Red Sox's Jarren Duran Hits Surprise 20-20 Milestone With Mookie Betts

The Boston Red Sox speedster has had a tough season, but does have something to celebrate.

Sep 19, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox center fielder Jarren Duran (16) reacts after he triples during the ninth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The 2026 Major League Baseball season has been anything but smooth for Boston Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran, but he still has found a way to put himself into some elite company.

Duran has taken a lot of heat all season to this point. He's batting .207 this season and striking out a lot and not walking much. In fact, Duran's 39 walks this season are his fewest since 2023. That year, he only played 102 games. This season, he has 147 games under his belt. He hasn't gotten on base a lot, but the power numbers have still been there. Duran has 20 homers on the season, which is one off from his career high of 21, which he set in his All-Star season in 2024. He has driven in 69 runs this year. Plus, despite the fact that he hasn't been on base much, he has still been a terror on the basepaths. On Wednesday, he recorded his 20th stolen base of the season.

Now, Duran has two 20-20 seasons under his belt and is just the third member of the organization, along with Mookie Betts and Jackie Jensen, to record multiple, per former Red Sox director of baseball communications and media relations JP Long.

"Jarren Duran (2024, ’26) joins Mookie Betts (2016, ’17, ’18) and Jackie Jensen (1954, ’59) as the only Red Sox to record multiple 20-HR/20-SB seasons," Long wrote. "Jarren and Mookie are the only Red Sox ever to record 3 consecutive seasons of at least 15 HR and 20 steals."

Who Saw That Coming?

Sep 9, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox left fielder Jarren Duran (16) runs off the field during the sixth inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Talk about improbable, huh?

The last time Duran had a 20-20 season, he was a 9.0-WAR player and finished the season with 21 homers, 75 RBIs, 34 stolen bases, 48 doubles, 14 triples and a .285/.342/.492 slash line. He was incredible and led the league in both doubles and triples.

The 2026 season hasn't been kind to him, but quietly he has still had an impact. He's slashing .207/.265/.364. If you look around the league and see numbers like those, you're not going to typically see 20 homers and 20 stolen bases as well. That doesn't make the .207 batting average any better, but it is a bit of a silver lining in an otherwise difficult season. The talent is there. There's no denying that. Boston has to find a way to get him back to the 2024 version of himself. But for now, this is something to celebrate.