Red Sox Make Jarren Duran Decision After Ceddanne Rafaela Injury

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The Red Sox made a Jarren Duran decision after Ceddanne Rafaela suffered an injury, forcing Boston to adjust during the Guardians game.

Jarren Duran opened on the Boston Red Sox bench for the second day in a row Wednesday, but Red Sox manager Chad Tracy decided to put him into the game against the Cleveland Guardians anyway.

Gold Glove center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela, activated from the injured list only hours before first pitch, exited the game in the third inning at Fenway Park with what appeared to be a hamstring issue, leaving an unanswered question hanging over Boston’s outfield six days before the postseason gets underway.

Tracy took Duran off the bench to replace Rafaela, even with left-hander Foster Griffin on the mound for Cleveland. Duran struck out with two outs and the bases loaded in his first at-bat against Griffin in the bottom of the third.

Sidelined for 17 games by a quad injury, the 26-year-old Rafaela — who stroked a single in his first and last at-bat of the game — slotted sixth in the order against Cleveland Guardians left-hander Griffin. He also caught three fly balls for all three outs in the top of the first.

“Never mind. Jarren Duran is entering the game in CF,” according to Boston Herald reporter Gabrielle Starr, who had initially posted that Rafaela was returning to center.

Tracy told ESPN that Rafaela “felt some cramping” in the back of his leg, and was pulled from the game when “he continued to flex it.”

Why the Boston Red Sox Benched Jarren Duran

Duran also sat for Tuesday’s series opener, a 3-2 Boston loss, but drew a walk as a pinch hitter. He entered Wednesday batting .204 with 20 home runs, 69 RBIs and 19 stolen bases in 146 games.

Boston now routinely sits Duran when an opposing lefty takes the mound, according to a Boston Globe notebook by reporter Tim Healey.

That shift opened a new October job for Duran, who was 19-for-23 on steal attempts by mid-September. A reliable pinch runner is “an important piece down the stretch for sure,” manager Chad Tracy said, as quoted by the Globe.

Second, Roman Anthony owns left field and Wilyer Abreu owns right. Once Rafaela is healthy enough for center, Duran becomes the extra outfielder.

Tracy, who shed his interim tag Tuesday, named Anthony, Duran and Jahmai Jones as his mix for left field and designated hitter in the playoffs, along with Mickey Gasper. He added that “it’s fairly safe to say” Anthony plays no matter what, according to MassLive‘s Chris Cotillo.

Tracy has stood by Duran through a down season, including after a July dugout outburst.

“Jarren expects a lot out of himself. He’s a really good baseball player that’s having a rough go of it this year,” Tracy said, as quoted by The Boston Globe‘s Healey.

Jarren Duran’s Career With the Boston Red Sox

At Long Beach State, Duran played second base in all 169 of his college starts, hitting .294 with 49 steals, fourth-most in program history. Boston took him in the seventh round of the 2018 draft, 220th overall, as an outfielder.

He debuted against the New York Yankees on July 17, 2021, and broke through in 2023, batting .295 over 102 games. In 2024, he earned the All-Star Game MVP award with a two-run homer off Cincinnati Reds pitcher Hunter Greene.

All six of his big-league seasons have come in a Red Sox uniform.

Boston sits at 84-73 with its wild-card series set to begin Sept. 29, according to Red Sox On SI. To clear space for Rafaela, the club optioned Nate Eaton.

Whether Duran enters October as a pinch runner or a center fielder likely hinges on Rafaela’s next update.

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