As per Dennis Lin of The Athletic (subscription required), the San Diego Padres reportedly have interest in Boston Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran. However, if the Seattle Mariners front office has genuine designs on making some noise come playoff time, they would do well to throw their cards onto the table.
According to Lin, a disappointing sub-.500 Red Sox team might consider Duran expendable in large part due to Roman Anthony, who is lighting it up in Triple-A Worcester. The young outfielder is baseball’s consensus No. 1 prospect, and a Boston fan base not exactly renowned for their patience and understanding are extremely eager for him to be called up to the majors.
On a basic level, the Mariners could use some help in the outfield and the leadoff spot. This is in large part due to the loss of Victor Robles likely for the rest of the season, but also further complicated by no timeline at this stage for when the versatile Luke Raley will return to action.
A career year for Jarren Duran
In respect of Duran, we’re looking at a player who last year led the majors in double and triples, was named MVP in his first All-Star appearance and finished eighth in AL MVP voting. He set career highs with a 8.7 WAR, .834 OPS and 131 OPS+, while also receiving plenty of praise for his defense in the outfield.
As an added bonus, the 28-year-old led the majors last season in plate appearances and at-bats. He’s currently projected to do the same again in 2025 and certainly the Mariners would embrace someone who appears to be durable, especially after all the injury issues they’ve experienced thus far.
We appreciate that critics will point to Duran not being quite as effective with the bat or glove in 2025 when compared to last year, but this doesn’t mean he’s suddenly a bad player. Besides, if his slight downturn in productivity can further persuade the Red Sox to move him, then this can only help the Mariners if they deem to have any interest in him.
Mariners in prime position to pounce
In any event, there’s no denying the Mariners have the prospects to entice the Red Sox, highlighted by Harry Ford. The catcher is creating plenty of buzz due to his phenomenal hitting in Triple-A Tacoma, but there’s a school of thought it might be best if he moves on, with a lack of opportunities likely to present themselves at his prime position in Seattle for the foreseeable future.
Aside from additionally being able to propose other quality prospects, the Mariners also have the pitching to offer to the Red Sox. This could lead to the question of whether to offer Luis Castillo, who is having a fine season but is getting up there in age, or someone like Emerson Hancock or Logan Evans, who have both shown promise this year but are yet to prove themselves on a consistent enough basis.
No matter which approach the Mariners take or what they decide to offer, they can undoubtedly present a package which will rival anything the Padres put together. However, one aspect which could compromise Seattle is that in some respects they have been the polar opposite to San Diego when it comes to financial compensation (and risk).
Duran is making a guaranteed $3.85 million this season, with a $8 million club option for 2026 which could increase to as much as $12 million with incentives. As reasonable as this might seem in theory, whether the Mariners agree with this would remain to be seen.
Overall, though, there are more pros than cons when it comes to whether the Mariners should consider making a move for Duran. Ultimately it does depend on whether or not the Red Sox will look to trade the 2018 seventh round draft pick, but if anyone can make them seriously contemplate it, we believe it’s Jerry Dipoto and company.
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