Following a busy but important offseason, the Boston Red Sox and their roster are ready to work on returning to the playoffs.
Boston has not made the playoffs since the 2021 season, when the team lost in the American League Championship Series to the Houston Astros. The team has also finished last in the AL East division twice since with the team’s third-place finish being a real step in the right direction in 2024. A big reason for the Red Sox’s strides that have landed them as one of Major League Baseball’s most exciting teams heading into 2025 is All-Star outfielder Jarren Duran.
Duran had a season worthy of the Most Valuable Player Award, finishing seventh in the American League’s voting. The MVP of the MLB All-Star Game had a.285 batting average, 21 home runs, 75 RBIs, 111 runs, 34 stolen bases, and an OPS of.834. It was a performance that elevated the Red Sox, but the two sides couldn’t originally connect because the Red Sox were $500,000 short on Durran’s year-end offer. The good news for both the Red Sox and Duran is that they have agreed to pay the outfielder $3.75 million with a club option for 2026.
Despite nearly heading to arbitration, the Red Sox All-Star is happy with how everything turned out, per The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey.
“I think it was fine, it was all good,” Duran said. “Talked to (Craig Breslow) all the time. And everything was really smooth. There’s no bad dance or anything like that. I thought it went really good, actually.
“It’s always good when you can get it resolved on both sides and both sides were in a great agreement, so I’m happy with what we got.”
Duran is again poised to lead the Red Sox lineup in 2025. The 28-year-old outfielder is projected to have another successful season with an improved lineup, with the addition of infielder Alex Bregman and top prospects Kristian Campbell and Roman Anthony.
