Jarren Duran is getting another shot at the major league level. Can he make this one count?
The Boston Red Sox reportedly are promoting the 25-year-old outfielder to the big leagues from Triple-A Worcester, and he could see action as soon as Friday night with Kiké Hernandez battling an illness.
Duran has been white-hot in Worcester this spring, boasting a .397 batting average and a 1.116 OPS through 15 games with a pair of homers and 11 RBIs. Those numbers stand in stark contrast to Duran's first MLB stint in 2021, when he hit just .217 with 40 strikeouts over 33 games with Boston.
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There's hope that Duran can carry his current momentum into the big leagues, however -- thanks in part to a mechanical adjustment in his swing.
Former Red Sox infielder Lou Merloni joined NBC Sports Boston's "Talkin' Baseball" earlier this week to break down how Duran changed his swing to adopt a more balanced plate approach.
Check out Merloni's analysis in the video above, and then notice the difference in Duran's swing from 2021 to 2022. Here's his first hit at Fenway Park last July:
And here's Duran's first homer of the 2022 season with Worcester:
As Merloni explains, Duran had an aggressive front leg kick and stride that caused him to drop his eye level, making it harder for him to hit pitches up in the zone. The 25-year-old has all but eliminated that leg kick in 2022, however, and the results have been immediate: His strikeout rate is down from 23.3 percent with Worcester in 2021 to 19.4 percent with the WooSox this spring.
Duran will face much tougher pitching beginning Friday, of course, but if he can deliver at the plate for Boston, his new swing deserves some credit.
