When some neanderthal thought it appropriate to taunt Jarren Duran last weekend in Cleveland, it was a reminder of the obstacles pro athletes must face when they’re honest about their mental health struggles.

That Duran had the support of his teammates, fans behind the dugout — many of them Guardians fans — and opponents was heartening. After Duran’s bravely revealed his suicide attempt in the hopes that others might seek help, it would have been especially cruel for that to be turned against him.

But it also obscured the rebound Duran had experienced on the field in recent weeks. Surely, it’s no coincidence that the Red Sox offense has kicked in to a higher gear at the same time Duran began his own turnaround at the plate.

In their last 14 games before Thursday night’s road trip finale, the Red Sox were 9-5. Commensurate with that run, Duran slashed .339/.397/.581 with nine extra-base hits (five doubles, two homers, two triple) 11 runs scored and five stolen bases.

In other words, Duran’s play over the last two weeks has duplicated what he did for most of last season, when he was unquestionably the team’s best and most important player.

When Duran is serving as the team’s catalyst at the top of the lineup, there are run-producing opportunities throughout the first half of the order and the team enjoys an offensive hum and flow that it otherwise lacks.

How much correlation is there between Duran’s awakening and the team’s upturn? Plenty. In games in which he scored at least one run, the Red Sox were 6-2. In games in which he stole at least one base, they were 4-2. And in games in which Duran collected at least one extra-base, they were 6-2.

Because Duran has such a well-rounded game, offering both power and speed — he was second in steals and tied for seventh in total bases — he can impact the game in countless ways.

When he reaches base, he’s a threat to steal. After netting 34 steals last year, he’s on pace to far outstrip that total this season; with 10 steals in his first 31 games, he projects to rack up about 52 steals this season.

And no matter where Duran is on base, he’s often positioned to score, with his baserunning run value in the 96th percentile.

It’s hard to make the case that any other position player impacts the Red Sox on the field more than Duran. Rafael Devers may supply more power and Alex Bregman has been the team’s most complete hitter, but Duran’s unique combination of sock and speed, especially coming from the leadoff spot, is unmatched on the roster.

As Duran goes, so go the Red Sox. When he slumped in the early weeks, the Red Sox’ run-scoring stalled. When he began to get on base more, the team began to enjoy an offensive renaissance.

Outside of the first home series of the year against St. Louis. the team’s offensive eruptions have coincided with Duran’s turnaround.

And since Duran’s breakout game — in which he had three hits and three runs scored, including a steal of home the day before the confrontation with the fan — the Sox have scored at least six runs in every game.

If Duran is (arguably) the team’s most important player, there are others deserving of other superlatives through the first full month of play.

With April in the rearview mirror, he’s a quick look at the storylines from the first month of the 2025 Red Sox season.

BEST PLAYER: Alex Bregman. The veteran infielder has been everything the Red Sox hoped for and more when they signed him in February. He leads the team’s regulars in virtually every important offensive categories — hits, doubles, homers, RBI, batting average, slugging percentage, OPS, OPS+ and total bases. He’s also leading in WAR.

BEST PITCHER: Garrett Crochet. Yup, he’s good. In one month, Crochet has reminded everyone how important it is to have a certified No. 1 at the top of your rotation, capable of extending winning streak and stopping losing skids. Even when he’s been human — as he was last week against Toronto — he seems to know how to fix himself quickly. If we’re hunting for negatives, the walks (18 in 44 innings) will do. But the 44 innings, an average of almost 6.5 per outing, illustrate his real value.

BIGGEST SURPRISE: Kristian Campbell. You could be bullish on Campbell at the end of March and still never expect that he would be this good, this soon. In 29 games, he’s gone hitless just nine times, and he’s never been hitless for longer than two straight games. He’s reached base in 26 of the 29 games in which he’s played. He’s shown remarkable poise and impressive athleticism.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: Triston Casas. When Casas smoked two homers in the span of two games at the end of the last homestand, it seemed as though the first basemn was figuring things out. Alas, not yet. Six extra-base hits in 94 at-bats is not what the Red Sox were expecting. Casas is fortunate that there are no other obvious options within the system, or else he might already be in Worcester, trying to fix his swing.

