{"id":599505,"date":"2026-03-01T07:59:20","date_gmt":"2026-03-01T07:59:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/599505\/"},"modified":"2026-03-01T07:59:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T07:59:20","slug":"jarren-durans-power-surge-headlines-busy-day-for-boston-red-sox","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/599505\/","title":{"rendered":"Jarren Duran\u2019s Power Surge Headlines Busy Day for Boston Red Sox"},"content":{"rendered":"

If spring training is about rhythm, the Red Sox<\/a> are starting to find one.<\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s 13-8 win over the Minnesota Twins<\/a> won\u2019t be remembered for crisp tempo – 25 hits, 10 walks and a three-hour-plus runtime made sure of that – but it did offer a little bit of everything:<\/p>\n

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Jarren Duran\u2019s thunder, Garrett Whitlock\u2019s clean tune-up before a national stage, and a reminder that this lineup might be deeper than advertised.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe ran the bases well and that\u2019s what we want,\u201d Alex Cora told the media postgame. \u201cThe offense is a lot better than people think.\u201d<\/p>\n

On a day like this, that felt less like a message and more like a fact.<\/p>\n

Duran Picks Up Where He Left Off:<\/p>\n

Duran continues to look like a player intent on forcing the Red Sox to take him off the trading block<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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He went 2-for-2 with two home runs, a walk, four RBI and three runs scored.<\/p>\n

Both blasts were two-run shots – one in the first inning off Taj Bradley, another in the fourth off Kendry Rojas – traveling 401 and 409 feet, respectively.<\/p>\n

Through the first week of games, Duran is batting .583 with a 2.167 OPS.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s spring, yes. But the at-bats look decisive. He\u2019s not cheating to velocity. He\u2019s not overextending for pull power. He\u2019s punishing mistakes.<\/p>\n

If Boston truly has an outfield \u201clogjam,\u201d Duran isn\u2019t playing like someone willing to be squeezed.<\/p>\n

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Roman Anthony (2-for-3, RBI) and Carlos Narvaez (2-for-3, RBI) also chipped in, Trevor Story tripled, and Max Ferguson launched a grand slam in the seventh.<\/p>\n

All 13 Sox scored at least once in a game that never lacked traffic.<\/p>\n

\"Feb<\/p>\n

Feb 27, 2026; North Port, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox right fielder Jarren Duran (16) celebrates with designated hitter Wilyer Abreu (52) after hitting a solo home run in the first inning against the Atlanta Braves during spring training at CoolToday Park. (Jonathan Dyer\/Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Whitlock\u2019s Spring & What Comes Next:<\/p>\n

While the offense grabbed headlines, Whitlock quietly finished his Grapefruit League work on a perfect note.<\/p>\n

He retired the Twins 1-2-3 in the third inning, making it three straight scoreless outings to open his spring.<\/p>\n

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Across three appearances, he allowed just one hit in three innings with no walks and two strikeouts.<\/p>\n

Now, he\u2019s packing for something bigger.<\/p>\n

Whitlock and Anthony fly to Arizona on Sunday to join Team USA ahead of the World Baseball Classic. The roster features stars across the league. But for Whitlock, the significance runs deeper than the names.<\/p>\n

He spoke emotionally postgame about calling his father – a Vietnam War veteran – when he learned he\u2019d been selected last fall.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI\u2019m actually the only male in my family not to serve in the military,\u201d said Whitlock. \u201cSo it\u2019s a really truly special thing that\u2019s close to my heart.\u201d<\/p>\n

Forget stage lights or tournament hype. For Whitlock, representing the country carries personal weight.<\/p>\n

And based on his early work, he\u2019s heading into it sharp.<\/p>\n

\"Feb<\/p>\n

Feb 22, 2026; Fort Myers, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Garrett Whitlock (22) throws a pitch during the third inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at JetBlue Park at Fenway South. (Kim Klement Neitzel\/Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Gray\u2019s Mixed Day:<\/p>\n

