In 1939, Winston Churchill gave this assessment of Soviet Russia: "a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma". If you were present at today's media session with Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine, you might think those words apply to him. Asked whether a decision had been made on whether Daniel Bard was in the starting rotation, Bobby V. replied:
“It hasn’t really been made. I think the decision that he could start has been made, that he’s capable of starting.”
Wow, that's positively Clintonian! Way to parse, Bobby! So, what is the actual truth? No one really knows. Although,
as Peter Abraham of the Globe points out, it's a lot easier to put Bard in the mix than Aceves. Bard has clearly expressed his desire to either start or close, and the latter ain't happening with Andrew Bailey in the house.
