Cem21 wrote:
I can't really find a good reason to have Bard skip A+. Going to Lancaster is the next step in his development. People can point to his stay in Lancaster last season as a disaster, but it was due to his inability to throw the ball over the plate. Not issues with the league or ballpark. When Bard did throw the ball over the plate last season, hitters were all over his pitches. Reports have indicated that there is a noticeable difference in the movement on Bard's fastball this season vs. last season after he changed his mechanics this offseason. Last year, Bard's fastball was pretty much straight as an arrow and his control issues allowed hitters to sit all over it. Pretty much the only pitch he could get over was his fastball at times and hitters were letting it fly against it.
I don't really see the argument that skipping Lancaster is going to somehow help his development or prevent him from regressing what he has done this season because he won't have to pitch in a hitter's league or in a wind tunnel. As has been previously stated, you have to see how any player deals with adversity as everything doesn't go the ideal way all of the times. Things are going to get tougher every level he moves up. It's not like the Sox would not pitch him against certain teams because they have tough lineups. I think the Sox will move him up to Lancaster primarily for the purpose of testing his mental toughness. They've eased him back into things at Greenville and won't rush him to AA without challenging him first.
You make some good points, and it should be added that going to Lancaster pales in comparison to the difficulty Bard will eventually face in the majors at Fenway. I think it still is a little to soon for a promotion, but his different makeup this year should help him transition to Lancaster much more smoothly than last year. We can only hope he just keeps going out and pitching as we know he can.
