Boston Red Sox: Are We Ever Going to See Daniel Bard Again?

When Daniel Bard was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket he was supposed to work on finding whatever he had lost from last season.  Unfortunately, he’s struggling to find it and it’s still unknown as to when we’ll see him in the majors again.

Bard didn’t transition into a starting pitcher like anyone wanted. He was constantly frazzled on the mound and could never find his niche. His command was completely gone and had issues with consistently throwing strikes.

Bard’s numbers in 11 appearances, 10 of them starts, are tough to look at. He went 5-6 with a 5.24 ERA while walking 37 batters and only striking out 34 in 55 innings of work.

Boston then decided it would be best for Bard to go to the minors to work on his pitching. Bard quickly realized that starting wasn’t for him and decided to become a reliever yet again.

The problem is that even though Bard wants to be a reliever, he has been terrible pitching in the minors.

Bard has been down on the farm for about a month and has shown no signs of improvement. In 10 games with Pawtucket, he’s allowed 10 earned runs in 12.1 innings while walking 10 and striking out 14.

Some of those appearances happened while he still thought he could be a starter, but even over his last two outings he’s been bad. He’s walked five batters and allowed three earned runs over his last 1.1 innings.

This was how Bard’s appearance last night went, according to Pawtucket’s radio broadcaster Aaron Goldsmith.

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Daniel Bard's 7th inning: walk, passed ball, walk, wild pitch, RBI fielder's choice, infield single. 21 pitches, 9 strikes. #RedSox

— Aaron Goldsmith (@aaronmgoldsmith) July 2, 2012

 

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It was also his third blown save for Pawtucket, as he entered with the game with a one-run lead.

Daniel Bard's comeback continues to grow less and less likely, which is unfortunate. He was a project that just went very wrong and he’s going to have to get better if he’s going to pitch in the majors again.

It would be one thing if Bard just wasn’t getting batters out, but he’s not even throwing strikes anymore. If he can’t throw strikes in the minors, how will he be able to throw them in the majors?

The hope that Bard eventually pitches in Boston again is beginning to fade. Have we seen the last of him?