Jarren Duran Trade Buzz: Red Sox-Mariners Package Outlined By Analyst

Should the Boston Red Sox trade Jarren Duran this summer, and if so, for who?

ESPN’s Paul Hembekides asserted this week during the Baseball Tonight with Buster Olney podcast that now is a great time to trade Duran.

Hembekides followed that up on Friday with a post to X that drew up two potential trade packages for Duran, one of which was from the Seattle Mariners.

Hembekides’ Mariners-Duran package featured Harry Ford, Luis Castillo, and Matt Brash.

Ford, a 22-year-old catcher with Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers, is Seattle’s No. 5 prospect. The former No. 12 overall pick (2021 MLB draft) is slashing .321/.436/.476/.912  this season in Triple-A with six home runs, 28 RBIs, and three stolen bases.

Boston may have found something special in Carlos Narváez, leading the Red Sox to be less interested in Ford than they would have been three months ago. Still, Ford is an elite prospect who would represent, if nothing else, a valuable trade chip to be flipped for something else later on if Boston leans into Narváez as its starting catcher moving into the future.

In Castillo and Brash, the Red Sox would be gaining an impact starter and an impact bullpen arm (two of their greatest areas of need at the moment). Castillo, 32, is a three-time All-Star. He’s 4-3 this season with a 3.03 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, and 55 strikeouts in 12 starts for Seattle. Brash, 27, hasn’t allowed an earned run in 11 appearances this year (1.18 WHIP). He has a career 3.38 ERA in 130 2/3 innings.

In sum, Hembekides’ Mariners package for Duran makes sense.

Interestingly, WEEI’s Nat Gordon responded to the proposed package on Friday by suggesting Masataka Yoshida would have to be involved on the Red Sox side of the trade.

“(Hembekides’ Duran packages) are a little more realistic if you’re trading Duran (which I’m not a big proponent of),” Gordon wrote.

“Though would think the SEA one would need to include Yoshida to offset the $$.”

Gordon may have a point in that Castillo’s $24.2 million salary doesn’t align with Duran’s $3.8 million, and Yoshida is at $18.6 million for 2025.

If the Red Sox were to move on from Duran and Yoshida in one deal, one would think Roman Anthony would be promoted hours after the trade.