Jarren Duran signs 1-year contract with club option with Red Sox

Jarren Duran was among the top players in the American League during the 2024 season, and on Friday, the 28-year-old outfielder was financially rewarded for his performance.

The Red Sox announced they agreed to terms on a one-year contract featuring a 2026 club option with Duran, a first-year arbitration-eligible player who had not previously settled prior to the Jan. 9 deadline to do so. A source told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand that Duran will receive $3.75 million this year, with a $100,000 buyout on the option, which is worth $8 million.

The club did not announce the terms of the agreement, which also features incentives. Duran’s 2026 option has escalators based on AL MVP Award finishes and/or All-MLB placement, and he could earn up to $150,000 in performance bonuses in ‘25, a source told Feinsand.

Boston has no remaining players eligible for salary arbitration, so it will avoid going to a hearing.

Duran had a breakout year in 2024, when he finished eighth in the AL MVP voting. The ‘18 seventh-round Draft pick led the Majors in doubles (48) and tied for the MLB lead in triples (14) while hitting .285 with 21 home runs, 75 RBIs and an .834 OPS over 160 games. His 8.7 bWAR ranked fifth in the Majors and fourth in the AL.

Thanks to that offensive performance as the Red Sox’s everyday leadoff hitter — and the strong outfield defense to go along with it, including 12 assists — Duran was named to the All-MLB second team.

Before last season, Duran had shown flashes of his potential during his big league career, which began in 2021. His best showing to that point had come in ‘23, when he hit .295 with an .828 OPS over 102 games. He took another big step forward in ‘24.

Last July, Duran became the first Red Sox player to hit a home run in the All-Star Game since Adrián González in 2011, swatting the decisive go-ahead two-run homer in the AL’s 5-3 victory at Globe Life Field in Arlington. Duran was the fifth Boston player to earn MVP honors at the Midsummer Classic, joining Carl Yastrzemski (1970), Roger Clemens (‘86), Pedro Martinez (‘99) and J.D. Drew (2008).

In 2025, Duran will look to lead Boston back to the postseason for the first time since ‘21. He has yet to participate in a playoff game during his four-year big league career, but that could change this upcoming season, as the Sox will aim to contend in the AL East.

Duran was the fourth and final arb-eligible player on the Red Sox roster to agree to terms. They avoided arbitration with left-hander Garrett Crochet ($3.8 million) and righties Tanner Houck ($3.95 million) and Kutter Crawford ($2.75 million) last week.