The Red Sox still have 15 games left in the 2026 regular season, and the real priority in Boston should be obvious: finish strong, get healthy, and see how far this thing can go in October. They’re sitting in the No.
2 American League Wild Card spot, they’ve been the best team in baseball overall since the end of June, and help could still be coming. Roman Anthony and Trevor Story are back, and Garrett Crochet could follow before the season ends.
Even with all that in front of them, offseason noise is already creeping in around the edges. One of the names that keeps surfacing is Jarren Duran.
MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand included Duran in a recent column of 11 players who could be traded this offseason, and the Red Sox outfielder’s name landed there for reasons that have been building for a while.
"Jarren Duran, OF, Red Sox," Feinsand wrote. "Duran has been a theoretical trade candidate for a couple years, but his value has plummeted since his monster 2024 campaign. Duran is two stolen bases away from a 20-20 season, but his .624 OPS is down 150 points from 2025 and 210 points from 2024.
"Boston will have to settle on a lesser return if it trades Duran, but with Roman Anthony, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu on the roster, Duran doesn’t have a clear-cut role if that trio is healthy. When it comes to change-of-scenery candidates, Duran may be the poster child of that group."
That kind of chatter isn’t new. Duran has been kicked around in trade speculation for years, including last offseason and again before the 2026 deadline, but Boston held onto him each time.
This winter could be different. His value isn’t what it once was, but there’s still something to work with: two more seasons of team control after 2026.
Even in a down year, Duran has put up 20 homers, 69 RBIs and 18 stolen bases, while continuing to provide good defense in left field. Two more steals would give him a pretty unusual 20-20 season.
The bigger issue for Boston is fit. The same outfield questions that existed last offseason are coming back again, and the Red Sox will have four outfielders under contract for 2027, not counting Masataka Yoshida. Playing time was already hard to sort out early this season before injuries changed the picture, and that kind of logjam doesn’t disappear just because the calendar flips.
Pitching is another reason this could become a real offseason conversation. Boston is expected to need another starter, and Sonny Gray has a mutual option that doesn’t look likely to be exercised.
The $30 million mutual option is a long shot, even if the Red Sox would like to keep him. And even if Gray stays, the team would still need another veteran arm.
That’s where a Duran trade could start to make sense. Packaging him for a starter and keeping someone like Eli White as the No. 4 outfielder would give Boston more balance and help clear the congestion.
None of that means Duran is definitely on the way out. But with his name already showing up in trade talk, the buzz has started early.
In Other News...
Sonny Gray Just Added Uncertainty To A Crucial Red Sox Decision
Sonny Gray has given the Red Sox another reminder that the road ahead can get complicated even when the performance is steady. In the middle of one of the best seasons of his career, Gray remains exactly the kind of starter Boston would want lined up if this team gets into the postseason mix, and his contract situation already had the front office thinking ahead to 2027.
Gray, though, has not decided whether he will keep pitching beyond this season, saying his family will play a significant role in whatever comes next. His deal includes options for 2027, but for now the Red Sox are left waiting on a future call that could shape an important part of their rotation planning. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Playoff Push Faces A Harsh Reality About Two Bats
The Red Sox are still trying to navigate the stretch run with two key pieces stuck on the shelf, and neither injury has moved quickly enough to offer much comfort. Curtis Mead is working back from a fractured wrist and has progressed to catching, but he has not yet swung a bat, while Masataka Yoshida remains in treadmill walking rehabilitation as he comes back from a hamstring injury.
Interim manager Chad Tracy has already been careful not to overpromise on either players timeline, which is a telling sign for a club trying to keep pace in the playoff picture. For Boston, the challenge is not just waiting for reinforcements, but understanding that both bats may be operating on a far more uncertain clock than the calendar suggests before the end of the 2026 season. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Just Sent A Clear Message About October Priorities
The Red Sox took a measured approach in their latest matchup with the Angels, choosing rest over urgency as October draws closer. Boston dropped two straight games while the Angels put up six runs in each contest, but the bigger picture was clear: the club is trying to keep its roster intact and as healthy as possible heading into the postseason, even if it means absorbing a few ugly results along the way.
Willson Contreras, Ceddanne Rafaela and Adley Rutschman were among the key injured players held out as the Red Sox weighed short-term outcomes against the long-term goal. With playoff odds still high, the front office and dugout have sent a pretty direct message about priorities, and the remaining stretch will likely look more like maintenance than a desperate chase for regular-season wins against lower-ranked opponents. [Read more 🡒]