Skipping Bard not an easy decision for Valentine

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BOSTON -- With Sundays Red Sox series finale against the Yankees rained out, scheduled starter Daniel Bard will have his turn in the rotation skipped, with Jon Lester making his scheduled start Monday in Minnesota.

Bard (0-2, 4.63 ERA)is expected to work out of the pen and start Friday against the White Sox in Chicago. The other starters will stay on their regular schedules.

We had and off-day already this week on Thursday, said manager Bobby Valentine. This would make two days off in between starts for all of the starters. And so Daniel will be skipped this time around. Lester flew out at 6:30 pm Sunday, and hell be one of the rested.

Daniel will have an opportunity to pitch either in a bullpen session or out of the bullpen here in the next couple days.

Although there was some thought to moving Bard back to the pen after Saturdays bullpen meltdown, Bard will remain the rotations fifth starter. Before Friday, though, he could be used in a familiar role.

Id like to use him if we have a lead in the eighth inning just as hes been comfortable doing in the past, maybe bail out the seventh, Valentine said.

I think for the one occurrence it should be OK. I dont think it's an easy job but it should be acceptable, physically.

It was not an easy decision to skip Bard, though. He pitched well in his last outing, April 16 against the Rays, when he went 6 23 innings, allowing one run on four hits, with seven walks and seven strikeouts. the run he allowed, a walk to Evan Longoria on four pitches, forced in the only run of the game.

Butthe rotation as a whole, and the schedules of the other starters, factored into the decision to skip Bard.

I wish all this stuff was easy. I wish any decision at all over the last 16 days, I wish one of them was easy, Valentine said. There havent been many easy decisions and this isnt one of the easy decisions. But it has to be made and thats how we made it. Most people feel that the fifth starter, however well hes pitching, when hes in that line as the fifth starter and there are off days, he is usually he guy that is skipped. And seven days is a long time.

"Talking with Josh Beckett and Jon Lester who are our most experienced starters, that seven day in between is extraordinary. And it doesnt really work. This whole thing with bullpen, his bullpen was at a certain time, guys get in a routine. Jons bullpen was a certain time. Hes in aroutine. Jon has a flight out at 6:00. Hes going to be there early. Daniel would have to wait around till the 11:00 pm team flight were going to take, get in 4 in the morning. Pitch. It just seems like the thing to do."

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