Opening Day is around the corner, and the new-look Boston Red Sox have a lot to prove after an all-too-brief postseason run in 2025.
There's so much talent on the roster that it's hard to pick just one player worth watching the most. Incumbent ace Garrett Crochet will take the bump after a breakout season, leaving him with gigantic expectations. Roman Anthony is the new face of the lineup after Alex Bregman left in free agency and Rafael Devers was traded. Closer Aroldis Chapman will try to somehow one-up his historically great comeback effort.
Meanwhile, trade acquisition Willson Contreras might tee off on an Andrew Abbott pitch or two, now that Hunter Greene is out for the foreseeable future. Alternatively, maybe newly minted third baseman Caleb Durbin will have a Red Sox debut to remember. Or perhaps Andruw Monasterio, fresh off making the Opening Day roster, continues his career-long domination of the Reds.
But amidst all those established stars and enticing newcomers, it's a mainstay who will draw the most eyes on March 26, precisely because most expected he wouldn't even be here.
Jarren Duran's pivotal 2026 season with Red Sox must start with a bang on Opening Day
The fabled outfield logjam received no answers this winter, as Craig Breslow spent just as much time adding bodies to the mix (Kristian Campbell, Braiden Ward) as he did subtracting them (Jhostynxon Garcia, Rob Refsnyder).
Nevertheless, Jarern Duran always seemed like the odd man out, and most were biding their time until news broke that he had been traded. As a left-handed hitting outfielder who is older than the other three starters on the roster, his presence on the trade block was an unceasing storyline.
Yet, the Red Sox refused multiple blockbuster deals for Duran, opting to keep all four of their outfielders. It was a risky call, but that belief should pay off in a big way in 2026.
Duran's ceiling isn't a question; he was an MVP contender in 2024, when he accrued 8.7 bWAR. He slowed down last year on both offense and defense, but he's absolutely torched spring training (231 wRC+) and the World Baseball Classic (1.412 OPS) as an appetizer to what should be a return to star form this season.
Now set to bat third in the lineup behind Anthony and Trevor Story, run-production opportunities will be abundant for the Red Sox's de facto designated hitter. A chance to square off with Abbott on Opening Day is also a fun storyline, seeing as Duran really struggled against fellow lefties a year ago (61 wRC+, 27.3% strikeout rate).
There's 162 games to go, so if Duran can't carry his early momentum into the first contest of the regular season, Red Sox fans shouldn't be too discouraged. But among every player that will be under a Boston-sized microscope on Opening Day, he stands the best chance of improving his stock.