In an earlier edition this Blog pointed out how one Daniel Bard compared favorably to the newly minted LAA Ace C.J. Wilson. Since then Bard has continued his slide from last September and look exceptionally ordinary, and downright right AAA worthy even, going 3-5 with a 4.85 ERA and almost as many walks (25) as strikeouts (26). As a setup man he regularly threw in the upper 90s with his fastball, he now sits around 92-93 most of the time and has a hard time getting big leaguers to swing at his slider.
Let it go Bard, let it all go. You are not Sandy Koufax, who famously had to slow things down just a touch to become a 60s version of Pedro Martinez. No my friend you need to let it loose. Rocket that ball in the upper 90s from pitch 1 and see how far you can go. You're barely cracking 5 innings per start now, how much worse can it get? Here in the simplest terms is the problem: K/BB trend 2009-2012 2.86, 2.53, 3.08, 1.04. That's it. Throwing in the low 90s has never been your forte, grease the gas or it's back to the bullpen with you.
Until next time,
The SAHD
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