Jhoan Duran Stats & Scouting Report — College Baseball, MLB Draft, Prospects

IP	130
ERA	2.146
WHIP	1.054
BB/9	2.838
SO/9	11.977

Full name Jhoan Manuel Duran
Born 01/08/1998 in Esperanza Valverde Mao, Dominican Republic
Profile Ht.: 6'5" / Wt.: 230 / Bats: R / Throws: R
Debut 04/08/2022

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Track Record: The Twins acquired Duran in a 2018 deal that sent Eduardo Escobar to the D-backs—who originally signed the massive righthander for just $65,000 in 2014. Duran trended up after joining the Twins organization, reaching Double-A in his first full season, but hit a roadblock in 2021 when an elbow strain limited him to just 16 innings at Triple-A St. Paul.

Scouting Report: Duran has a pair of offerings that have gotten 70-grade reviews in the past. His four-seam fastball touches 100 mph and sat 97-98 this year, while his sinker-splitter hybrid—which he has dubbed the ‘splinker’—has a unique velocity and movement profile that combines the traits of both offerings and has racked up plenty of whiffs in the past. He also throws a power curve in the low 80s with big spin rates. The pitch looks like a real swing-and-miss offering at times, though he struggles to land it for strikes. Duran also throws a changeup in the mid 80s, but the pitch remains a significant work in progress. Duran has faced starter/reliever questions thanks to a delivery that regularly gets out of sync in addition to the fact that he lacks a softer secondary that could keep hitters off his fastball/splinker combo.

The Future: Duran likely would have been in the mix for Minnesota’s pitching staff in the second half of the 2021 season if he were healthy. He reportedly threw well in the fall and will look to get back on track in 2022, where he’ll try to refine his pitching at Triple-A and potentially make his big league debut.
Fastball: 70. Splitter: 70. Curveball: 50. Control: 50.

TRACK RECORD: The D-backs signed Duran for just $65,000 in 2014 and traded him to the Twins in 2018 in the deal that sent Eduardo Escobar to Arizona. Duran showed signs of breaking out before the trade and solidified that trend with the Twins, reaching Double-A in his first full season in the organization.

SCOUTING REPORT: Duran is a physically huge pitcher who has two 70-grade offerings in his arsenal. The first is a fastball that sits 96-98 mph and frequently reaches triple-digits. The second is his signature “splinker” which combines low-90s sinker velocity and the downward depth of a splitter. Both pitches generate lots of swing and misses, with the splinker in particular piling up whiffs in the zone on a regular basis. Duran focused on improving his high-spin curveball in 2020, particularly his ability to land it and improving its spin efficiency. He’s also worked on refining a changeup to give him a softer offering. Duran has a big-bodied, arm-strength oriented operation which can get sloppy at times. Whether he can make the adjustments will determine if he remains a starter.

THE FUTURE: The Twins are developing Duran as a starter and believe he has mid-rotation upside. If his command or third pitch development stalls, his stuff will play in relief.
TRACK RECORD: Duran was the centerpiece of the three-prospect package that Arizona used in 2018 to pry Eduardo Escobar from the Twins. The D-backs signed him in 2014 on the strength of a projectable body and fastball, which they watched move from the upper 80s to the mid 90s before he was dealt. He ranked as the No. 3 prospect in the short-season Northwest League in 2017 and No. 14 in the high Class A Florida State League in 2019.

SCOUTING REPORT: Duran still has the big four-seam fastball, which can touch triple digits. More interesting than his four-seamer is his split-fingered sinker, known colloquially as baseball's only “splinker.” The pitch is thrown with the low-90s velocity of a sinker but the hard, sharp bottom of a split-fingered fastball. No matter how it was classified, the pitch baffled hitters in both the high Class A Florida State and Double-A Southern leagues. He also throws a hard, mid-80s curveball. Minnesota has altered Duran's approach to pitching, shifting him to work his arsenal north-south in the strike zone. The move will help him tunnel his four-seamer at the top of the strike zone with the downer break of his curveball at the bottom of the zone and make both pitches more effective in the process.

THE FUTURE: Duran will need to continue to refine his command in the strike zone and his overall control to stay in the rotation, where he projects as a powerful innings-eater. If he has to move, he could fit nicely in a late-innings role where his fastball can dominate hitters at the end of games.
Track Record: The key piece in a three-player package received from the D-backs for Eduardo Escobar at the July 2018 trade deadline, Duran was only throwing in the upper 80s when he signed for $65,000 a month before his 17th birthday. Just two years later, he was touching 98 mph.

