“I was already hearing it from fans, And what they said to me, [it was like], ‘I’ve told myself 10 times worse in the mirror’. That was a really tough time for me. I didn’t even want to be here anymore …” “When you say ‘here,’ you mean ‘here’ with the Red Sox or ‘here’ on planet Earth?” “Probably both. Yeah. Probably both. I got to a point where I was sitting in my room, I had my rifle and I had a bullet, and I pulled the trigger and the gun clicked, but nothing happened. So, to this day, I think God just didn’t let me take my own life because I seriously don’t know why it didn’t go off”.
Jarren Duran, born in 1996 in Corona, California, to parents Octavio and Dena Duran, didn’t always seem destined for the MLB. His childhood was marked by his father’s “tough love” and high expectations, making it so he had no choice but to continue his baseball career. So, after playing high school ball at Cypress High School, he continued to Division I California State University, Long Beach.
At Long Beach, he was primarily a second baseman. He had a solid batting average of .288 during his three seasons, with 30 stolen bases. But in a competitive draft class, he wasn’t considered a “can’t miss” prospect. In fact, scouts considered Duran to be average. This led him to being selected by the Boston Red Sox in 2018, in the 7th round, 220th overall.
Nevertheless, he rose through the ranks of the minor league system quickly. After his first professional season with the Lowell Spinners and Greenville Drive, batting a combined .357, he began the 2019 season with the High-A Salem Red Sox. On June 3, he was promoted to the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs. By mid-June, defying expectations, he was added to the top 100 prospects list of Baseball America, at number 99. After this 2019 season, he was invited to the MLB All-Star Futures Game and was named High-A player of the year. He finished the season with a .303 batting average, 38 RBIs, five home runs, and was named Red Sox’ minor league baserunner of the year.
In 2020, Duran was invited to the Red Sox Spring Training, and after the season was cancelled, he was invited to the 2021 Spring Training. He began the season with the Triple-A Worcester Red Sox, and on July 16th, he was added to the Red Sox 40-man roster.
Duran made his major league debut against the New York Yankees, playing in centerfield. He hit his first major league home run days later on July 19th against the Toronto Blue Jays, but it wasn’t smooth sailing from there. After 33 strikeouts in 89 plate appearances, on August 24th, he was optioned back down to Worcester, where he then began the 2022 season.
After spending the season switching between Boston and Worcester, he was pulled up again in late June, where the worst period of his career began. On July 22, 2022, while playing center field at Fenway Park against the Blue Jays, Duran lost track of a fly ball and gave up on the play, resulting in an inside-the-park grand slam. The Red Sox lost the game 28-5, and one USA Today Sports article read, “The Red Sox had themselves a dreadful July where they went from the fourth-best record in the American League to falling out of realistic playoff hopes. And much of that was due to [Duran’s] atrocious defending”. Duran was demoted back to Worcester on August 28th.
This criticism cut deep; fans and the media were bashing Duran, and it had an effect. After battling with his mental health, Duran attempted suicide during this season: “I got to a point where I was sitting in my room, I had my rifle and I had a bullet, and I pulled the trigger and the gun clicked, but nothing happened. So, to this day, I think God just didn’t let me take my own life because I seriously don’t know why it didn’t go off.”
But Duran didn’t just survive this challenge, he emerged stronger than ever. In the upcoming seasons, fans witnessed one of the biggest comebacks in sports. By the end of 2024, he led the league in plate appearances with 735, and had a .285 batting average and .492 slugging percentage. After his outstanding season, he was selected to play in the 2024 MLB All-Star Game, where he hit the game-winning home run for the American League. So, within two years, Jarren Duran went from constantly being called one of the worst players in the league, his career potentially over, to being named the 2024 MLB All-Star MVP.
Duran’s story is about more than just baseball. It’s about resilience, vulnerability, and the courage to ask for help. By opening up about his battle with mental health, Duran serves as a role model for all athletes, giving a voice to those who continue to struggle in silence. So, as he continues to make an impact on the field, Duran’s most important legacy may be the impact he made off of it as he’s changed the conversation about mental health in sports.
