Five landing spots for Red Sox OF Jarren Duran
With reports swirling that the San Diego Padres have interest, do they -- or anybody else -- make sense as a suitor for Jarren Duran?
On Monday, Dennis Lin of The Athletic reported that the San Diego Padres are again showing interest in Boston Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran.
Through 63 games, the 2024 All-Star Game MVP is slashing .274/.323/.423 with 1.2 fWAR and a 105 wRC+.
It’s a peculiar spot for Duran; he’s 28 — 29 in September — with two more years of team control beyond the 2025 season. While he’s having a down year compared to his new standard, he’s still been a semi-consistent force at the top of the Red Sox order.
That said, someone with his profile — relying a lot on speed — has a track record for short shelf lives. In fact, the Red Sox have had, and lost, a player who fit a similar profile in Jacoby Ellsbury.
It’s not a foolproof theory, however. Though a faster runner, how different is Duran from another Red Sox-turned-Yankee, Johnny Damon, who posted a 111 wRC+ and 16.8 fWAR after leaving Boston?
That’s neither here nor there. The question on-hand now pertains to how “right” is the decision to make Duran available. Moreover, should they field offers, who makes sense as a trade partner both from a roster fit and trade capital perspective?
So, let’s take a look at five potential suitors for Duran, and what those trade packages may look like.
1. Philadelphia Phillies
Phillies get: OF Jarren Duran, cash considerations ($13 million in 2026)
Red Sox get: OF Nick Castellanos, RHP Mick Abel (No. 8 on MLB.com) and IF Aroon Escobar (No. 13)
The Phillies are 21st as a team in wRC+ among left fielders (89), so Duran at face value is already an upgrade offensively. Max Kepler has seen some tough times with batted ball luck, but he’s historically a very good right fielder whose been forced to change sides of the outfield to accommodate Nick Castellanos.
Therein lies the problem.
The Boston Red Sox have a need for a couple of things: Power from the right side and a first baseman that can at least bridge the gap to the offseason — and beyond, pending organizational plans for Triston Casas.
Castellanos is owed $20 million in 2026, which is a salary you’d think the Phillies may want to discard as someone like Kyle Schwarber hits free agency this winter.
The prize in this trade for Boston is Abel, who’s made two MLB starts since the Phillies selected him in 2020. In total, he’s pitched 11.1 innings of one-run ball with 11 strikeouts and eight hits allowed.
He would join a fast-rising core of young pitchers in the high-minors of the Red Sox system with David Sandlin, Connelly Early, etc. Not only that, but he may already be the best of that bunch including the MLBers, Hunter Dobbins and Richard Fitts.
While there’s some widespread social media speculation on pitching coach Andrew Bailey’s ability to do his job, one can’t deny he’s not received a ton of help from Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow. Quinn Priester got one MLB start in Boston before getting re-routed to Milwaukee; Lucas Giolito trended down for multiple years before losing his 2024; Walker Buehler spent a couple seasons on the shelf and has mixed results in 2025.
Abel would be a fun young pitcher to add to the fold, with Castellanos providing some power and RBI production at a reduced cost.
2. Cleveland Guardians
Guardians get: OFs Jarren Duran and Rob Refsnyder
Red Sox get: RHP Hunter Gaddis, C Cooper Ingle (No. 8) and 1B/OF Luis Merejo (No. 28)
Every year since the mid-2010s, it’s felt like the Guardians were an outfielder away from making serious noise in October.
In 2017, it was Jay Bruce; 2018, they tried Melky Cabrera; 2019, it was Yasiel Puig; Eddie Rosario in 2021, and so on.
Even if 2025 doesn’t result in big things for the Guards, getting somebody like Duran and penciling him at the top of the order with Steven Kwan sounds super enticing on both sides of the ball.
Given the size of center field in Cleveland, it may not be the best idea to put Duran out there, but they could move him to right field at home and center in more opportune ballparks for his throwing arm.
Plus, they add Refsnyder, who absolutely kills lefty pitching and is the kind of platoon bat you want on a contending roster.
On the flip side, the Red Sox receive prospect capital. Ingle is killing the ball in Double-A to the tune of a 164 wRC+ with six homers in 47 games, while Merejo is a major wild card as an 18-year-old in A-Ball sporting a .166 average with a K-rate over 30 percent.
Gaddis is the prize for the Red Sox, who need high leverage relief pitching, especially under control, with the impending free agencies of Aroldis Chapman and Liam Hendriks. The right-hander found his footing in the bullpen last year, which is carrying over into 2025, where he has a 1.09 ERA in 24.2 innings.
