Joshua David Bard (born March 30, 1978) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

. He is the bullpen coach for the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB). He played in MLB as a

for the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

and

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

from 2002 to 2011. Bard was a

switch-hitter In baseball, a switch hitter is a player who bats both right-handed and left-handed, usually right-handed against left-handed pitchers and left-handed against right-handed pitchers. Characteristics Right-handed batters generally hit better aga ...

who threw

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

during his playing career.

Early life and personal

Bard was born in

Ithaca, New York Ithaca is a city in the Finger Lakes region of New York, United States. Situated on the southern shore of Cayuga Lake, Ithaca is the seat of Tompkins County and the largest community in the Ithaca metropolitan statistical area. It is named a ...

. His family moved to

Elizabeth, Colorado Elizabeth is a Statutory Town that is the most populous municipality in Elbert County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 1,675 at the 2020 United States Census, a +23.34% increase since the 2010 United States Census. Elizabeth is ...

, when he was an infant. He attended

Cherry Creek High School Cherry Creek High School (commonly Cherry Creek, Creek, or CCHS) is the oldest of seven high schools in the Cherry Creek School District in the Denver metropolitan area. It is located in Greenwood Village, Colorado, and is one of the largest high s ...

Greenwood Village, Colorado The City of Greenwood Village is a home rule municipality located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 15,691 at the 2020 United States Census. Greenwood Village is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Met ...

. He then attended

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sys ...

, where he was a three-time

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n while playing for

Texas Tech Red Raiders The Texas Tech Red Raiders and Lady Raiders are the athletic teams that represent Texas Tech University, located in Lubbock, Texas. The women's basketball team uses the name Lady Raiders, while the school's other women's teams use the "Red Raide ...

Career

Cleveland Indians

On August 23, 2002, Bard made his MLB debut against the

and hit a

walk-off home run In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. For a home run to end the game, it must be hit in the bottom of the final inning of the game and generate enough runs to exceed the opponent's score. Because the opponent will not ...

, becoming the second player to accomplish this feat in a debut since Billy Parker. In 2003, Bard posted a .244

average In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7, ...

with 8

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s and 36 RBI in 91

game A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator s ...

s played. In 2004, Bard spent the first half of the season on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

due to an abdominal injury, and then spent nearly the rest of the season in the minors. In 2005, Bard returned to the Indians roster, backing up Víctor Martínez.

Boston Red Sox

In January 2006, Bard was acquired by the

, along with

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

Coco Crisp Covelli Loyce "Coco" Crisp (born November 1, 1979) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and MiLB team manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, Kansas City Royals, and Oaklan ...

and

reliever In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weather d ...

David Riske David Richard Riske ( ; born October 23, 1976) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher. Career Riske was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 56th round of the June amateur draft. In January , he was traded along with outfielder Coc ...

, for reliever

Guillermo Mota Guillermo Reynoso Mota (born July 25, 1973) is a Dominican former professional baseball relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. In his career, he pitched for the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Dodgers, Florida Marlins, Cleveland Indians, New Yor ...

third base A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

prospect

Andy Marte Andy Manuel Marte (October 21, 1983 – January 22, 2017) was a Dominican professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, and Arizona Diamondbacks. He also played in the KBO ...

, and catcher

Kelly Shoppach Kelly Brian Shoppach (pronounced SHOP-ick; born April 29, 1980) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Tampa Bay Rays, New York Mets, Seattle Mariner ...

. He became the Red Sox's backup catcher during

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

2006 following the retirement of

John Flaherty John Timothy Flaherty (born October 21, 1967) is an American television baseball broadcaster and a former Major League Baseball catcher who played for several teams between 1992 and 2005. He is currently a broadcaster for the YES Network. Earl ...

