Max Fried picked up his first win of the season. (0:49)
The Atlanta Braves traded Kenley Jansen to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday. Freddie was his last player.
The thought of it made him laugh.
After the Braves defeated the Dodgers in a regular-season game for the 186th time, Jansen said it was weird. Now it's the same. It is crazy, man. The game is crazy. But it is enjoyable.
The Dodgers and the Braves both had their sights set on returning to their previous teams, but things changed after the labor dispute ended.
Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos reportedly turned down an ultimatum from the representation of first baseman Freddie Freeman and instead traded him to the Dodgers in order to sign him to a six-year, $162 million contract on March 16. The Dodgers are on track to exceed the fourth tier of the luxury tax threshold, prompting the need to shed salary in order to fit Jansen into the budget. But the Braves gave Jansen a one-year, $16 million offer and needed a quick answer, prompting him to spurn the Dodgers to join the team he grew up rooting for.
A segment of the sold-out crowd initially booed Jansen when he entered from the right-field bullpen on Tuesday, but most of them clapped when he came back. The reaction was mostly subdued, with the trademark entrance song, "California Love," no longer being played from the speakers.
It's all about business now. I did that. It is okay. There are no hard feelings. I will love them. They will stay in my heart forever.
A video tribute before the first pitch and a walk onto the field with his wife and two of his kids to receive a souvenir from his first career save from Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, third baseman Justin Turner and president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman were some of the highlights of the ceremony.
The Braves pitcher admitted that he was going to be emotional for his first game against his teammates, but he was able to keep his emotions in check.
Keeping his focus has been one of the things he has been working on.
He said that he was locked in right now. Be in the moment. Be in the moment. I enjoyed this moment, even though it was full of emotions. I enjoyed being outdoors.
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