. Bard went five innings, allowed five earned runs and struck out six in a 7-3 loss to Toronto yesterday. He also had 18 swings and misses and Inside Edge claimed only two out of 23 balls were classified as being hit "well" off of him.
"He was OK, but I still like him better out of the bullpen. I know he said he was changing speeds on his fastball, but he lost three miles [per hour] off his slider, too. I think he was getting tired. It's really tough to be a two-pitch pitcher and start. The changeup? Not much there.
"But it really doesn't matter what I think, or Bobby [Valentine] thinks or anybody else thinks. It will all show up. I think it will be either very good, or very bad. They probably should have gone out and gotten another starter, but they bet big, and I think they've got to give it two months and see how it goes.'