. As a member of the Boston Red Sox in April 2006, his primary duties were catching

knuckleball A knuckleball or knuckler is a baseball pitch thrown to minimize the spin of the ball in flight, causing an erratic, unpredictable motion. The air flow over a seam of the ball causes the ball to change from laminar to turbulent flow. This chan ...

pitcher

Tim Wakefield Timothy Stephen Wakefield (born August 2, 1966) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Wakefield began his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates, but is most remembered for his 17-yea ...

. In the beginning of the season, this proved to be a challenging task, as Bard gave up 3

passed ball In baseball, a catcher is charged with a passed ball when he fails to hold or control a legally pitched ball that, with ordinary effort, should have been maintained under his control, and, as a result of this loss of control, the batter or a ru ...

s in his first appearance for the Red Sox on April 5, 2006. In an April 26, 2006, game against the Cleveland Indians, Bard gave up 4 passed balls, giving him a total of 10 passed balls in his first 5 games.

San Diego Padres

A few days later, Bard was traded along with

Cla Meredith Olise Cla Meredith III (; born June 4, 1983), nicknamed "The Claw," is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher. He played for the Boston Red Sox, San Diego Padres, and Baltimore Orioles. Collegiate career Meredith attended Virginia Commonw ...

to the

for

Doug Mirabelli Douglas Anthony Mirabelli (born October 18, 1970) is a former Major League Baseball catcher. He played for the San Francisco Giants (1996–2000), Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers (2001), Boston Red Sox (2001–2005), and San Diego Padres ( ...

. Mirabelli, who had been traded by the Red Sox to the Padres for

Mark Loretta Mark David Loretta (born August 14, 1971) is an American former professional baseball infielder. He played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1995 and 2009 for the Milwaukee Brewers, Houston Astros, San Diego Padres, Boston Red Sox, ...

during the offseason, was experienced at catching Tim Wakefield. A lifetime .240 hitter before joining the Padres, Bard hit .338 in 231 at-bats the rest of the season as the backup to

Mike Piazza Michael Joseph Piazza ( ; born September 4, 1968) is an American former professional baseball catcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1992 to 2007. He currently serves as the manager of the Italian national baseball tea ...

. Bard was behind the plate on August 4, 2007, for a home game against the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...

. He was catching for pitcher

Clay Hensley Clayton Allen Hensley (born August 31, 1979) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Hensley has played in Major League Baseball for the San Diego Padres, Florida Marlins, and San Francisco Giants. Early life Hensley attended Lamar U ...

when Hensley gave up

Barry Bonds Barry Lamar Bonds (born July 24, 1964) is an American former professional baseball left fielder who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Bonds was a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1986 to 1992 and the San Francisco Giants f ...

's 755th home run, which tied Bonds with

Hank Aaron Henry Louis Aaron (February 5, 1934 – January 22, 2021), nicknamed "Hammer" or "Hammerin' Hank", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1954 through 1976. One of the gre ...

for most career home runs. Bard's hot hitting did not continue into the 2008 season. He began the season as the Padres' starting catcher, with

Rob Bowen Robert McClure Bowen (born February 24, 1981) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 2003 to 2008 for the Minnesota Twins, San Diego Padres, Chicago Cubs and the Oakland Athlet ...

as his backup. In June, Bowen was traded to the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

for catcher Michael Barrett. In October 2008, Bard left the Padres and became a free agent.

Boston Red Sox

On January 2, 2009, Bard returned to the Red Sox with a one-year, $1.6 million contract, which included a $3 million club option for 2010. However, on March 18, he was released.

Washington Nationals

On March 21, 2009 Bard signed a minor league deal with the

and was invited to Spring Training. He played in 90 games for the Nationals, hitting .230.

Seattle Mariners

On December 28, 2009, Bard signed a minor league contract with the

. Bard has his contract purchased by Seattle on June 29, 2011. He played in 26 games with the Mariners, hitting .210. He elected free agency on October 30. On August 13, 2011, he was involved in a controversial play against the

Dustin Pedroia Dustin Luis Pedroia (born August 17, 1983) is an American former professional baseball second baseman who played his entire Major League Baseball career for the Boston Red Sox, from 2006 to 2019. He was a four-time All-Star, and won the Americ ...

hit a fly ball to

Ichiro Suzuki , also known mononymously as , is a Japanese former professional baseball outfielder who played professionally for 28 seasons. He played nine years of his career with the Orix BlueWave of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), where he began his ...

