The Crazy Career of Daniel Bard

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 Daniel Bard is a relief pitcher for the Colorado Rockies. He debuted in 2009 at the age of 24. He played through 2013, all with the Red Sox, and was fine, posting a 3.67 ERA. His best season up to this point was 2010, when he played in 73 games and had a 1.93 ERA. After 2013, he retired, playing longer than the average major leaguer.

So, he was done. He had a decent career, and he retired, right? Wrong!

He came back in 2020 at the age of 35, and won the Comeback Player of the Year award, going 4-2 with a 3.65 ERA and 6 saves in the shortened season. In his age 36 season, he was terrible. He had 7 wins and 20 saves, both good numbers, but lost 8 games and had a 5.21 ERA. I wonder if anybody thought Bard had anything left at this point. 

But, in 2022, Bard was amazing. He pitched 60 1/3 innings with a 1.79 ERA and 34 saves in the best hitting park on the planet! He also gave up only 0.4 homers per 9 with batters hitting only .162 and slugging only .245 against him, having a .503 OPS.

He is back to pitch again this season at 38 years of age, and hasn't been good, as he's walked 8.6 batters per 9 in 47 1/3 innings. I wish the best for him, and he remains one of my favorite baseball players. But it is amazing to see what a wacky career he's had.

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