Scouting Report: Even at 6-foot-5, 215 pounds, Duran still has plenty of projection remaining on his strong, durable frame. He sits 96-98 mph with his four-seam fatsball but relies more on a 93-94 mph “splinker,” which he throws with his fingers spread, generating tremendous late movement. Duran still needs to tighten his slider, which he struggles to command, and his changeup is a work in progress. But he has a clean arm and repeats his smooth delivery out of a high three-quarter arm slot. Duran’s swinging-strike and groundball rates were both above-average for the low Class A Midwest League. Quiet and coachable, he is married with a young child.

The Future: After dominating at times in 2018, Duran should soon be ready for the challenge of the Florida State League. He could end up as a mid-rotation starter with a fallback option as a back-end bullpen arm.
Duran was skinny and throwing in the upper 80s when the D-backs signed him for $65,000 in December 2014, but he was bumping the upper 90s in 2017 and now represents one of the higher-upside arms in the system. Duran already averages about 94 mph with his fastball, but with a 6-foot-5 frame that could still add significant weight, scouts see projection remaining. Duran has three pitches. He can vary speeds on his curveball to the point that some scouts identified it as a slider. It's considered an above-average to plus pitch. His changeup is still developing but flashes plus. D-backs coaches wanted to see him learn to handle adversity within his outings better, rather than losing confidence when opposing hitters had success. Scouts say Duran has control over command at this point, and some see a back-end reliever if his command doesn't improve enough. If everything comes together, Duran has all the ingredients of a mid-rotation starter. He'll likely get his first crack at full-season ball at low Class A Kane County in 2018.
Duran signed in 2014 for a mere $65,000 and has morphed into one of the most projectable arms in the Diamondbacks system with his 6-foot-5, 175-pound frame and electric fastball. With his very lean but wiry strong frame, he already has a fastball up to 98 mph with good movement. He uses a repeatable, effortless delivery with an easy arm stroke and projects to develop better command of the pitch. His high-80s curveball is still inconsistent, grading sometimes as below-average and at other times flashing as a plus pitch. It plays up because he throws it for strikes. Duran also is developing a feel for a high-80s changeup. It's scary to think how much harder he could throw when he adds strength to his frame, and that projection makes him the sleeper of the system. Duran will likely head to short-season Hillsboro as a teenager after opening the year in extended spring training.

Minor League Top Prospects

Duran is probably the only pitcher in the minor leagues to throw a truly unique pitch—a fastball thrown with the velocity of a sinker but the bottom of a splitter which has been dubbed a "splinker” by scouts. No matter its name, the pitch is the signature of Duran’s enviable arsenal and caused hitters to swing and miss plenty during the course of his season. Besides the splinker, Duran also has a traditional four-seam fastball that he can run into the triple-digits and a hard curveball in the mid-80s. The big-bodied righthander was acquired from the D-backs in 2018 in the trade that sent infielder Eduardo Escobar to the desert. The Twins toyed with his arsenal to make it work more at the top and bottom of the strike zone, rather than having him try to pitch to the edges of the plate. Despite not having a true out-pitch, Duran has shown the ability to turn a lineup over and will continue to be given the chance to remain a starter. To achieve that goal, he must further improve the quality of his strikes both in and out of the zone.
Signed as a teenager out of the Dominican Republic in 2014 for $65,000, Duran has emerged as one of the most exciting young arms in the Diamondbacks system. Just 19, he stood out to managers and scouts alike in the Northwest League, going 6-3, 4.24 in 11 starts at Hillsboro. Duran boasts an athletic and highly projectable 6-foot-5, 175-pound frame. Even though he has room to get stronger, he already touches up to 98 mph from a three-quarters slot, comfortably sitting in the low- to mid-90s with movement. Duran mainly pitches off of that fastball for now. His mid-80s slider is an average pitch at present, but it shows plus potential, especially when Duran throws it with more velocity--up to 88 mph. Duran's firm 85-90 mph changeup is a work in progress. Command comes and goes for Duran, but he maintains a consistent, confident presence on the mound. He's raw, but his arm speed, velocity, athleticism and physical projectability make him an easy prospect to dream on. If he can continue to refine his slider and changeup to go along with his plus fastball, Duran has the chance to be a No. 2 or No. 3 starter.

