Rockies' Daniel Bard, Royals' Salvador Perez Named Comeback Players of the Year

Colorado Rockies pitcher Daniel Bard and Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez were named the Comeback Players of the Year in baseball this year:

Perez missed all of 2019 as a result of Tommy John surgery. Bard went seven years between appearances in the majors, returning in 2020 to become a reliable reliever for the Rockies.

Bard had been an elite reliever earlier in his career with the Boston Red Sox, producing a 1.93 ERA in 2010, but he struggled over the next few years and only pitched one inning in 2013, allowing one run while walking two before being released.

His 2014 season was a disaster, giving up 13 runs in 0.2 innings across four appearances in Single-A. 

The struggles were so bad he even turned to Google, typing, "How to get rid of the yips" into the search bar, per Stephanie Apstein of Sports Illustrated.

After a few more chances in the minors, he finally got his chance with the Rockies in 2020 and produced a 3.65 ERA with 27 strikeouts in 24.2 innings.

Perez had a much more straightforward return after an injury to his right (throwing) elbow, although there are no guarantees after Tommy John surgery.

The six-time All-Star lived up to expectations when he came back, hitting a career-high .333 across 37 games. He also added 32 RBI while leading his team with 11 home runs and a .986 OPS.