Alex Cora Identifies Key To Star Player’s Turnaround

Jarren Duran was the best player on the 2024 Boston Red Sox. He finished in eighth place in American League MVP voting, playing 160 games and posting an .834 OPS. He hasn’t quite replicated that success in 2025, but he’s showing he can still be that player.

At the end of June, Duran was hitting .253 with a .723 OPS. After Tuesday’s 8-5 win over the Minnesota Twins, the Red Sox outfielder’s OPS is up to .779. He’s hit four home runs in July and has had hits in 17 of 22 games played. He’s not stealing as many bases as he did in 2024, but he’s regained most of the form he had last season.

A change in approach has fueled the outfielder’s resurgence.

“I think he’s not just swinging up there,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “His swing rate has to be down, lower. His chase rate has to be lower. If you do that, you start hunting pitches in certain zones and you start doing damage.”

Cora isn’t wrong. From the beginning of the season to June 30, Duran swung at 48.6% of pitches. He chased 32.4% of pitches outside the zone. In July, his swing rate is down to 41.%, while his chase rate is down to 24.7%.

Duran is impacting the ball better as well. In July, his barrel rate is 16.3%, up almost seven percent from the rest of the season. He is striking out more, but when he puts the ball in play, he’s making meaningful contact.

Duran was one of the best players in baseball from June to August 2024 before falling off slightly in September. If he puts together another three-month hot streak, he’ll be peaking when the Red Sox need him most.