Bard to miss Spring Training after freak knee injury

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Entering 2024 recovering from an old ailment, then sustaining a new one, was not the plan for Rockies closer Daniel Bard. But at least he will not repeat the mistake of last year -- rushing his preparation.

Bard made three trips to the injured list last season, the final two of which were due to right forearm issues in September, and he finished with only one save -- after racking up 54 saves over the previous two years. At season’s end, Bard underwent three platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections, spaced one week apart, and he revealed on Tuesday that he expects to begin Spring Training two to three weeks behind schedule.

Bard experienced a setback approximately 10 days ago, tearing the meniscus in his left knee while playing catch. The surgery means he will need five to seven weeks to reach “game speed” in his conditioning and throwing, meaning he will miss Spring Training, which begins Thursday with the first pitcher-catcher workout.

“My tendency is to rush things back. If I could be pitching at even 80%, I’m going to find a way to be out there,” Bard said from his home in Greenville, S.C. “This forces me to pull the reins back and just take things a little slower. It’ll be a good thing in the end.

“Obviously, I wouldn't pick to injure my knee. But coming off the kind of elbow injury that I was dealing with last year, this is going to buy me some more time, and that might end up being a good thing for the long haul, just to get through all 162 games.”

The PRP injections in Bard’s elbow delayed his offseason throwing program until January. He had progressed to long toss at 120 feet before the freak injury occurred.

“Literally, it felt like a movement I had done a hundred times and never hurt it, and that time something decided to give," Bard said. "I was catching. I turned and tried to backhand the ball, and I don’t know if my foot was stuck in the turf.”

Bard's surgery will be performed at Steadman-Hawkins Clinic in Greenville, S.C. Rockies medical director Thomas J. Noonan works out of Steadman-Hawkins in Colorado, so communication is expected to be seamless. Bard plans to join his teammates in Scottsdale approximately a week after surgery.

The 38-year-old Bard is entering the final year of a two-year, $19 million contract. Because of his struggles last year, Bard would have been competing for the closer role -- mainly with Justin Lawrence, who went 11-for-18 on save chances in 2023 in his first full big league season, and Tyler Kinley, who went 5-for-7 on save chances after returning from right flexor tendon surgery in August.

Now, Bard will just concentrate on getting ready for the season. His preparation was also disrupted last year.

Bard was selected to Team USA for last year’s World Baseball Classic, and while the designation was an honor, the tournament began in mid-March. He had not built up his velocity during his early Spring Training outings, so he was not ready for the intense competition.

In a March 18 game against Venezuela, Bard faced four batters, giving up one hit, walking two and, most notoriously, hitting Jose Altuve with a pitch that left the Astros star with a broken thumb that required surgery and cost him the season’s first 43 games.

Bard also began the 2023 season on the injured list with anxiety, missing three weeks. He had good moments, but he never regularly uncorked fastballs in the 100 mph range. He spent 15 days on the IL in September with right forearm fatigue, returned for three appearances, then finished the year on the IL with a right forearm flexor strain.

“He was throwing 93-94 mph,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “There are some pitchers that need five weeks, some need four, as it relates to relief pitchers. Starting pitchers need all six weeks. Daniel Bard needs six weeks of Spring Training to build up velocity and feel. Here’s a guy that averaged 97 [mph]. When you’re a power pitcher and you don’t have your fastball, it’s trouble. Daniel just never got there the whole year.”

In 50 appearances, Bard dealt with persistent base traffic. His WHIP rose from 0.99 (less than one baserunner per inning) in 2022 to 1.70 in '23, and his strikeouts per nine innings dropped from 10.3 to 8.6.

After the surgery, Bard will take five to seven days to allow swelling to subside. But he can continue strengthening his arm and working toward getting in game condition.

“Maybe I'm being optimistic, but before last year -- when I've been healthy going into spring -- it takes me four or five game outings, and I’m ready to go,” Bard said.