FORT MYERS, Fla. -- It was good practice for Bobby Jenks.

As the reliever pitched on the back field at City of Palms Park Monday, no more than 10 sets of eyes watched the reliever throw his 17 pitches in a simulated game. No entrance song. No buzz throughout the stadium. 

This was simply about getting the job done. It was, in a sense, a microcosm of the new challenge that awaits Jenks this season.

The task of going from closer to set-up man is just about upon him.

"It's going to be one of those things I'll have to adjust to when the games start," he said. "I don't know what it's going to be like. I've been closing so long. When I came up, it was just awesome to be up. But it's going to be different. I'll have to make the adjustment on the fly."

Jenks hás known virtually nothing else but closing since arriving in the big leagues in 2005. It took the righty just 13 major-league games to notch his first career save, with White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen eventually turning to the then-24-year-old to close out games when Dustin Hermanson injured his back.

For six seasons, Jenks has been a closer. That's it. Now comes his new challenge, entering games in the seventh and eighth innings while Jonathan Papelbon siphons the game-ending adrenaline that comes with finishing games.

Before you start believing that the switch is no big deal, read what Billy Wagner told WEEI.com in his final days in Boston after going from closer to set-up man for Papelbon in '09:

“I don’t like it that way because it’s weird when you’re used to finishing innings and all of a sudden you’re getting taken out. I went from a closer who faced anybody and everybody to, ‘Hey, this is it.’ And you’re kind of like, ‘I don’t understand.’ The role is different and it takes getting used to,” he said. “It is more relaxing and you don’t have the adrenaline when you close. Hitters don’t approach you the way they did when you were closing. You have to learn that, and that’s what I’m going through right now.

“Sometimes almost worthless,” he continued. “It almost feels like spring training. It’s like, ‘OK, I’m going to go out and throw my inning.’ It’s not like I’m not going to go out there and be competitive and be the best, but it’s different. Fifteen years of being either the hero or the goat … I don’t know if it’s even in between. It just feels meaningless at times. I don’t think it feels like a big inning, and it is, but after closing for so long it’s not that rush of going out there and still trying to work back and be healthy. It’s just a different feeling.”

There is no question there are going to be some adjustments ahead for Jenks. We're talking about a pitcher who has appeared in the seventh inning just five times throughout his career, compared to 283 ninth-inning showcases.

As Wagner pointed out, part of the challenge is to learn what it's like not to pitch with the adrenaline that comes with the ninth inning. In a way, Jenks has already started addressing that issue, changing up his entry music.

Ever since the music director at U.S. Cellular Park put on "Boom," Jenks has used the lyrics and beat performed by "P.O.D." to help morph into a game-closing machine. For a short while, he tried out a "Motorhead" offering, but that didn't take.

But now Jenks is ready for a change (although he's not letting on what that change might be).

"It will be my song. It will be something that fits me," he said. "It became part of me in Chicago and I want to focus on this group. It will be a surprise. It's going to be something, obviously rock, but something fun. I'm just going to have fun with it this time. Something catchy."

A more game-specific challenge awaiting Jenks is having to deal with how teams and hitters might approach the game differently in the seventh and eighth innings compared to the ninth. 

As Wagner explained, hitters are different creatures before the pivotal ninth inning comes around.

“I’ve seen it in years past with our other relievers. You have to be a little bit better pitcher in the middle, [the] seventh- or eighth-inning guy, than you do when you’re the ninth-inning guy. You can get away with a few more things because you have the urgency of the situation on your side," the lefty said back in the final month of the '09 season.

“They don’t swing at pitches that they swing at in the ninth inning. They don’t approach you the same. I’ve probably walked more guys in the little time I’ve been here than I’ve walked in the last two years. That 3-2 pitch that’s close but they don’t swing, where in the ninth inning that pitch they swing or you get the call. It’s the urgency of the at-bat.”

It's not only the players that change. It's also the managers.

As Red Sox manager Terry Francona pointed out recently, teams are a bit more reluctant to attempt stolen bases in the ninth inning, a notion that is supported by numbers. In the Major Leagues last season teams stole 10 times as many bases the first time through the lineup as the fourth.

For Jenks, this dynamic will become a focal point. The righty hasn't been pitching when a baserunner was caught stealing since '06, with base stealers going 48-for-50 against Jenks throughout his career. That helps to explain why Francona was elated when New York's Curtis Granderson was caught stealing with the reliever on the mound a week ago.

"I think the biggest thing will be controlling the running game," Francona said. "For some reason teams get into the ninth inning and a lot of managers don't want to end with a guy standing in the box with a guy stealing. The seventh and eighth inning, they're a little more willing to run. So that will be something we'll keep an eye on this spring.

"But I don't care what inning he pitches, his stuff is plenty good."

For Jenks, it's been so far, so good.

"Just knowing I'm entering the season healthy, and there's no arm issue from last year, is great, " he said. "I feel really strong. Everything mechanically is just right. It's just really good. I feel like I'm part of it. Guys in here are just awesome."