Jhoan Duran eyes historic 2026 season following bold save projection from ESPN

Jhoan Duran has quickly become a top-tier closer across MLB. His name is right up there with some of the other high-profile names like Mason Miller and Edwin Diaz. 

He was elite with the Minnesota Twins, but they were sellers at last year's trade deadline. He would be shipped to the Philadelphia Phillies, who are a much bigger postseason contender than the Twins. 

Playing for the Phillies now, a lot of analysts believe this could be the season that Duran puts it all together. Don't be surprised if he leads all pitchers in games saved when the season comes to an end. 

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Jhoan Duran eyes historic 2026 season following bold save projection from ESPN

For a team like the Phillies, the need for an elite closer is huge. They cannot afford to lose games in the late innings while playing in a division that includes the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves. 

Duran should have a ton of chances to shut the door in the ninth for Philadelphia, and ESPN ranks him the 90th-best player coming into the 2026 season, while David Schoenfield believes he could do something Phillies fans haven't seen since 1987. 

"Season prediction: The Phillies have made four straight trips to the postseason, but they'll finally have a lockdown closer for an entire season. Duran's strikeout rate ticked way up after the trade. Look for 40-something saves as he becomes the first Phillies closer to lead the NL in that category since Steve Bedrosian in 1987."

Philadelphia hasn't had a saves leader since Steve Bedrosian did it back in 1987, the same year he won the NL Cy Young Award. 

Now, in this day and age, fans shouldn't expect Duran to be in the Cy Young voting for his efforts. The last reliever to have won a Cy Young Award was Eric Gagne, who did it back in 2003 with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

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