Jarren

Duran

Two homers off a lefty from a player who totaled three of those all of last year. Duran was 7-for-12 with three homers in Red Sox camp and is now 5-for-10 with three homers in WBC play. The Red Sox had him available in trade talks all winter, but it might prove fortunate for them that no one met their asking price.

Duran has gone deep a staggering three times in his last two spring contests with each round-tripper topping 400 feet, per Statcast. The 29-year-old fantasy standout will be a top-20 range outfielder in all drafts this spring as he boasts realistic 20-homer, 25-steal upside, especially in hitter-friendly Fenway Park. His batting average dipped last season and appears unlikely to return to previously elite levels, and his struggles against lefties takes a chunk out of his counting stats potential. Still, there’s a lot to like from a power/speed combo standpoint especially since he’s slated to bat in the heart of Boston’s lineup.

Despite plenty of offseason trade talk, Duran remains in Boston and figures to be a regular starter entering the season as the team shuffles their four outfielders around three spots and the DH role. After a career year in 2024, Duran predictably took a small step back in 2025, posting a .256/.332/.442 slash line with 16 home runs and 24 steals. His swinging strike rate also went up two percent, and his overall contact rate fell about five percent. He may never reach those 2024 highs again, but Duran has a solid five-category skill set for fantasy baseball.

Once again, Roman Anthony is in the leadoff spot, he’s just serving as the designated hitter while Jarren Duran patrols the outfield. The only difference between Sunday’s lineup and what the team had been expected to use on Opening Day is Isiah Kiner-Falefa is in there at second base while Marcelo Mayer is riding the pine. He really will need to earn his spot this spring. Here’s the full lineup for Sunday: Roman Anthony (DH), Trevor Story (SS), Jarren Duran (LF), Willson Contreras (1B), Wilyer Abreu (RF), Caleb Durbin (3B), Ceddanne Rafaela (CF), Carlos Narvaez (C), Isiah Kiner-Falefa (2B).

While this report doesn’t completely rule out the Royals making a splash on the trade market, it doesn’t sound promising that anything is actually going to happen. Both Duran and Donovan have been generating plenty of buzz on the trade front and it sounds like the Royals just won’t have the right pieces in place to get a deal done.

There’s a shroud of mystery and uncertainty swirling around Casas as he continues to work his way back from last year’s serious knee injury. The Red Sox acquired veteran slugger Willson Contreras to take over at first base, which likely limits the former top prospect to DH until further notice. It’s too early to write Casas off completely since he’ll be just 26 years old on Opening Day but there are more questions than answers at this stage of his career. There should be some clarity regarding his immediate outlook and role based on how he performs in Grapefruit League action. He seems likely to open the year back in Triple-A Worcester but it wouldn’t be shocking to see him make Boston’s season-opening roster, especially if the Red Sox decide to move either Jarren Duran or Masataka Yoshida.

Cora added that he’s reserving the right to change his mind, but his initial lineup projection has the newly-acquired veteran slugger occupying the cleanup spot. The 33-year-old’s arrival solves Boston’s first base quagmire and it’s a notable development from a counting stats perspective that he’ll be locked into the middle of their lineup, regardless of whether Alex Bregman returns. He should have plenty of opportunities from a run-production standpoint with Roman Anthony and Trevor Story serving as top-of-the-order table-setters next season. The big question heading into the late stages of the offseason is where Jarren Duran fits into the lineup if he’s on the roster once spring training opens up in early February.

That’s a huge get for Mexico. They did get a quality performance from Austin Barnes behind the plate last time around, but Barnes is pretty much out of the league at this point. Mexico has also confirmed that Randy Arozarena and Jarren Duran will participate once again. Duran backed up Alek Thomas in 2023, but he’ll surely be a lineup fixture this time around. One big remaining question is whether Isaac Paredes will be allowed to participate while coming off his hamstring injury.

Rosenthal reports that “The Royals are under the impression Duran would cost them left-hander Cole Ragans,” who the Red Sox will most certainly ask for as part of a deal. However, Rosenthal also noted that “the Red Sox view the initial talks as more informal and exploratory, according to people briefed on the conversations.” These two teams have been circling each other for a while, but it doesn’t seem like anything is imminent.

Arozarena went 9-for-20 with a homer and nine RBI in the 2023 WBC. Duran played behind Alek Thomas in center and finished 0-for-5. He’ll of course be a starter this time. In 2023, the other outfield spot went to Alex Verdugo, so a change is probably coming there. Perhaps young Rangers outfielder Alejandro Osuna could join the mix.