My Take
Daniel Bard's story is one of the most genuinely moving in recent baseball history. He came up with the Red Sox throwing absolute gas — we're talking 100-plus mph — and looked like a future closer, then got hit by the yips so severely that he walked off the mound one day and essentially disappeared for seven years. Seven years. Most pitchers never come back from something like that, and most people would've quietly moved on, but Bard kept grinding in the minors and independent leagues until the Rockies gave him one more shot in 2020. He didn't just survive — he became their full-time closer, won the NL Comeback Player of the Year, and stuck around through 2023. That kind of mental resilience is rarer than any fastball.
Overview
Daniel Paul Bard (born June 25, 1985) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox from 2009 to 2013 and the Colorado Rockies from 2020 to 2023. In 2011, Bard set a Red Sox team record with 25 consecutive scoreless appearances. His highest velocity pitch was 102 miles per hour (164 km/h).
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Daniel Bard
- Name (Japanese)
- ダニエル・バード
- Reading
- だにえる・ばーど
- Born
- June 25, 1985 (age 40)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Cancer / Ox
- Origin
- Houston, Texas, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- 193 cm
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- baseball player
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Awards & achievements
- 2020 Major League Baseball Comeback Player of the Year Award
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.