Honored And Recalled! Texas Rangers Slugger Earns PCL Player of Week Before Return to Big Leagues

Texas Rangers super-utility man Ezequiel Duran appears to have found his swing after a monster week with Triple-A Round Rock.

Jun 7, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers third baseman Ezequiel Duran follows through on his RBI single against the San Francisco Giants during the fifth inning at Globe Life Field. / Jim Cowsert-USA TODAY Sports

After a huge week with the Triple-A Round Rock Express, Texas Rangers super-utility player Ezequiel Duran was named the Pacific Coast League Player of the Week on Monday.

The 25-year-old Duran hit .480 last week with the Express, going 12-of-25 at the plate. In that span he slugged five home runs, one triple, one double and drove in 10 runs in six games.

At one point in the week, he hit a home run in four straight games, including Friday’s contest, during which he set season highs for hits (four) and RBI (four) as he went 4-for-5 at the plate. He needed a triple for the cycle.

That surge likely led the Rangers to call Duran back up to the Majors on Monday, part of a flurry of moves in advance of the series with the St. Louis Cardinals. Duran was 1 for 4 with a single as the designated hitter in Monday's night's 6-3 win.

Since the Rangers optioned him to Round Rock on June 26, Duran has slashed .277/.302/.554/.856 with five home runs, two triples, four doubles, and 16 RBI in 19 games.

The Rangers optioned Duran after he struggled at the plate for most of this season. He was slashing .256/.294/.324/.618 with two home runs and 13 RBI in 58 games. But in his last 15 games before the demotion he was batting .222. Just as importantly, the rise of Josh Smith at third place in the place of the injured Josh Jung limited Duran’s playing time.

Texas also wanted Duran to work on specifics of his swing while with Round Rock.

Last season, Duran was a vital part of the Rangers’ run to the World Series, especially early in the season when shortstop Corey Seager was down for more than a month due to an injury. Duran thrived with the consistent playing time, at one point batting better than .300 for the season.

He finished with his best offensive season in the Majors, slashing .276/.324/.443/.767 with 14 home runs and 46 RBI in 122 games. He was primarily a back-up during the postseason.

Bochy reacts to 6-3 win in STL ... pic.twitter.com/6FyTMHJnHW

— Stefan Stevenson (@StefanVersusTex) July 30, 2024

Duran made his MLB debut in 2022 with the Rangers and slashed .236/.277/.365/.642 with five home runs and 25 RBI in 58 games.

He joined the Rangers organization in 2021 as part of the haul Texas received in a trade with the New York Yankees at the deadline. The Yankees received Joey Gallo from Texas for Duran, Smith, pitcher Glenn Otto and infielder Trevor Hauver.

Hauver is the only member of that quartet yet to play for the Rangers. He is currently at Double-A Frisco.