Daniel Bard made spring training a bit more palatable this year. Now the Red Sox are holding out hope he has a similar affect a few months down the road.
 
Sunday in Fort Myers the 23-year-old was officially notified his season will begin in the minor leagues. But it is not before leaving his legacy on this, the most innocuous of Red Sox training camps in recent memory.
 
If nothing else, Bard was the guy who on back-to back-games hit 100 mph on the radar guns, while living in the high-90’s the rest of the time. There were also those 9 1/3 innings in which he struck out 12 while allowing just five hits and not a single run.
 
But there is so much more Bard is leaving behind. Not to be forgotten in the reliever’s story are the surreal events that led him to his first big league clubhouse, or the prospects of what it will mean to the Red Sox when he returns.
 
“There were some bumps in the road for him,” said Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell. “Because of the people who were able to be with him, give him the type of feedback that was necessary to make the decision to change him from a starter to a reliever, all those were contributors, we feel, to having a young pitcher that we feel will be pitching for us at some point this year.”
 
Remember Jonathan Papelbon in 2005? Called up one day before the non-waiver trade deadline before going on to become the Red Sox’ best relief pitcher straight through the postseason.
 
Or how about Justin Masterson? Made a few spot starts in early ’08 before entrenching himself in the Sox’ pitching plans all the way up until Game 7 of the American League Championship Series.
 
They were just what the doctor ordered, without carrying the price tag that comes with many pennant-race supplements. Next up could be Bard.
 
It is believed that after spending 31 games with Double A Portland last season, he is ready for the step up to begin ’09 with Triple A Pawtucket. No matter what the news emanating from City of Palms Park Sunday, Bard is still on the doorstep.
 
Bottom line: Bard is leaving after having made an impression.
 
“The guy can throw a baseball,” said outfielder Paul McAnulty, who was also reassigned to minor league camp Sunday. “I’d call it more than just a plus-fastball.”
 
It is no secret that Bard – the Red Sox’ first-round pick in the ’06 draft – has seen more than a few peaks and valleys on his way to this point. He was knocked down some teams’ draft boards because of questions revolving around his make-up. Once a pro, he had a hard time finding the strike zone, culminating in a stint with Single A Lancaster in which Bard walked 22 in just 13 1/3 innings.
 
Then, of course, came the Red Sox’ decision to move him into the bullpen, starting with a successful stint in the Hawaiian Winter League followed by success at both Greenville and Portland.
 
All of it interesting. But it is that fastball McAnulty referenced that continues to serve as the pitcher’s calling card. There’s just no way around it. So, as we sit here, that’s where the meat and potatoes of Bard’s story has to start and stop.
 
WHEN THE HEAT PICKED UP
 
The reaction emanating from opposing hitters have provided plenty of entertaining side-notes in describing the uniqueness of Bard’s fastball. And remembering that time he discovered ‘102’ had popped up on the University of North Carolina gun was a nice story, as well.
 
But there is no yarn that will top the one told by Bard when remembering exactly how far – and fast – his heater has come since serving as a fill-in reliever for a teenage travel team.
 
“I remember I was 13, around the time when you go to your first year playing on a big field. There were already a few guys who had hit puberty and could get the ball there and could really pitch,” he remembered. “I made the All-Star team primarily as a hitter. But one time I came into a game and threw a few fastballs. The coach yelled out, ‘Remember what you’re in there for!’ I had a good changeup and he just wanted me to pump in changeup after changeup.
 
“’Remember what you’re in there for’,” he said again, reflecting on the moment. “I don’t think I’ll hear that again.”
 
Bard didn’t throw harder than the other kids, not until he started gaining some height and a bit of weight. In high school he went to a showcase and hit 90 mph for the first time, prompting the North Carolina native to immediately alter his way of thinking. 
 
“It was then I thought,” he said, “‘I could make a living out of this.’”
 
There was one person who wasn’t taken off guard when the fastballs started picking up steam. Paul Bard, a former player himself, could see that his son (at an unusually early age) had built a foundation for a fastball without even trying.
 
“I would say that when he picked up a baseball for the first time he always had proper mechanics, even as a two-year-old,” Paul Bard said. “He just threw the right way. I guess he just watched people throw and he would copy them and throw the right way. It just came easy for him.”
 
It was a good start, but hardly the finish. Even this spring training the Red Sox have made subtle adjustments to Bard’s delivery, adjusting his hands a bit. He also continues to attempt to integrate a consistent changeup without sacrificing the motion that many marvel at.
 
It’s not easy for Bard, and won’t be (even as he rests on the edge of the major leagues), but sometimes it sure looks that way. 
 
“Sometimes somebody would ask how hard he was throwing and they would say he was in the high 80’s when he would really be throwing 96,” Paul Bard said. “It just didn’t look it. He’s not knocking catchers over, but it’s hard to hit.”
 
It’s a fact more than a few major leaguers have come to discover over the past few weeks … and will continue to in the not too distant future.
 
Rob Bradford is the Site Editor for WEEI.com. He can be reached at rbradford@weei.com.