Sox' Bard relishes chance to redeem himself

JOSH BARDOne-year, $1.7 million

When Theo Epstein discussed the Red Sox' catching situation with Josh Bard this offseason, with an eye to potentially reacquiring the catcher as a foil for Tim Wakefield's knuckleball, there was a key question the general manager had to ask: What happened?

Bard, who came to the Sox from the Indians in a trade before the 2006 season, had beaten out two other catchers to claim the somewhat unenviable position of personal catcher for Wakefield. But then, once the season started, he couldn't catch the knuckleball.

It took only until May 1, with 10 passed balls in just seven games, before the Sox gave up on him.

"They ask tough questions," Bard said of Epstein and manager Terry Francona. "It just came down to, what happened? They both said coming out of camp there wasn't a doubt in their mind I would be able to do it. That obviously wasn't the case.

"I think [when the season started] in my immaturity, I tried to be somebody I wasn't. We're two totally different people [Bard and former Wakefield catcher Doug Mirabelli]. He's shorter armed and stockier. I was trying to let the ball get too deep and it ate me up.

"I think I'm going to be aggressive, how I would catch a normal pitch."

He'll have a chance to try out his theory this season, since Bard has agreed to a $1.7 million, nonguaranteed deal with a club option for 2010, a pact that was first reported last Sunday and became official yesterday. The deal has incentives that could push its value as high as $2.5 million. While he is viewed as a backup, the switch-hitting Bard said he was assured he would be doing more than just catching Wakefield this time around, whether that means spelling the starter in day games or platooning.

"With our catching situation open for the moment, we felt like 'buying low' on Josh Bard was a good opportunity," Epstein wrote in an e-mail. "He's someone we trust to call a game, to handle pitchers, to shoulder responsibility behind the plate, and to grind his at-bats. We believe his health situation was the primary factor in his offensive and defensive performance last year, and we feel he is healthy and has a chance to bounce back. Whether he catches Tim Wakefield or not - and he certainly has conviction that he can - he adds a lot to our catching corps, including the versatility to be a nice complement or more as the situation dictates."

So even though it didn't go so well the first time, the 30-year-old Bard has no qualms about returning to Boston.

"I felt like I had the weight of the world on my shoulders," Bard said. "If I missed one, the world was going to be over. Now you understand that everybody misses knuckleballs.

"It's the best thing that happened to my career. I think it made me grow up in a hurry. It's easy to hide in the shadows and go along and collect a paycheck. This was kind of the first time I was in the spotlight, and I've always been taught to stand up and face the music. I tried to do that the best I could."

He just couldn't quite get a handle on the knuckleball. So off he went to San Diego, where he finished the 2006 season with a .338 batting average in 93 games, though he hasn't approached that level of production since.

"It was time to start putting up numbers or I was going to be [sent to] the minor leagues," Bard said. "Is it going to be scary to go back and catch Wakefield? Scary is not catching Wakefield, it's getting traded to the Padres and not playing for 13 days, not knowing if I was going to be called into the [manager's] office that night. I think that with each time they wrote my name into the lineup the confidence built."

Bard struggled offensively last season hitting just .202 with one home run and 16 RBIs in 57 games for the Padres. He had a sprained left ankle and strained right triceps, both of which led to stints on the disabled list. While Bard acknowledged injuries played a part in his offensive downturn, he declined to put the onus on them, saying he is "anxious and hungry to get out there and reestablish myself."

It was after that trade that one of the more bizarre moments in recent Red Sox history occurred. With Bard heading off to San Diego along with Cla Meredith, Mirabelli was flying back across the country, being picked up by a police escort, changing into his uniform in the back of the car, and arriving just in time to catch a Wakefield start.

It worked out in the short term, but Sox management hasn't been shy about discussing their regret at the hasty trade.

"Looking back in hindsight, they've told me they regret that move," Bard said. "There's never been a second of hard feelings from my end. I was given a chance to play [in San Diego]. I feel like I've been able to do some things that make me know I can play this game. I look forward to getting back into this fight. You find out what you're made of, playing at Fenway Park, playing in games that matter. I did the 99-loss thing last year, and I don't want to do that again."

Amalie Benjamin can be reached at abenjamin@globe.com.