Daniel Bard has a heartwarming comeback story and wins the NL Comeback Player Award
The Rockies reliever, Daniel Bard, did not pitch since the 2013 season when he was with the Red Sox. When with the Red Sox, Bard became one of the most reliable bullpen pitchers for the team as a mid-20s pitcher.
After proving his talent out of the bullpen, Bard was moved to the starting rotation with hopes that his stuff translates. It did not.
Bard had a 5.30 ERA in 10 starts and be sent to Triple-A soon after. After this 2013 experiment gone wrong, Bard had to battle injuries and mechanical issues before hanging up his cleats after the 2017 season.
Bard would stay close to the game as a player mentor, and he decided to make a comeback prior to the 2020 season. It worked out pretty well for him and posted a 3.65 ERA, striking out 27 over 24.2 innings and saved six games.
Bard can now add the NL Comeback Player Award to his story and deserves it. He competed against Adam Duvall and Wil Myers for this 2020 award.
Carlos Carrasco has another great story behind his AL Comeback Player Award win
Carlos Carrasco from the Indians had a major battle to face in 2019. Carrasco battled through leukemia last summer for three months.
Funny, he's our winner too. 🍪#OurTribe pic.twitter.com/WKtiLyy86P
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) October 22, 2020
He would make his standing ovation return in September of 2019 as a reliever. Now in 2020, Carrasco came back healthy as ever in the starting rotation.
In 2020, Carrasco finished with an impressive 2.91 ERA in 68 innings pitched. He struck out 82 batters and a 1.206 WHIP. It is such a touching story and it is amazing to see Carrasco not only pitch but thrive in the starting rotation.
Salvador Perez and Jose Ramirez were also considered for the AL Comeback Player Award.
A talented group of ballplayers won the 2020 Players Choice Awards, but this is just the beginning of the MLB Awards season. Look to see some of these names again in the next couple of weeks as hardware is slowly passed out.