This Red Sox player put on the best show in the World Baseball Classic

Because the Boston Red Sox sent so many representatives to the World Baseball Classic, it was always going to be a difficult task to pick which player performed the best.

Then, the games started, and that assignment became nigh impossible. Nearly every Red Sox player in the tournament put on a show, from pitchers Brayan Bello (1.80 ERA and seven strikeouts in his lone start) to outfielders Wilyer Abreu (game-winning homer against Japan and go-ahead homer against the United States) and Masataka Yoshida (1.257 OPS in five games).

None of this success is happenstance, mind you. Willson Contreras credited the Red Sox's organization for preparing each player for the tournament this spring, suggesting that the team pushed for as much representation as possible.

That work paid off after five Sox players — Contreras, Abreu, and Ranger Suárez for Venezuela, and Garrett Whitlock and Roman Anthony for Team USA — squared off in the WBC final.

And while Anthony has been one of the absolute breakout stars of the tournament (.280/.400/.520), the best player from Boston was Jarren Duran.

Red Sox's Jarren Duran reignites fierce outfield logjam conundrum with breakout WBC performance

Unfortunately for Duran, Mexico failed to advance out of pool play, meaning he only got four games to star on the international stage. But he more than made that time count.

Prior to the finale, the 29-year-old outfielder is tied for the tournament lead in home runs (three) and ranks fourth among all players with at least 10 at-bats in OPS (1.412). Perhaps most impressively, two of his homers came against All-Star southpaw Matthew Boyd during Mexico's spirited comeback attempt against the U.S.

Really the only negative you can draw from his performance is the fact that he struck out six times while drawing just one walk, but you'll live with a little swing and miss when a guy is slugging an even 1.000. For good measure, he also nabbed a few stoles bases while he wasn't mashing balls out of the park.

Because the sample is so small and the level of competition fluctuated wildly, it's best not to draw any firm conclusions from Duran's WBC dominance. However, seeing as the Red Sox didn't trade him despite raucous calls to do so, any signs of a return to his 2024 form are worth savoring.

Even if his team didn't advance past pool play, it feels safe to say that Duran was the Red Sox's best player in this tournament. Considering the absurd Boston contingent that participated, that's a really impressive feather in the outfielder's cap.