Sonny Gray\u2019s first start in a Red Sox uniform wasn\u2019t as smooth.<\/p>\n

He walked the first batter he faced on four pitches, and ultimately allowed two runs on three hits and two walks over 1.1 innings. A solo home run to James Outman in the second highlighted the hiccups.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI don\u2019t like throwing as many balls as I did,\u201d Gray said postgame.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s March. Results matter less than rhythm, and Gray acknowledged the command needs tightening.<\/p>\n

Still, he escaped a bases-loaded jam in the first thanks to a 6-4-3 double play turned by Story and Nick Sogard, limiting what could have spiraled.<\/p>\n

\"Feb<\/p>\n

Feb 17, 2026; Lee County, FL, USA;Boston Red Sox pitcher Sonny Gray (54) poses for a photo during media day at JetBlue Park. (Kim Klement Neitzel\/Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Early Keeps Building:<\/p>\n

Connelly Early followed and continued his steady push.<\/p>\n

The left-hander threw 2.2 innings, allowing two runs on three hits with no walks and three strikeouts.<\/p>\n

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He topped out at 97.1 mph, and threw 27 of 39 pitches for strikes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just trying to keep building the workload and hold the velo,\u201d Early said postgame.<\/p>\n

For a young arm fighting for innings, that\u2019s exactly what you want to hear.<\/p>\n

\"Feb<\/p>\n

Feb 17, 2026; Lee County, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Connelly Early (71) gets his photo taken during media day at JetBlue Park. (Kim Klement Neitzel\/Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

The Big Picture:<\/p>\n

The Red Sox are 5-3 this spring, including 3-0 against Minnesota.<\/p>\n

More importantly, they\u2019re showing layers:<\/p>\n

Lineup depth, bullpen clarity, and players ramping toward bigger roles, whether in Boston or on the international stage.<\/p>\n

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Later today brings the Orioles to Fort Myers, with Ranger Suarez scheduled to start and Aroldis Chapman and Justin Slaten slated for work behind him.<\/p>\n

In late February, the scoreboard doesn\u2019t carry much weight.<\/p>\n

But rhythm does.<\/p>\n

And right now, the Red Sox look like a team settling into one.<\/p>\n

\"Feb<\/p>\n

Feb 26, 2026; Fort Myers, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox players stand on the field during the national anthem before the game against the Tampa Bay Rays at JetBlue Park at Fenway South. (Jim Rassol\/Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

JOIN THE CONVERSATION:<\/p>\n

Remember to join our RED SOX on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Red Sox fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that’s free too!<\/p>\n

Tom Carroll is a contributor for Roundtable, with boots-on-the-ground coverage of all things Boston sports. He’s a senior digital content producer for WEEI.com<\/a>, and a native of Lincoln, RI.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If spring training is about rhythm, the Red Sox are starting to find one. Saturday\u2019s 13-8 win over…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":599506,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2375],"tags":[146,1113,46,5,141,48,2542,789,36543,1471,4506,4571,604,1093,26513,60,4,8531,90,89,2543,793,1587,151,763,68,70,1035,606],"class_list":{"0":"post-599505","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-boston-red-sox","8":"tag-arizona","9":"tag-aroldis-chapman","10":"tag-atlanta-braves","11":"tag-baseball","12":"tag-boston","13":"tag-boston-red-sox","14":"tag-bostonredsox","15":"tag-carlos-narvaez","16":"tag-connelly-early","17":"tag-duran","18":"tag-garrett-whitlock","19":"tag-james-outman","20":"tag-jarren-duran","21":"tag-justin-slaten","22":"tag-kendry-rojas","23":"tag-minnesota-twins","24":"tag-mlb","25":"tag-nick-sogard","26":"tag-ranger-suarez","27":"tag-red-sox","28":"tag-redsox","29":"tag-roman-anthony","30":"tag-sonny-gray","31":"tag-spring-training","32":"tag-taj-bradley","33":"tag-tampa-bay-rays","34":"tag-toronto-blue-jays","35":"tag-trevor-story","36":"tag-wilyer-abreu"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116152865535016094","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/599505","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=599505"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/599505\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/599506"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=599505"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=599505"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=599505"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}