The Red Sox relief pitcher doesn't believe his teammate acted in a hateful manner when he shouted a homophobic slur at a heckling fan on Sunday.
"This is what happens in anger," Hendriks told the Globe. "But I know Jarren. I've had conversations with him plenty of times about the LGBT community and he's been nothing but supportive.
"I know the word that came out was derogatory but it had nothing to do with that community, had nothing to do with trying to put someone down who's in that community. I know where his heart's at and that's something that I value more than anything."
Duran was suspended for two games by the Red Sox and won't play on Tuesday night against Texas. Hendriks believes the outfielder will emerge as a better person for the experience.
"I hope that the community recognizes the work that he's putting in to make sure of that," Hendriks said.
A major leaguer for 13 years, Hendriks is a five-time nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award for community service and has said in the past he would not sign with teams who do not have a Pride Night.
He worked with community groups and helped raise money to support LGBTQ+ initiatives when he played in Chicago.
After overcoming Stage 4 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Hendriks has met cancer patients before games on many occasions this season, home and away.
His words have meaning when it comes to issues outside of the game.
"This doesn't define who [Duran] is as a person," Hendriks said. "Just knowing him for the last several months, just having conversations and obviously where I am at in the community, especially trying to put my best foot forward.
"This isn't something he does consistently or anything like that. It wasn't demeaning in any way. It's just unfortunately a word that is used in times of frustration and that needs to be eradicated.
"It's not like he's an anti-LGBT guy or anything like that. It's that he had a slip of the tongue and said the wrong word. We're going to get past this as a team."
Hendriks started in professional baseball in 2007 when he arrived from Australia and signed with the Twins. Baseball, he believes, has changed for the better during his time in the game.
"I think so," Hendriks said. "I honestly think that if there were a gay player on this team, he'd be embraced probably better than other people. This organization and other teams I've played for have been that way."
Hendriks is confident Duran will "atone more than enough to get past this."
Part of the agreement between the Red Sox and Major League Baseball calls for Duran to go through additional sensitivity training in addition to the suspension.
All players and coaches are required to complete such training during spring training. But as Hendriks noted, it's often early in the morning before a workout or a game and some players sleepwalk through the sessions.
"It's always a tough time in spring training but there's more engagement than there used to be," Hendriks said. "[MLB] put a concerted effort in. I feel like they've raised the floor."
Hendriks has gay friends but said there is no one particular reason why he feels strongly about the issue.
"I want everyone to feel like they're in an inclusive environment and have a comfortable place to go," he said. "I don't want to judge someone based on their race, creed, religion, gender, orientation or anything like that.