3 prospects that could help Red Sox win AL East

OF Jarren Duran

Jarren Duran is Boston’s third-overall prospect in the farm system, and for good reason. While the Red Sox did trade away Mookie Betts, they had Duran in the farm system.

While Duran was not expected to land a 40-man roster spot through spring training, he did make the decision difficult for manager Alex Cora. In 24 exhibition games prior to the start of the 2021 season, Duran slashed .340/.352/.702 with three home runs, seven RBI, 10 runs scored and 16 hits (six doubles). Even though Duran did not make the Opening Day roster, he is making some loud noise in Triple-A Worcester.

Through 18 games in the minor leagues, Duran has recorded a .278 batting average, a .991 OPS, seven home runs, 12 RBI, 14 runs scored and 20 hits.

Duran will not be available for the Red Sox right away, as he made Team USA’s qualifying team for this year’s Olympics. If Boston is still in contention post-Olympics, then Duran is an easy choice to receive a promotion to the Red Sox.

1B Triston Casas

Of course, we have to include the Red Sox’s top overall prospect in the farm system on this list. Triston Casas, Boston’s first-round selection back in 2018, has been hyped for the immense power in his swing. He showed it off back in 2019, where he slashed .256/.350/.480 while recording 20 home runs, 81 RBI and 110 hits across Single-A.

Casas continues to shine in 2021, where he owns a .328 batting average, .400 on-base percentage and .552 slugging percentage through 17 games in Double-A. Additionally, Casas recorded four home runs, 16 RBI, 15 runs scored and 22 hits in that span of games.

Like Duran, Casas will be away from the Red Sox organization to be a part of Team USA’s qualifying roster. Once he does return to the team, calling up Casas could be too enticing for Cora to pass up on, especially if the division is on the line down the road.