FORT MYERS, Fla. – Daniel Bard was once a starter, but that now seems like a lifetime ago. He last started a game in 2007, and last enjoyed success as a starter in a decorated college career that concluded when the Red Sox selected him in the first round of the 2006 draft out of North Carolina.

The right-hander was convinced that he could succeed in a move from the bullpen -- a role in which he’s been fairly spectacular for three years -- to the rotation. He told the team as much in conversations with GM Ben Cherington and manager Bobby Valentine this offseason.

Even so, there is unfamiliar terrain involved in his new task as he competes for a spot in the Red Sox rotation, elements that have become unfamiliar to Bard since he was shifted to the bullpen following his first pro season in 2007. Those elements include pitching out of the windup for the first time since 2008, dusting off a two-seam fastball and preparing to more frequently incorporate a changeup or working two and three times through an opposing lineup while having the stamina to navigate deep into games.

Bard remains convinced that he can accomplish all of those things, but he figured that a reminder would be helpful. And so, last week, Bard went on the interwebs and sought out evidence of his collegiate dominance, whether a two-hit shutout complete game shutout against Duke on April 24, 2005, or a four-hitter against NC State on April 23, 2006.

“Sounds kind of crazy,” Bard acknowledged, “but [I] just wanted to say that I had a couple complete games and wanted to pull those up just as a nice reminder to be like, ‘That seventh or eighth inning seems like foreign territory to me right now, but definitely something I’ve done before.’”

Even so, he is rediscovering what it means to be a starter. Bard is used to a fixed daily pre-game schedule, the routine of playing catch and stretching on the field with other relievers before a game, the perambulation to the bullpen five minutes prior to the first pitch of a contest.

There remains some foreignness to the long buildup to a start. That became apparent on Tuesday, when for the first time this spring, Bard was the first pitcher in a game. He was at something of a loss for how to conduct himself.

“Getting to the park three hours before the game and having nothing to do for two hours, it was really weird. … I pretty much went up to everyone and asked them ‘What am I supposed to be doing?’ It was kind of a running joke throughout the day before,” said Bard. “It’s not a bad thing, it’s just something you’ve got to get used to. Every guy has their own thing. [John] Lackey walks around with no pants on, bounces a baseball, eats peanut butter and jelly. Jon Lester’s got his headphones in, but he’s still walking around, talking to guys. Everyone has their own thing. Curt Schilling was a guy that nobody could talk to ‘til the last pitch was thrown. I just try to be me, whatever that is.


“[I’m] still trying to get my routine down. … I think just being so comfortable with being a reliever everything I do is going to be a lot shorter -- pitches out in the bullpen before the game, things like that,” he added. “I found myself in the training room, all done with what I needed to do stretching-wise with about 20 minutes to spare before I went outside so I’m going to have to work that pre-game schedule out. That will come with time.”

Yet while his pregame routine represented an exercise in the unknown, it did not show in what Bard accomplished on the mound. Against an unimpressive Orioles traveling squad, the right-hander was comfortable during his time on the mound. Bard logged two shutout innings in which he did not allow a hit.

He allowed one walk and struck out a pair of hitters, appearing comfortable while working both entirely from the windup during the first inning and almost exclusively out of the stretch in the second inning. His fastball velocity registered at 94-98 mph, according to one gun, reaching that peak velocity on a first inning punchout of Ryan Adams. Bard required 31 pitches, throwing 21 for strikes.

It was a punch-in, punch-out day for Bard, one that seemed to scoff at the notion of the challenges that the 26-year-old faces in his transition to a new role. This spring, even as he acknowledges that there are unfamiliar elements to what he is trying to accomplish, the right-hander does not see any insurmountable obstacles.

“I can tell you in my mind I don’t see any reason why I can’t go out and be as good as anybody on this staff,” said Bard. “We have some really good pitchers. I’m not going to put any caps on what my expectations are.

“Nothing worries me. There are unknowns, though, but I don’t lose sleep over them. Nobody knows how I’m going to respond and how I’m going to face a lineup for a third time in the game. To me that’s exciting. I’m looking forward to it. It’s a personal challenge and I’m not scared of it, I’m excited about it if anything.”

A few other thoughts from Bard on his outing:

-- Bard said of his 31 pitches, he threw primarily two- and four-seam fastballs with a few sliders in the mix. He plans to work more on his changeup -- a pitch he hopes to employ against both right-handed and left-handed hitters -- in future outings, but for now, working to recapture his sinking two-seamer is a higher priority.

“It’s huge,” Bard said of the two-seamer. “It’s a pitch I’m very comfortable with, going back to when I was in college. I probably threw more two-seamers than four-seamers this spring so far. I’ve been real consistent with the movement.

“I’ve had some trouble [with the pitch] coming out of the bullpen. Some would straighten out on me, others would sink a foot. I had a hard time finding consistency with it. This spring so far, it’s been really good, consistent. And the four-seamer, which is usually straighter, is a little bit cut. I think they complement each other well.”

-- Bard said that his arm felt good after his initial outing of the spring, a one-inning game in a “B” game last week, and that he felt as if he could have pitched more than his allotted two innings and 31 pitches on Tuesday.