Team Mexico has been eliminated from World Baseball Classic play. However, outfielder Jarren Duran put on an unforgettable show during his team’s four-game run.
Duran tied for the Pool Play lead with three home runs, hitting .333 with five RBIs overall. When he makes his return to the Boston Red Sox, Jen McCaffrey of the Athletic sees the outfielder as the true X-factor for any 2026 success.
“If Jarren Duran’s performance in the World Baseball Classic is any indication of how he’ll produce during the regular season, the Boston Red Sox offense might be better than its preseason projections,” McCaffrey wrote.”
“On a Red Sox roster that features questions about its power, Duran has the potential to be the team’s greatest X-factor,” she continued. “A season that closer resembles his MVP-caliber 2024 campaign would be an obvious boon for the lineup, and Duran spent the offseason trying to return to that level of performance.”
Duran has stayed hot all offseason, hitting .583 with three home runs, five RBIs and a stolen bases over five spring training games before the WBC. The outfielder has found himself in trade rumors all offseason. But all Duran has done is prove why he is such a big asset for the Red Sox.
He is coming off of a 2025 season that saw the left-hander hit .256 with 16 home runs, 84 RBIs and 24 stolen bases. Duran was an All-Star in 2024 after hitting .285 with 21 home runs, 75 RBIs and 34 stolen bases. He has led the American League in triples with 14 and 13 over the past two years respectively.
Maybe if the Red Sox outfield gets truly crowded, trade talks will become louder once again. But coming out of the WBC, Boston has to like what they’ve seen from Duran.