Top 100 Rankings

Best Tools List

Rated Best Changeup in the Minnesota Twins in 2020
Rated Best Fastball in the Minnesota Twins in 2020

Scouting Reports

Track Record: The Twins acquired Duran in a 2018 deal that sent Eduardo Escobar to the D-backs—who originally signed the massive righthander for just $65,000 in 2014. Duran trended up after joining the Twins organization, reaching Double-A in his first full season, but hit a roadblock in 2021 when an elbow strain limited him to just 16 innings at Triple-A St. Paul.

Scouting Report: Duran has a pair of offerings that have gotten 70-grade reviews in the past. His four-seam fastball touches 100 mph and sat 97-98 this year, while his sinker-splitter hybrid—which he has dubbed the ‘splinker’—has a unique velocity and movement profile that combines the traits of both offerings and has racked up plenty of whiffs in the past. He also throws a power curve in the low 80s with big spin rates. The pitch looks like a real swing-and-miss offering at times, though he struggles to land it for strikes. Duran also throws a changeup in the mid 80s, but the pitch remains a significant work in progress. Duran has faced starter/reliever questions thanks to a delivery that regularly gets out of sync in addition to the fact that he lacks a softer secondary that could keep hitters off his fastball/splinker combo.

The Future: Duran likely would have been in the mix for Minnesota’s pitching staff in the second half of the 2021 season if he were healthy. He reportedly threw well in the fall and will look to get back on track in 2022, where he’ll try to refine his pitching at Triple-A and potentially make his big league debut.
Fastball: 70. Splitter: 70. Curveball: 50. Control: 50.

TRACK RECORD: The D-backs signed Duran for just $65,000 in 2014 and traded him to the Twins in 2018 in the deal that sent Eduardo Escobar to Arizona. Duran showed signs of breaking out before the trade and solidified that trend with the Twins, reaching Double-A in his first full season in the organization.

SCOUTING REPORT: Duran is a physically huge pitcher who has two 70-grade offerings in his arsenal. The first is a fastball that sits 96-98 mph and frequently reaches triple-digits. The second is his signature “splinker” which combines low-90s sinker velocity and the downward depth of a splitter. Both pitches generate lots of swing and misses, with the splinker in particular piling up whiffs in the zone on a regular basis. Duran focused on improving his high-spin curveball in 2020, particularly his ability to land it and improving its spin efficiency. He's also worked on refining a changeup to give him a softer offering. Duran has a big-bodied, arm-strength oriented operation which can get sloppy at times. Whether he can make the adjustments will determine if he remains a starter.

THE FUTURE: The Twins are developing Duran as a starter and believe he has mid-rotation upside. If his command or third pitch development stalls, his stuff will play in relief.
Fastball: 70. Splitter: 70. Curveball: 50. Control: 50.

TRACK RECORD: The D-backs signed Duran for just $65,000 in 2014 and traded him to the Twins in 2018 in the deal that sent Eduardo Escobar to Arizona. Duran showed signs of breaking out before the trade and solidified that trend with the Twins, reaching Double-A in his first full season in the organization.

SCOUTING REPORT: Duran is a physically huge pitcher who has two 70-grade offerings in his arsenal. The first is a fastball that sits 96-98 mph and frequently reaches triple-digits. The second is his signature “splinker” which combines low-90s sinker velocity and the downward depth of a splitter. Both pitches generate lots of swing and misses, with the splinker in particular piling up whiffs in the zone on a regular basis. Duran focused on improving his high-spin curveball in 2020, particularly his ability to land it and improving its spin efficiency. He’s also worked on refining a changeup to give him a softer offering. Duran has a big-bodied, arm-strength oriented operation which can get sloppy at times. Whether he can make the adjustments will determine if he remains a starter.

THE FUTURE: The Twins are developing Duran as a starter and believe he has mid-rotation upside. If his command or third pitch development stalls, his stuff will play in relief.
Fastball: 70. Splitter: 70. Curveball: 50. Control: 50.

TRACK RECORD: The D-backs signed Duran for just $65,000 in 2014 and traded him to the Twins in 2018 in the deal that sent Eduardo Escobar to Arizona. Duran showed signs of breaking out before the trade and solidified that trend with the Twins, reaching Double-A in his first full season in the organization.