BIGGEST CAUSE FOR CONCERN: Tanner Houck. It’s not just the 0-2, 7.58 start (prior to Thursday’s outing). It’s the fact that this trend goes all the way back to the All-Star break last season. In the final two and a half months last season, he posted a 4.23 ERA. There was speculation that Houck had hit something of a wall as he reached 30 starts for the first time in his career, but his issues through the first five weeks suggest something more than that. If he can’t figure out a way to navigate lineups without swing-and-miss stuff, Houck’s future could be cloudy.

UNSUNG HERO: Carlos Narvaez. It might seem silly to award this to someone who’s hitting .218. But that doesn’t begin to tell the story of Narvaez’s contributions. Thrust into the starting catcher’s role when Connor Wong (broken finger) went down for more than three weeks, Narvaez has been superb behind the plate, where he’s been credited with six defensive runs saved — a tribute to his receiving and blocking skills. He’s also earned raves for his game-calling and handling of the staff. As a bonus, he’s run into three homers.

MOST ENCOURAGING STAT: 36 steals in 42 attempts. The Sox, as they hinted last season, are now a genuinely athletic team and they’re showing it on the bases. They’re not only stealing bases, but they’re picking their spots carefully, as the numbers suggest (86 percent success, third-best in MLB). Caveat: their six pickoffs lead all of baseball.

MOST OMINOUS STAT: 28 errors. That total leads all teams, though they’ve played cleaner of late. Contributing to that total, oddly, are 12 errors combined from Alec Bregman, Jarren Duran and Trevor Story, three ordinarily sure-handed defenders, suggesting that the spate of early-season errors is something of an aberration. For a team that has tried and failed to address leaky defense for several seasons now, the Sox had better hope that’s the case. It helps that the Sox are far better when it comes to defensive runs saved, where they’re ranked 13th. That, they can live with.

Around the game:

BEST TEAM: New York Mets. Who knew? Despite a spate of injuries and a slow start for Juan Soto, the Mets have amassed the best record and the best home record. This despite losing their starting catcher for a month and being without Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea.

WORST TEAM: Colorado Rockies. Never mind the White Sox, who are bad again, but at least are in the process of a sensible rebuild. Then there’s the Rockies, who are on pace to eclipse the White Sox’ 121-loss season of a year ago. Worse, they don’t seem to be trying. This will be the fourth year in a row in which the Rockies lose 94 or more games and their seventh straight losing season.

MOST SURPRISING TEAM: San Francisco Giants. If someone was going to challenge the Dodgers in the West, it was supposed to be either San Diego or Arizona. Yet the Giants are just two games behind LA in the division. Can it last?

MOST DISAPPOINTING TEAM: Baltimore Orioles. The temptation here is to blame the starting pitching, which has been predictably below average, and worsened by a run of injuries. But the real culprit may be how poorly their young homegrown position players have so obviously underachieved. Just two seasons after they won 101 games, the Orioles are fast approaching the time when they could be playing themselves out of contention.

_____________________

Baseball America listed outfielder Justin Gonzalez among the 10 most interesting hitting prospects in the minor leagues for the month of April. Gonzales, an international free agent, signed with the Red Sox for $250,000 out of the Dominican Republic in January of 2024 and has quickly grabbed the attention of evaluators although he’s yet to make his debut Stateside. He played in the Dominican Summer League last year, his first in the system.

It’s expected he’ll compete in the Florida Complex League that gets underway next week.

He took part in the Spring Breakout games in spring training, where he was the youngest player from the Red Sox organization at 18. At 6-foot-4 and growing, his teammates have taken to calling him the “Dominican (Aaron) Judge.’’

One rival organization offered this scouting report on Gonzales: “A loose, powerful, agile-bodied kid. Right-handed hitter with a dead lift pull power bat. Moves very well, approach is that of the Green Monster tattooed on his forehead….Looks older than 18, but his age is legit…Has played right field and first base and currently handles center field occasionally, but I see him as a right fielder with a good arm and at least average speed when he gets underway…Has a bit of a grooved swing, but a fast bat with plus raw power. He’ll make noise, but will swing and miss when they start to pitch him backward and work the outer edge anywhere, as he lacks some plate coverage…Loves to play, solid pre-game and work habits.”