After giving up 10 passed balls in five games with the Red Sox, catcher Josh Bard is thriving in San Diego, for whom he is batting .349.

01:00 AM EDT on Thursday, June 15, 2006

SAN DIEGO -- After an unforgettable month in Boston, Josh Bard says he had two options.

"You can either put your glove down and walk off the field or you keep going," he said. "Obviously, I didn't want to choose the first. So you keep pushing on and good things happen."

Good things are happening to Bard, who -- after committing 10 passed balls in five games with the Red Sox -- was traded to San Diego on May 1 in a package that brought Doug Mirabelli back to Boston. Bard entered last night hitting .349 for the Padres, with 5 home runs and 15 runs batted in in 63 at-bats, and San Diego is talking about him becoming their regular catcher after Mike Piazza retires at the end of the season.

What a difference six weeks makes.

"I couldn't have been more embarrassed than I was [in Boston]," Bard told the San Diego Union-Tribune earlier this week.

Bard, acquired by the Sox from the Cleveland Indians in the offseason trade that brought Coco Crisp to Boston, was one of the three catchers vying for the role of Tim Wakefield's personal catcher (the role Mirabelli had filled for 4 1/2 years before he was traded to San Diego last December for second baseman Mark Loretta). Bard won it virtually by default, as John Flaherty retired in early March and Ken Huckaby was injured and missed most of spring training.

Some victory.

"The best way I can explain [trying to catch Wakefield's knuckleball] is, it was like boxing with your hands tied behind your back," Bard said. "You look like you're trying to catch a butterfly with a stinkin' waffle iron."

As the passed balls mounted, the criticism from the fans built. It required Bard to grow a thick skin.

"I think being in Boston gave me a different light on just my whole career, just saying, sometimes you take yourself too seriously," he said.

Still, he admits it hurt.

"I'll never forget, as far as the way I felt back there," he said.

Finally, he was shipped out to San Diego. While he says he's grateful to the Red Sox for giving him the chance to play, he says the Padres probably are a better fit.

"You've got to try to make the most of your opportunity, but coming here, you're feeling down the road there would be some opportunity to hopefully compete for a starting spot," Bard said.

And he thinks the lessons he learned in Boston will serve him well.

"It taught me toughness, because there were a lot of times where I felt really, really uncomfortable back there," he said. "It kind of taught me how to persevere in uncomfortable situations.

"I try to translate that into at-bats where you might not feel comfortable, or times on defense where you might not be on the same page with the pitcher."