24-year-old right-handed pitcher Kenley Jansen of the Los Angeles Dodgers received a pair of third-place votes in the 2011 National League Rookie of the Year voting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. He finished tied for seventh place (together with Darwin Barney of the Chicago Cubs) behind unanimous winner Craig Kimbrel, Freddie Freeman (both Atlanta Braves), Vance Worley (Philadelphia Phillies), Wilson Ramos (Washington Nationals), Josh Collmenter (Arizona Diamondbacks) and Danny Espinosa (Washington Nationals).
After making his MLB debut in 2010, Jansen played his first full season one year later. He went 2-1 with five saves and an ERA of 2.85 in 51 appearances. He struck out 96 batters in just 53 2/3 innings, while walking 26. Following catching for the Dutch National Team in the 2009 World Baseball Classic he converted to pitcher and moved through the Dodgers farm system quickly to establish himself as a powerful option in the bullpen of manager Don Mattingly.