FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Perhaps in a rush to make an impact in his first trip to the Major Leagues last summer, Jarren Duran forgot about the biggest reason he was there in the first place.

That would be his speed.

It seemed that Duran, who hit 16 homers in 244 at-bats for Triple-A Worcester, became too consumed with power.

Clearly, Duran was trying to re-set the tone right away on Thursday afternoon when he squared around to bunt on the first pitch he saw against Twins righty Cole Sands.

Duran wound up pulling back and not offering at the pitch. Hours before the game, Duran told manager Alex Cora he was going to try to bunt the first pitch of the bottom of the first inning. Cora said if he were successful, he would take the center fielder out to dinner.

Perhaps Cora was enthused enough by what Duran did on the next pitch, legging out an infield single, that a dinner will be in his near future anyway.

"It was a ball. Yeah, it saved me money," quipped Cora. "But the fact that he hit the ball on the ground and it was an infield hit right away, he puts pressure on the pitcher."

Bobby Dalbec followed with a two-run moonshot and the Red Sox were off and running with a 14-1 romp in their Grapefruit League debut.

"He has to be quick to the plate," said Cora. "Maybe that fastball is not well-located because [Duran's] on first. That's something he needs to understand -- and he does."

Yes, once Duran had time to decompress after last season, he realized he got away from his true self as a player.

"I had a conversation with myself in the offseason and wanted to get back to that, because it feeds into me as a player, wanting to get on base for guys," Duran said. "I'm trying to use it as much as I can, as much as they give me."

In 107 at-bats for the Red Sox last season, Duran had a slash line of .215/.241/.336 with two homers and 10 RBIs. Most glaringly, he had only two stolen bases.

"Wow, I learned a lot, honestly. I'm my hardest critic," Duran said. "I tore myself up. I had a tough offseason dealing with how I thought I was and how I am as a player. But I got through it mentally. Just trying to build. Last year, I knew that wasn't who I am or who I want to be, so I took a self-talk and motivation in the offseason to think how I am as a player again."

It is unclear where Duran will fit heading into this season. The Sox have Alex Verdugo, Kiké Hernandez and Jackie Bradley Jr. projected to serve as the primary outfielders.

But this isn't to say Duran can't force his way back into the equation.

Cora has made his expectations clear to the 25-year-old.

"One thing I told him for this season is [that] we want the energetic kid we see on Instagram and in Worcester," Cora said. "It's part of his equation. It's part of what he does. I think last year he was very careful being himself. One of the things about our club is we don't care. Just do whatever you have to do to be a good big leaguer, and he needs to play with energy. It's not that he didn't do it. But I think Jarren is a guy who can show emotion and that helps."

That can be hard for a player after he is first called up. Especially on a veteran-laden team like the Red Sox. Look for Duran to be more like himself in 2022.

"I try to keep it a little toned down so I don't annoy everybody with how much energy I have," Duran said. "But I'm just going to try and have fun. That's my major key this year, to go have fun and enjoy it."