No Boston Red Sox player has seen his name come up in trade rumors this offseason more frequently than Jarren Duran. The 29-year-old, speedy outfielder who has led the American League in triples two years in a row, appears to be the odd man out in a Boston outfield filled by former No. 1 MLB prospect Roman Anthony and two Gold Glovers in Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu.
Not only that, but Duran â the 2024 All-Star Game MVP â comes without a great financial commitment. With an economical $7.7 million contract for 2026, the former Cal State Long Beach Dirtbag will not be eligible for free agency until 2029.
All of those factors make Duran an attractive trade candidate for teams looking to upgrade their outfield, but also for the Red Sox, who would see him as their most movable player heading into 2026. But the Red Sox, according to ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan, have set a high price tag for Duran.
Boston Wants Top Pitcher for Outfielder
“The Red Sox believe Duran is worth a front-of-the-rotation starter,” Passan wrote last week. “At this point, no one has been willing to pay that. Considering the return the Rays got on Shane Baz, teams are going to be that much more emboldened to price starting pitchers very aggressively, even with the paucity of good bats left beyond the very top of the free agent market.”
But one budget-conscious club that has been making a push to move out of the National League Central basement appears to present an excellent fit for a Duran deal. That, anyway, is the opinion of Bleacher Report baseball analyst Tim Kelly, who in an argument published earlier this week made the case that the Pittsburgh Pirates would make the best trade fit for Duran.
“Pittsburgh has signed Ryan O’Hearn already this offseason, but if they want to make the best of their remaining time with Paul Skenes, that can’t be the only move,” Kelly wrote.
Skenes Era in Pittsburgh Risks Slipping Away
Though Pittsburgh No. 1 overall 2023 draft pick Paul Skenes has won 21 games with a record-setting ERA of 1.97 in his brief, two-year career, the Pirates have won only 147 games over that time, against 172 losses, and have finished in last place in the NL Central both years.
It is probably not a coincidence that the Pirates carry the fourth-lowest payroll in baseball. But the club under general manager Ben Cherington and notoriously tight-fisted owner Bob Nutting has made at least a few moves this offseason to improve the roster and give the Pirates a chance while they still have the generational pitcher on their staff.
Duran Would Command Pitching in Return
If the Red Sox, as Passan reported, are indeed demanding a front-of-the-rotation starter for Duran, they could target Pirates No. 2 starter Mitch Keller, a seven-year veteran righty with a career 4.51 ERA.
“The Pirates have the pitching depth to trade from,” wrote Zach Presnell of Newsweek, discussing a potential Duran deal. “They could trade one of their young pitchers to acquire Duran. They could also use a veteran pitcher and some prospects to get the deal done.”
Rookie league righty Seth Hernandez, the Pirates first-round pick in 2025, could also form part of a Duran deal. MLB Pipeline already rates “the top high school arm in the Class of 2025” as the Pirates No. 3 prospect in their entire farm system.
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