Sudden retirement removes a wild card from Mariners' trade deadline deck

After a lengthy baseball career that spanned nearly two decades, hard-throwing reliever Daniel Bard has officially hung up the cleats.

As a first-round draft pick in 2006, Bard was known for his impressive velocity for the time, occasionally touching 100 mph on his fastball. Despite initially being groomed as a starting pitcher by the Boston Red Sox, he moved to the bullpen to take advantage of his raw stuff.

His initial success in that role between 2009 and 2011 fell apart after Boston moved him back into the rotation in 2012, and he eventually went seven years between MLB appearances before getting his pitching career back on track with the Colorado Rockies in 2020. Although he had immense success as recently as 2022 — when he posted a 1.79 ERA and 34 saves — command issues and injuries made 2023 his last year in the majors.

Daniel Bard had been in the Mariners' system before abruptly retiring

Bard signed a minor league deal with Seattle in June and across a small sample of six appearances with Triple-A Tacoma, he was pretty solid. With a 3.18 ERA and a 31.0 strikeout percentage, he was on the right track to get another shot at pitching big league innings for the Mariners. The front office wouldn't have signed the 40-year old if they didn't think there was at least some possibility he could've added value to the roster.

Seattle's bullpen has a great core, but may not have the depth necessary to take the team to the next level. They have a few solid pieces to complement the likes of Matt Brash and Andrés Muñoz in Eduard Bazardo and Gabe Speier, but they're still at least one piece short of having an unstoppable force for the late innings.

Carlos Vargas has had some rough outings as of late. Casey Legumina had a 5.25 ERA in May and is off to a rocky start in July. Trent Thornton has, for the most part, failed to recapture the success he found in 2023. The front office is still working to find a competitive fifth arm internally, and Bard could've been an invaluable veteran presence in the bullpen if he'd stuck around.

Without him, the Mariners will have to turn to other teams to satisfy their reliever needs and they won't be the only contenders in search of such talent. Great relievers are always a hot commodity around the deadline because they give competitive teams a much-needed edge and crucial pitching depth to survive a long postseason. The Dodgers, Blue Jays, and Phillies are just a few contenders that, according to Jim Bowden of The Athletic, are in search of bullpen help. With Bard no longer a viable option, Seattle could be forced into the fray.

Daniel Bard's career is full of impressive accomplishments. It's a monumental achievement in and of itself to reach the majors, but being drafted in the first round, banking 66 saves with a career ERA of 3.74 and ERA+ of 123 make him even more of a standout athlete. Off the field, he has also been known for being vocal in his support of mental health awareness.

With nothing left to prove, Bard was able to exit the sport on his own terms and will hopefully find success in whatever venture he chooses to pursue next.