Duran Around the Bases
Jarren Duran (BOS): 2-2, 2B, HR, R, 3 RBI, 2 BB.
Jarren Duran found the perfect spot to hit the ball in Fenway on Sunday, flummoxing the Pirates’ outfielders as he smashed the speed button and rounded the bases, resulting in an exciting inside-the-park three-run homer. Duran finished the day with a perfect and productive line of 2-2, 2B, HR, R, 3 RBI, 2 BB.
It was nice to see Duran tapping into his 91st percentile speed. He only has 22 stolen bases this year, and it will be challenging for him to reach or surpass the 34 he stole last year. He’s also slowed down in the power department lately. The homer on Sunday was his 15th, and the last time he hit one over the wall was on August 25, and then on August 4. His 21 homers from 2024 also seem to be a number he’ll be unable to reach this season. The results in the box score are surprising given that he has his strongest HardHit%, Barrel%, and average EV in his career in 2025.
Going into 2026, fantasy managers might be more cautious with Duran, causing his price to drop. I think the 28-year-old will be a great value and bounce-back candidate in the prime of his career, especially as young Red Sox sluggers, such as Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, and Kristian Campbell, start growing up into competent and consistent major leaguers around him in Boston’s lineup.
Let’s see how the other hitters did Sunday:
Rafael Devers (SFG): 3-5, 2B, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI.
The former Red Sox and current Giants star had a nice day at the plate, hitting a double and his 28th homer of the season, as he inches closer to 30 HR and 100 RBI for the first time since 2023, having missed out on those marks last season. The Giants have been putting up lots of runs lately, and Devers is right there in the middle of it, hitting a whopping .458/.536/.917 over his last seven games.
Aaron Judge (NYY): 3-5, 2B, HR, 2 R, RBI.
Another day, another record broken for Aaron Judge. By hitting his 43rd home run of the season, and 358th of his career, he is now tied for fifth all-time in Yankees history for HRs. Given his recurring trips to the IL, it’s hard to imagine Judge will best Babe Ruth’s 659 home runs in pinstripes, but hey, he’s only 33 years old. I’m holding out hope that I’ll be able to enjoy watching a 39-year-old Judge crank his 660th in 2031 at Yankee Stadium.
Most home runs in Yankees history:
Babe Ruth: 659
Mickey Mantle: 536
Lou Gehrig: 493
Joe DiMaggio: 361
Aaron Judge: 358
Yogi Berra: 358 https://t.co/9iiIXozFVl— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) August 31, 2025
Austin Hays (CIN): 2-4, 2B, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI.
Austin Hays has had spurts of greatness followed by trips to the IL in a seemingly endless cycle in 2025, and recently had a summer power outage, hitting only two homers since July 18, including his 12th on Sunday. Still, it’s nice to see him get a full-time gig and a prominent lineup spot on an MLB team. Should he get a full-time gig on your fantasy teams? I’d look for better options in 12-teamers, but you can ride the hot streak in 15-teamers or leagues with four or more outfielders. Hays is slashing .321/.345/.528 over the last two weeks.
Byron Buxton (MIN): 2-5, 2B, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI.
Buxton keeps on crushing the ball and staying healthy, smacking his 29th home run of 2025, a new career-best for the 31-year-old. Buxton’s season will boost his price in 2026, and I imagine it’ll be too rich for me. He’s always one defensive gem play away from the IL, and the Twins roster around him is pretty thin.
Joc Pederson (TEX): 2-5, 2B, HR, R, 3 RBI.
Joc Pederson has had a rough 2025, but his power is still there when he connects with the ball. He now has four homers in his last eight games, but the emphasis is on the “his” as he doesn’t play every day for the Rangers. Texas and streamers expected a lot more from Pederson. Keep him on waivers, even with his little hot streak going.
Agustín Ramírez (MIA): 2-4, HR, R, 2 RBI, BB.
Agustín Ramírez hit his 19th homer of the season, his first in 12 games. Ramírez was designated as a league-winner in April after his meteoric start to the season, and while he hasn’t sustained that level of performance throughout the season, he still remains in the top-10 for catchers in HardHit%, Barrel%, and average EV. Ramírez should come off the board in 2026 as a top-12 catcher.
William Contreras (MIL): 2-5, HR, R, 3 RBI.
Contreras has really turned it on in the second half of the season, trying to remind fantasy owners why many selected him as the No. 1 catcher off the board. He now has 17 homers, but more importantly, he has 11 in his last 31 games. Hopefully, you held him long enough to reap the benefits of second-half Contreras. As long as the Brewers are crushing their opponents, expect Contreras to continue crushing baseballs.
Brandon Lowe (TBR): 1-4, HR, R, 4 RBI.
What a week from Brandon Lowe! Lowe crushed a grand slam against Washington on Sunday, his 28th of the season, as he closes in on 30 homers. He hasn’t hit more than 21 since hitting 39 in 2021. While he won’t reach 39, fantasy owners are extremely happy with Lowe’s production at 2B this season, especially in the power department. It’ll come down to the wire, but Lowe is looking like he’ll edge out Jazz Chisholm Jr. for the most HR in 2025 from the 2B position. Jazz’s average ADP in 2025, according to FantasyPros, was 25th, as the No. 2 overall second baseman drafted. Lowe’s ADP? 190th, as the No. 20 overall 2B. That was a pretty good value, even if you don’t ignore Jazz’s SBs. Good luck trying to draft Lowe in 2026 lower than 70th overall.
Corbin Carroll (ARI): 2-4, HR, R, 3 RBI.
Remember when Corbin Carroll was washed last year? Carroll connected on his 29th bomb of the year, as he approaches 30 for the first time in his career. The more free-swinging 2025 version of Carroll (25% K rate and 50.1% HardHit rate) is definitely a better version of whoever showed up in 2024, but managers were hoping for a high AVG and a lot more steals. In addition to the 29 homers, Carroll is slashing .258/.333/.559 with 71 RBI and 21 stolen bases.
