Jarren Duran turns the page on his 2021 season, poised for a breakout year
Jarren Duran turns the page on his 2021 season, poised for a breakout year
The hype and anticipation surrounding Red Sox prospect Jarren Duran was incredibly high heading into last season. The prized prospect mashed minor-league pitching and made his big-league debut against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Unfortunately, the hype and anticipation was short-lived and Duran failed to live up to expectations.
Duran spent 33 days with the Red Sox last season. He slashed .215/.241/.336 with two home runs and 10 RBIs in 112 plate appearances.
Once Duran was called up, the young outfielder said he felt the pressure to play a certain way. Ultimately, that pressure made his big-league experience seem bigger than it needed to be.
“In the big leagues, it just felt like more,” Duran said, per MassLive’s Chris Cotillo. “Instead of taking it as ‘It’s just still a game,’ I took it as, ‘This is the big leagues. I have to be smarter. I can’t play with my hair on fire like I did in Worcester. I can’t scream and yell at my teammates.’ But I can do that. They want me to… I made it way bigger than it needed to be. It’s literally just going out with the same group of guys and having fun.”
While in Worcester, Duran mashed at the plate. He batted .258 with 16 homers and drove in 36 RBIs. Duran showcased his speed while with the WooSox. His speed is one of his biggest weapons as a player on the field, both at the plate and in the field.
“I played tight,” he said. “I didn’t play loose. These guys want me to steal, then if they get a flare or something, I score. I had all this negative thought like, ‘I don’t want to steal and get out, then they hit a ball in the gap and I score for them or score for the team.’
“That was (something) that blocked me mentally to not play the way I wanted to play.”
This offseason, Duran went home to California and started to focus on making baseball fun again. He would work out with friends at his alma mater, Long Beach State.
Duran and his buddies would push each other and his time at home opened his eyes. He added 10 pounds of muscle to his physique this offseason. In addition, Duran also changed his batting stance, where he lowered his hands.
“We’d talk tons of (expletive) to each other. I was like, ‘I miss this. I miss doing this,’” Duran said. “Just hanging with the guys, having fun, having competition. I was like, ‘Wow, this is what it was like when I was younger. Why am I not still doing this?’ So it was kind of eye-opening to go hang out with all the young guys, just mess around, talk (expletive) and have fun. It kind of opened my eyes again. These guys are enjoying it and I’m taking it like a job.”
Duran is now poised for his 2022 season and will try and break spring training with the big league club. The Red Sox will give Duran every opportunity to make the team, but the club is also looking to add another right-handed bat to the outfield mix. That could squeeze Duran out and land him back with Triple-A Worcester or potentially in a trade.
Follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisHenrique
For additional Red Sox and Major League Baseball content, follow Beyond the Monster: Boston Red Sox on Twitter @BeyondtheMnstr.
Follow our newest Twitter handle, @SoxDingrs for Red Sox and Major League Baseball home runs. Check out our @SoxSpects for coverage and content on Red Sox and MLB prospects.
Join our Beyond the Monster: Boston Red Sox Substack to receive notification of new articles.