3. Kansas City Royals
Royals get: OF Jarren Duran, OF/DH Masataka Yoshida
Red Sox get: 1B/OF Mark Canha, 2B/OF Javier Vaz (No. 13) and cash considerations ($8 mil per year on Yoshida)
This trade kind of leaves some to be desired, as Canha is having a career-worst season and Vaz is a 5-foot-7 24-year-old in Double-A. That said, moving Yoshida and getting some of his money off the books would greatly benefit future roster construction.
Historically speaking, Canha is a high on-base guy with pull-side power. Despite his struggles in 2025, there’s hope he could return to that mold while offering some stability to a Sox lineup that too often strikes out.
The Royals need to shore up their outfield, plain and simple. They’ve already called up top prospect Jac Caglianone and have Kyle Isbel and Drew Waters combining for 1.1 fWAR in center field, but they are 29th as a team in outfielder fWAR.
Getting Duran in the building alone bolsters their center field room immensely, as he’s someone who doesn’t need to hit for power to be successful. Adding Yoshida, whether as a designated hitter or a left fielder, provides another element of offensive production they sorely lack.
Here’s what a potential Royals lineup looks like should this trade happen:
Jarren Duran CF
Bobby Witt Jr. SS
Vinnie Pasquantino 1B
Salvador Perez C
Jac Caglianone RF
Jonathan India LF
Masataka Yoshida DH
Maikel Garcia 3B
Michael Massey 2B
There’s balance to this lineup and with Kauffman already a difficult place to play for opponents, the Royals could really do some damage in the American League Central.
4. Seattle Mariners
Mariners get: OF Jarren Duran
Red Sox get: RHP Carlos Vargas, C Harry Ford (No. 5) and LHP Jurrangelo Cijntje (No. 8)
The Mariners have and will always make sense for Duran’s services, as they need a third quality outfielder to put with Julio Rodriguez and Randy Arozarena.
The flavor of the month is always trying to create a package centering around someone like Bryce Miller or Bryan Woo/Logan Gilbert in exchange for Duran or, dating back to the offseason, Casas.
That offer just won’t exist, nor should it, really.
However, Boston has other needs than shoring up its starting pitching. For instance, they’ve gotten nothing out of the secondary catcher spot now that Carlos Narvaez emerged as the primary. Connor Wong and Blake Sabol have a combined slash of .151/.241/.162 and -0.2 fWAR in 83 plate appearances.
While Narvaez looks like the future catcher, having an insurance policy or, in a potential best-case scenario, two very good catchers would be huge for the Red Sox.
Enter, Harry Ford.
Ford, 22, is a 50-grade defender according to MLB Pipeline and one of the game’s more stable prospects. He’s 5-foot-10, so not an imposing figure back there, but he mashes the baseball and has no real path to MLB barring an injury to franchise catcher Cal Raleigh.
Cijntje is a project, but getting a switch-pitcher sounds super enticing, even if some scouts view him as eventually a full-time righty. His fastball can reach upper-90s from the right side, with a lower arm slot and lower velo from the left.
Worst-case, maybe he pans as a reliever. That said, having someone who can pitch from both sides in *that* role would be a weapon in its own right.
Vargas is a high-velo, potentially high-leverage arm Boston would love to have. Averaging over 98 mph on the heater, the righty doesn’t generate a ton of whiffs, but he misses the barrel and has a grounder rate in the 92nd percentile.
While the Red Sox probably prefer a high-leverage arm that doesn’t allow the ball in play as frequently, doing so on the ground is much preferred.
5. New York Mets
Mets get: OF Jarren Duran
Red Sox get: 3B/1B Mark Vientos, RHP Jonah Tong (No. 4) and C Daiverson Gutierrez (No. 19)
Vientos popped in 2024 before hitting the struggle bus this year between performance and injury issues, but the power and RBI production at the very least was something that intrigued Boston’s previous regime.
The third baseman also has a 120 wRC+ with six homers and 20 runs batted in since April 13, which spans his last 150 plate appearances.
Obviously, whether it be Marcelo Mayer or Alex Bregman or Rafael Devers, there’s no real use for Vientos at third base beyond maybe the immediate future, but there is some uncertainty at the other corner even when Casas returns in 2026 — plus designated hitter should Bregman opt out or get traded.
The real get here is Tong, who likely is already on the precipice of Triple-A given his 2.02 ERA and 15.2 K/9 in 10 Double-A starts this season. While the thought of landing Vientos and Tong seems potentially far-fetched, the Mets have a real obligation to its fan base to cash in on the prime of Francisco Lindor and the impending prime years of Juan Soto.
There’s not necessarily a desperation so fierce to win it all in 2025, but players don’t get any younger. Combining that with the non-Soto outfielders combining for a 94 wRC+ and 1.7 fWAR and you have a need to add a combination of youth and talent to the mix.
Citi Field would love Duran and how he plays the game, so maybe Boston could cash in.
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