The Boston Red Sox will finish with a better record in 2024 than they did in each of their last two seasons, and a big reason for that has been the performance and durability of outfielder Jarren Duran.
The 28-year-old is currently finishing up his breakout season in Boston, as he's hit .285 with an .838, 21 home runs, 75 RBIs, 34 stolen bases, 47 doubles (most in the MLB) and 14 triples (most in the MLB).
Duran has appeared in every game but two for the Red Sox due to a suspension served for hurling a homophobic slur to a heckler in the crowd at Fenway Park.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora has been insistent on Duran playing as many games as possible this season. Why?
“We need a leader," Cora said recently (via. Ian Browne). You know, we’ve got Raffy (Devers), who is the face of the franchise, and we let him be, right? We need somebody who can show the next wave of great Red Sox players how it’s done here We challenge each other. He didn't believe I was going to let him do that. I was like, 'well, you better be ready.'"
Boston has played an extremely young, inexperienced roster in 2024, and it's important that those players see Duran and Devers grinding through the season.
While it's certainly impressive, Duran probably could've benefitted from some time off. Over his last 23 games (dating back to August 31), he's hit just .237 with a .581 OPS, four doubles, one triple, six RBIs and two stolen bases.
Duran may have looked better over the last month and helped Boston get into the postseason if he was more rested. However, it could also be argued that the Red Sox might not have won some of their games if he was sitting.
It will be very interesting to see how the team uses Duran in 2025 if he isn't packaged in a trade during the offseason.
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