* It’s obvious that the Kenley Jansen era in Boston didn’t have a happy ending.

Jansen was pretty good in his two seasons here, making 56 saves in his two years. He was a solid, if imperfect, goalkeeper in both years. But his decision to return to California earlier this week was not well received in the clubhouse.

The Red Sox officially placed Jansen on the IL on Monday due to right shoulder inflammation, ending his season. So he didn’t travel to Toronto for the final road series, but that was standard practice. A number of current IL players, including Rafael Devers, remained in Boston.

But before the Sox returned for the final three games of the season, Jansen packed up and went home. This is highly unusual for injured players, especially veterans who know how important it is to get through the end of the season with their teammates.

Several players, all speaking on condition of anonymity, expressed disappointment at Jansen’s early departure, but one added: “I can’t say I’m all that surprised.” Jansen was known for this during his time with the Sox , being a bit reserved and sometimes he wasn’t sure about the names of some teammates.

According to a Red Sox player, Jansen walked into the training room last Sunday before his team’s split doubleheader against the Minnesota Twins and announced that he would pitch in the first game and that would be it. In fact, it was a little strange that he hit a pitch in the ninth inning of a game in which the Sox were leading by eight runs. He later told reporters that he was done pitching for the season and suggested he confirm that with the team. After the second game, Cora announced that Jansen had been dealing with a sore shoulder and had not pitched for the past week after some confusion from team officials throughout the day.

It was telling that when the clubhouse opened on the Friday afternoon before the final home game, his nameplate had already been removed from his locker, as if the club was trying to remove any evidence that he was part of that year’s team. Such actions are indeed rare. Chase Shugart, who had a temporary locker, was suddenly in the position Jansen held for two seasons.

On Saturday, Devers, Lucas Giolito, Rob Refsnyder, Brennan Bernardino, Garrett Whitlock and David Hamilton, all from the IL, were still present in the home clubhouse and were accounted for.

Jansen, meanwhile, had been gone for a long time.

* In terms of optics, this hasn’t been a good week for Major League Baseball.

First, MLB handled the weather poorly in Atlanta. It was clear that Hurricane Helene would make it impossible to hold games on Wednesday and Thursday. MLB had time to anticipate this and move the series to a neutral site out of the way of the storm. Instead, they stubbornly held back and the two teams now face the prospect of a doubleheader on Monday for one of the National League wildcard spots. There is currently a scenario where the Mets travel from Atlanta to Milwaukee this weekend, back to Atlanta on Monday, and then to San Diego on Tuesday for the first game of the wild card round.

But even worse was the all-time finals series in Oakland for the Athletics. And here the other 29 owners share the blame with Commissioner Rob Manfred. The A’s are now leaving the Bay Area to play three seasons at a minor league facility in Sacramento en route to their eventual home in Las Vegas. The entire episode was shameful, and yet the owners inexplicably allowed A’s owner John Fisher to do whatever he wanted at the expense of a dedicated and mistreated fan base in Oakland.

* Jerod Mayo could use some serious media training. Just a few months into his tenure as head coach, he had to retract statements or clarify things he had said several times. Too often, Mayo has been unclear about the quarterback spot and hinted that a move might be imminent, only to be forced to explain himself the next day.

* The Bruins are bigger this season and appear to be better equipped to mess up some people on the forecheck. Failing to do this part of the game was the big difference in the last two springs, when the Florida Panthers were far better in this regard. As a result, the Bruins have added some strength this offseason, particularly to their bottom six. That’s all well and good, but size isn’t enough if a team isn’t fast enough to move quickly against the opposition.

* Doubles: Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez and New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto.

* Red Sox fans won’t want to hear this, but a Yankees-Dodgers World Series would be a lot of fun with the game’s two biggest stars representing the two biggest markets. It will be fascinating to see Shohei Ohtani on the postseason stage for the first time.

* The NHL preseason is becoming more and more like the NFL preseason. The games are little more than competitions with talent and newcomers, while the stars are mostly out except for one or two games.

* Nothing but best wishes to Pam Kenn, a long-time, integral and dedicated employee of the Red Sox, who is leaving the organization after 25 years. She will be impossible to replace.

*It’s just weird that 90% of NFL players who are real divas happen to be wide receivers. Imagine this applied to another sport: Yes, it can be quite difficult to deal with, but then what do you expect? He’s a second baseman!

*I don’t want to brag or anything, but before the season the Red Sox were in fourth place and won 83 games. I’ll be off by up to three points when it comes to overall wins, but I’ve made worse predictions.

* If we get to the point where we need a judge to decide whether a special home run ball can be auctioned off, I would say the entire collecting industry is out of control.

* No more hideous blue tops for the Red Sox uniform options. For years they looked like BP shirts or spring training uniforms. They were a disaster for the team’s championship run in 2018.

* He can be full of himself at times, but that’s thanks to John Tortorella, who invited Guy Gaudreau, father of the late Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau, to help out at the Flyers’ practice last week. Guy Gaudreau is suffering an unimaginable amount of grief over the recent loss of his two sons, and Tortorella thought having him on the ice might be a nice distraction. Good for Tortorella.