to Mariano Rivera with his devastating cutter. Jansen has 168 saves over the last four seasons and has a staggering career 2.08 ERA and 14.0 K/9.

Both pitchers are dominant and are arguably the two best in their respective roles. However, against each other, the overall dynamic changes. Who is more dominant? Not over a nine-inning stretch, no. If you needed your best pitcher on the mound to make the final out of the game, both on full rest, who would be better suited to get the job done?

We did what every respected sports writer does to figure this out. We took to Twitter to see what Dodger fans think!

Dodger fans sounded off, declaring Clayton Kershaw the more dominant pitcher of the two. You cannot blame them, either, as Kershaw has consistently raised the bar for elite standards. Our sister site, Dodgers Way, sounded off why they think Kershaw is the more dominant pitcher.

They have a point. Kershaw has a great fastball, a devastating curveball, a wipeout slider and an above-average changeup. Throw in his funky delivery and his stuff becomes that much harder to track. Jansen, on the other hand, has an overpowering cutter. While Jansen’s cutter may be better than Kershaw’s best pitch, it can become predictable.

Although they make some good points, I would have to disagree. Clayton Kershaw is special, he really is, and I mean it that he is the best all-around pitcher on the planet. Kershaw can dominant for seven innings or more, Kenley maxes out at six outs, on a good night.

However, with one out to go and the game on the line, it is hard to pick Kershaw over Jansen. Kershaw allows more home runs than Jansen and that cutter serves as the MLB’s best out pitch. Sure, it can become predictable, but in one at-bat Jansen’s stuff is far too overwhelming.

However, Jansen is human and is not perfect in his save attempts. This was most notably the case in game two of the World Series when Jansen allowed a game-tying home run to Marwin Gonzalez that eventually resulted in a Dodgers loss.

That is something that some Astro fans did not fail to point out.

Haha. So funny.

Regardless, both Kenley Jansen and Clayton Kershaw are revolutionary talents that will go down as two of the best to ever step foot on an MLB mound. Kershaw has the chance to go down as one of the MLB’s best pitchers all-time. Jansen has the chance to emulate Mariano Rivera and challenge his legacy.

Next: 20 bold predictions for the 2018 Dodgers

And we are all lucky to say that they are witnessing them do that on the Los Angeles Dodgers. Be grateful, Dodger fans!