Daniel Bard entered the World Baseball Classic for Team USA with a 5-2 lead. Everything that could have gone wrong for Bard and Team USA did go wrong. He failed to record an out and gave up four runs to let Venezuela take a 6-5 lead in the win-or-go-home game.
Bard allowed two hits, one walk and even hit a batter- which might have been the worst part of his night. While Venezuela took the lead that inning, it's also the same inning they lost Jose Altuve.
Altuve was up to bat with runners on second and third and nobody out. He represented the tying run in the important matchup, but was unable to swing the bat. On the 1-2 delivery from Daniel Bard, Altuve was hit in the hand.
Daniel Bard nailed Jose Altuve in a bad spot in the WBC
The Houston Astros star fell to the ground immediately in serious pain. He took his helmet off and layed on the ground for a while. The atmosphere in the building completely shifted after that.
Not only was Team USA in serious danger of blowing a lead, one of the best second basemen in baseball was seriously injured. Bard, the guilty party, couldn't help but wander around aimlessly as the stress of the situation mounted.
Ultimately, it was revealed that Altuve broke his thumb and will be out for a chunk of the MLB regular season. Fortunately for Bard, his blown save didn't stand as Trea Turner played hero with a game-winning grand slam in the eighth inning.