, who caught the ball as

Jacoby Ellsbury Jacoby McCabe Ellsbury ( ; born September 11, 1983) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox from 2007 through 2013 and then played for the New York Yankees from 2 ...

tagged up from third and tried to score. Ichiro, who was known for throwing runners out at home, threw a strike to Bard, who collided with Ellsbury. He held onto the ball and got hurt on the play. Shortly after, he dropped the ball. Ellsbury was initially called safe.

Eric Wedge Eric Michael Wedge (born January 27, 1968) is an American former baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) catcher and manager. As a player, Wedge attended Northrop High School in Fort Wayne and played on the school's state champion baseball team in ...

came out to argue. The umpires discussed it and soon called Ellsbury out.

Terry Francona Terrence Jon Francona (born April 22, 1959), nicknamed "Tito", is an American baseball manager and former player who is the manager of the Cleveland Guardians in Major League Baseball (MLB). Previously, he was the manager of the Boston Red Sox fo ...

was ejected for arguing the call.

Los Angeles Dodgers

He signed a minor league contract with the

in December 2011. He was released by the Dodgers on March 29, 2012. But later re-signed with them and was assigned to the AAA

Albuquerque Isotopes The Albuquerque Isotopes are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They play home games at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at an el ...

. He was the backup catcher to

Tim Federowicz Timothy Joseph Federowicz (born August 5, 1987) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants, Houston Astros, Cincinnati Reds, and ...

at Albuquerque and appeared in 45 games with a .331 batting average. Bard singled in his final career at bat against the

Omaha Storm Chasers The Omaha Storm Chasers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. They are located in Papillion, Nebraska, a suburb southwest of Omaha, and play their home games at Wer ...

in the Isotopes season-ending playoff loss on September 9, 2012.

Coaching

Bard retired after the season and chose to remain with the Dodgers as a Special Assistant. He became the Dodgers major league bullpen coach for the 2016 season. The

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

hired Bard as their bench coach for the 2018 season under new manager

Aaron Boone Aaron John Boone (born March 9, 1973) is an American baseball manager and former infielder who is the manager of the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for 13 seasons from 1997 through 2009. As a player, ...

. Bard served as acting manager on September 2, due to Boone serving a one-game suspension and again the following season on July 19. On November 11, 2019, Bard left his bench coach position in order to find a job closer to his Colorado home and was replaced by infield coach Carlos Mendoza. On December 9, 2019, the Dodgers announced that Bard would return as their bullpen coach for the 2020 season. Bard won the World Series with the Dodgers in 2020 as their bullpen coach.

Personal life

Although Bard was born in Ithaca, New York, his family moved to

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

when he was five months old. His wife, Lindsey, is a

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

and they have been married for 10 years. Together they have three children. Bard's brother Mike is an

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

personal coach, was a collegiate coach for 13 years, and is currently a private instructor in the Denver area a
Bardo's Diamond Sports
in Parker.

References

External links

: {{DEFAULTSORT:Bard, Josh 1978 births Living people Akron Aeros players Albuquerque Isotopes players Arizona League Padres players Baseball players from New York (state) Boston Red Sox players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Carolina Mudcats players Cleveland Indians players Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Lake Elsinore Storm players Los Angeles Dodgers coaches Los Angeles Dodgers scouts Mahoning Valley Scrappers players Major League Baseball bullpen coaches Major League Baseball catchers Sportspeople from Ithaca, New York Portland Beavers players Salem Avalanche players San Diego Padres players Seattle Mariners players Syracuse Chiefs players Tacoma Rainiers players Texas Tech Red Raiders baseball players Washington Nationals players People from Elbert County, Colorado New York Yankees coaches All-American college baseball players