Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee

Normally, the departure of a back-up catcher is as eventful as watching a re-run of "How to wallpaper your shed". However, when that catcher is Doug Mirabelli, personal catcher extraordinaire to Tim Wakefield, the Red Sox resident knuckleballer, then it matters a lot more to the Nation. The catcher is a vital cog in any baseball team, but

As proven by new catcher Josh Bard (acquired from the Indians in the Crisp-Marte trade), catching Wakefield is no easy task - in fact when Mirabelli got injured in 2005, Varitek "caught" Wakefield, and Wake promptly saw his ERA close in on double figures. V-Tek said this about catching the knuckler:

You know, catching the knuckleball, it's like
trying to catch a fly with a chopstick.

So Josh, you have much to learn, grasshopper...6 passed balls in 2 games, including one that let the Rays into lead when Travis Lee got home from 3rd base in yesterdays game.

Let's hope that Bard's Zito-like steep learning curve is overcome quickly, otherwise this could be a long season for both him and Wake. Hmm, I wonder if Padres are interested in a Mirabelli-for-a-slighly-used-southpaw trade?