Boston Red Sox minor league players of the year announced
By Hunter Noll
Baserunner of the Year (Jarren Duran)
This was the easiest award to guess. I mean, it couldn’t have been anyone else at all.
Jarren Duran has elite speed. The outfielder stole 46 bases this year between Advanced-A and Double-A. Seriously, ridiculous.
Duran hit .303 between the two leagues. The left-handed hitter had 24 doubles, eight triples, and five homers. He drove in 38 runs and scored 90 more. The speed is so obviously there. It shows in the 90 runs scored and the 46 steals.
However, it’s not just the steals. Duran does everything well. He’s fantastic defensively and that bat has been legit.
No, he’s never going to get you 20 home runs. Is that necessary though? Not when you can turn a single into a triple by stealing a few bases in the blink of an eye.
There’s really not much else to say about Duran. He’s one of the most exciting prospects in the Boston Red Sox system.
As for where he’ll start next year, this is the easiest to predict. Duran will be in Double-A. He came back down to earth slightly while there. The Red Sox would be smart to give him more time there and see if he can go back to dominating before moving him up.
At the same time though, Duran could be in the Majors at some point next year. The Red Sox have a lot of question marks when it comes to what their roster will look like next year. That could free up a clear path for Duran.
If Duran goes back to that ridiculous domination that he showed in the first half of 2019, in 2020 – he’ll be in Boston.