Jarren Duran will have another opportunity to prove himself Friday night when the Boston Red Sox begin a three-game series with the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field.
Duran, who started four straight games since being recalled from Triple-A Worcester, will play center field in the opener, flanked by Masataka Yoshida and Alex Verdugo in left field and right field, respectively.
Duran has looked like a different player in a small sample size this season after struggling at the major-league level in 2021 and 2022. He’s had a noticeably different stance and swing, and the 26-year-old entered Friday batting .385 (5-for-13) with four extra-base hits and five RBIs.
Duran will bat eighth, in front of Yu Chang, who draws the start at shortstop alongside Kiké Hernández at second base. Verdugo will lead off for Boston, with Rafael Devers and Justin Turner hitting second and third, respectively.
Nick Pivetta will toe the rubber for the Red Sox, who pulled to .500 (10-10) with an impressive 11-5 win over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday afternoon at Fenway Park. And he’ll have his work cut out for him. The Brewers not only are tied with the Atlanta Braves for the second-best record in Major League Baseball (14-5). They’ll also hand the ball to the electric Freddy Peralta in Friday’s series opener.
Red Sox coverage will air on NESN+ on Friday night, with the Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers battling on NESN in Game 3 of their Stanley Cup playoffs series. First pitch from Milwaukee is scheduled for 8:10 p.m. ET, after Red Sox First Pitch LIVE at 7 p.m. and Red Sox Gameday LIVE at 7:30 p.m.
Here are the full lineups for Red Sox vs. Brewers.
BOSTON RED SOX (10-10)
Alex Verdugo, RF
Rafael Devers, 3B
Justin Turner, DH
Masataka Yoshida, LF
Kiké Hernández, 2B
Triston Casas, 1B
Reese McGuire, C
Jarren Duran, CF
Yu Chang, SS
Nick Pivetta, RHP (0-1, 4.50 ERA)
MILWAUKEE BREWERS (14-5)
Christian Yelich, LF
Jesse Winker, DH
Willy Adames, SS
Rowdy Tellez, 1B
William Contreras, C
Brian Anderson, RF
Brice Turang, 2B
Owen Miller, 3B
Joey Wiemer, CF
Freddy Peralta, RHP (2-1, 3.18 ERA)
