ANAHEIM, Calif. — Red Sox center fielder Jarren Duran entered Friday 0-for-11 with six strikeouts in his career at Angel Stadium, which is right down the street from where he grew up.
The 27-year-old graduated from Cypress High, approximately 15 minutes from here. He played at Long Beach State, which is about 15-20 minutes from here.
“To be honest, I put so much pressure on myself because there’s been people who have never seen me get a hit in person,” Duran said. “Like my roommates had never seen me get a hit in person. So I’m glad I got at least one of those out of the way for them. That was pretty fun.”
Duran — playing in front of family and friends — stroked an RBI single in the sixth inning, then blasted a go-ahead 409-foot solo homer in the eighth. He helped lead Boston 8-6 over Los Angeles on Friday.
Duran has been open about his struggles with anxiety and depression. He always has put a lot of pressure on him to perform well.
“I know what I’m going through personally, so it was just kind of like a relief for myself in a way,” Duran said about homering. “Just putting so much pressure on myself, it was nice to have a good hit like that and contribute to the team to help us get back in it. So yeah, it was a pretty big one for me.”
How many friends and family did he have here Friday?
“Too many to count,” Duran said. “It took up most of the right field line. But it was awesome to see them all smiling.”
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This was a wild win for the Red Sox. Two errors behind reliever Josh Winckowski in the bottom of the sixth inning allowed the Angels to tie it 5-5.
Center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela dropped a 327-foot routine fly ball off the bat of Taylor Ward. Second baseman Enmanuel Valdez then made an error on the next play. Brandon Drury grounded to third baseman Rafael Devers who threw to second. But Valdez dropped Devers’ throw.
Winckowski hit Miguel Sanó with a pitch to load the bases. One out later, Logan O’Hoppe crushed a 407-foot grand slam to tie it 5-5.
“I feel like those kinds of games are really important, especially early in the season where you test yourself and teammates,” Duran said.
Duran has gone 11-for-17 (.647) with one homer, four runs, four RBIs, two hit by pitches and four steals in his past four games.
“It’s electric,” Red Sox pitcher Kutter Crawford said about watching Duran. “Any at-bat, any swing, he can hit the ball hard. He can do a lot with his legs. You saw the power tonight taking one to dead center. He’s fun to watch.”
