SPECULATOR: Spring Training "What if"s — AL Edition

In our 2012 debut this week, we kick off our pre-season coverage with a set of "What if..." questions from around the American League.

What if Daniel Bard (RHP, BOS) doesn't stick in the Boston rotation?

With a couple of openings in the back of their rotation, the Red Sox enter camp this month with the intent of stretching out Daniel Bard as a starting pitcher. But, as we saw with Neftali Feliz a year ago, stretching out in March does not necessarily preclude a return to the bullpen in April. If Bard does go back to the bullpen, what might his role be?

Newcomers Mark Melancon and Andrew Bailey are likely to handle the 8th- and 9th-inning roles, respectively, if Bard is in the rotation. If Bard comes back to the pen, that plan may...

Almost!

You’re just a few clicks away from accessing this feature and hundreds more throughout the year that have a singular goal in mind: Winning your league. Subscribe to BaseballHQ.com here!

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

More From Speculator

If history is any guide, this year's end-of-season Top 15 will come from all stages of the draft.
Mar 18 2026 3:08am
What lessons can we apply from Drew Rasmussen's 2025 breakout to this year's player pool?
Mar 11 2026 8:36am
Applying lessons learned from George Springer's 2025 breakout to this year's player pool
Mar 4 2026 3:04am
This week's exercise is all about picking holes to help avoid early-round busts.
Feb 25 2026 3:10am
Sure, they struggled last year, but if we remove some recency bias, granting mulligans could be a lucrative exercise.
Feb 18 2026 3:06am

Tools