It’s too early to judge the 2023 Boston Red Sox one way or another, and the same goes for individual players. But if we’re going to point out the pitching staff stumbling out of the gate, it’s only fair to also look at the positives.

Arguably the biggest bright spot has been outfielder Adam Duvall, a veteran free-agent addition from the off-season. Duvall launched his third home run of the young season on Thursday, a three-run shot with two outs in the sixth inning that brought the Red Sox from down 3-2 to up 6-3. Behind his heroics and some strong pitching, the Sox finally won somethin’ after getting swept by the crappy Pirates at home, improving to 3-4.

Watch Duvall’s go-ahead blast in the video below:

• Now, if I’m being reasonable, I would expect Duvall to come up short of his projections of 69 home runs and 278 RBIs. But never say never.

  Either way, a .458 batting average, three longballs and 12 RBIs in seven games would qualify as a “hot start.” And that’s a welcome development for a signing that didn’t come with a ton of promise.

  Duvall signed for one year and just $7 million, a veritable veteran’s discount at age 34. He played just 86 games in 2022 for the Braves, and mustered only 12 home runs to go with a piss-poor .213 batting average and .677 OPS. Awful numbers for a perceived power hitter, even in this day and age of “close your eyes and hope for the best” free-swinging.

• 

  DETROIT, MICHIGAN – APRIL 06: Adam Duvall #18 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates his sixth inning three run home run against the Detroit Tigers during opening day at Comerica Park on April 06, 2023 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

• But Duvall came to Boston just two years removed from racking up 38 homers with a more acceptable .772 OPS between Atlanta and Miami, and leading the National League with 113 RBIs. So far in 2023 with Boston, he looks closer to that guy, and then some.

  Duvall has even kept the strikeouts down in the early-going, with “only” four in six games. His strikeout rate of 14.3 percent is WAY down from last year’s 32.1 percent, and still way down from his career percentage of 28.4. If that can stay lower than usual, then we may be looking at a very different hitter than we were expecting.

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• Again, it’s too early to make sweeping judgments on any of this. But you’d be certain Duvall would be talked about a lot if he started the season batting .106 with no homers and 20 strikeouts. So we’re going to go ahead and mention that he’s been really good in an otherwise rough start for the Red Sox.

  For all the (largely deserved) criticism that Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom got for his team-building in the off-season, it’s possible he hit on something good here with Duvall. But just because I said this, it probably means he’s about to strike out 90 at-bats in a row. There’s the Boston misery coming out. Not today, dammit.

• Click here for complete Boston Red Sox coverage at 985TheSportsHub.com.

  Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Yell at him on Twitter @mattdolloff and follow him on Instagram @realmattdolloff. Check out all of Matt’s content here.

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