The Colorado Rockies and the right reliever Daniel Bard have avoided salary arbitrage with a $ 2,925MM deal for the 2021 season, reported prominent journalist Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Bard was projected to earn between $ 1.2MM and $ 2.2MM in arbitrage. This is a good payday for the 35-year-old Bard, and few would have expected it would end up receiving when he signed a minor league contract with the Rox in February.
At the time, Bard was coming off a long layoff from the majors due to injury and performance issues. Bard began his career with a 2009-11 Boston flourish, during which it looked like he would be a long-term answer in the back of his bullpen. However, Bard fell severely after that three-year streak, and was out of the league in a couple of years.
Although he hadn’t pitched in the majors since 2013, Bard earned a spot on the Rockies roster and proceeded to enjoy a career renaissance last season. In 24 2/3 innings, Bard posted a 3.65 / 3.64 FIP ERA with 9.85 K / 9, 3.65 BB / 9 and a 48.5 percent roll rate, even regaining the speed of the 97 mph fastball that left him during his last two seasons with Boston.
Thanks to his perseverance and solid production, Bard won the National League Comeback Player of the Year honors, an award that in 2021 he hopes to show that it was not the work of chance in Denver, but great merit is that he did it by pitching at Coors Field .
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