SCOUTING REPORT: Duran is a physically huge pitcher who has two 70-grade offerings in his arsenal. The first is a fastball that sits 96-98 mph and frequently reaches triple-digits. The second is his signature “splinker” which combines low-90s sinker velocity and the downward depth of a splitter. Both pitches generate lots of swing and misses, with the splinker in particular piling up whiffs in the zone on a regular basis. Duran focused on improving his high-spin curveball in 2020, particularly his ability to land it and improving its spin efficiency. He’s also worked on refining a changeup to give him a softer offering. Duran has a big-bodied, arm-strength oriented operation which can get sloppy at times. Whether he can make the adjustments will determine if he remains a starter.

THE FUTURE: The Twins are developing Duran as a starter and believe he has mid-rotation upside. If his command or third pitch development stalls, his stuff will play in relief.
TRACK RECORD: Duran was the centerpiece of the three-prospect package that Arizona used in 2018 to pry Eduardo Escobar from the Twins. The D-backs signed him in 2014 on the strength of a projectable body and fastball, which they watched move from the upper 80s to the mid 90s before he was dealt. He ranked as the No. 3 prospect in the short-season Northwest League in 2017 and No. 14 in the high Class A Florida State League in 2019.

SCOUTING REPORT: Duran still has the big four-seam fastball, which can touch triple digits. More interesting than his four-seamer is his split-fingered sinker, known colloquially as baseball’s only “splinker.” The pitch is thrown with the low-90s velocity of a sinker but the hard, sharp bottom of a split-fingered fastball. No matter how it was classified, the pitch baffled hitters in both the high Class A Florida State and Double-A Southern leagues. He also throws a hard, mid-80s curveball. Minnesota has altered Duran’s approach to pitching, shifting him to work his arsenal north-south in the strike zone. The move will help him tunnel his four-seamer at the top of the strike zone with the downer break of his curveball at the bottom of the zone and make both pitches more effective in the process.

THE FUTURE: Duran will need to continue to refine his command in the strike zone and his overall control to stay in the rotation, where he projects as a powerful innings-eater. If he has to move, he could fit nicely in a late-innings role where his fastball can dominate hitters at the end of games.
TRACK RECORD: Duran was the centerpiece of the three-prospect package that Arizona used in 2018 to pry Eduardo Escobar from the Twins. The D-backs signed him in 2014 on the strength of a projectable body and fastball, which they watched move from the upper 80s to the mid 90s before he was dealt. He ranked as the No. 3 prospect in the short-season Northwest League in 2017 and No. 14 in the high Class A Florida State League in 2019.

SCOUTING REPORT: Duran still has the big four-seam fastball, which can touch triple digits. More interesting than his four-seamer is his split-fingered sinker, known colloquially as baseball's only “splinker.” The pitch is thrown with the low-90s velocity of a sinker but the hard, sharp bottom of a split-fingered fastball. No matter how it was classified, the pitch baffled hitters in both the high Class A Florida State and Double-A Southern leagues. He also throws a hard, mid-80s curveball. Minnesota has altered Duran's approach to pitching, shifting him to work his arsenal north-south in the strike zone. The move will help him tunnel his four-seamer at the top of the strike zone with the downer break of his curveball at the bottom of the zone and make both pitches more effective in the process.

THE FUTURE: Duran will need to continue to refine his command in the strike zone and his overall control to stay in the rotation, where he projects as a powerful innings-eater. If he has to move, he could fit nicely in a late-innings role where his fastball can dominate hitters at the end of games.
Duran is probably the only pitcher in the minor leagues to throw a truly unique pitch—a fastball thrown with the velocity of a sinker but the bottom of a splitter which has been dubbed a "splinker” by scouts. No matter its name, the pitch is the signature of Duran’s enviable arsenal and caused hitters to swing and miss plenty during the course of his season. Besides the splinker, Duran also has a traditional four-seam fastball that he can run into the triple-digits and a hard curveball in the mid-80s. The big-bodied righthander was acquired from the D-backs in 2018 in the trade that sent infielder Eduardo Escobar to the desert. The Twins toyed with his arsenal to make it work more at the top and bottom of the strike zone, rather than having him try to pitch to the edges of the plate. Despite not having a true out-pitch, Duran has shown the ability to turn a lineup over and will continue to be given the chance to remain a starter. To achieve that goal, he must further improve the quality of his strikes both in and out of the zone.