“I had my pitching mind-set,’’ he said. “Same deal you’re just trying to get outs. You just have little time to get warmed up.’’

Valentine said he gave some thought to leaving Bard in for the ninth. He told Bard if the game remained tied he would go back out, but if Boston took the lead Aceves was in.

“Little weird just being out there because I haven’t been out there,’’ Bard said. “But it was like riding a bike. I had an established routine the last three years so it was easy to get back into it. You get that feeling again of winning games is great.’’

Where do the Sox go from here with Bard?

It’s obvious he may be the only reliever they have who could wiggle out of that type of jam. It was easy to see his value.

You won’t see him rushing into the manager’s office volunteering to become the closer, because he really views himself a starter now.

Everyone knows what the common-sense answer is to Boston’s bullpen dilemma - have Bard close and place Aaron Cook, who improved to 3-0 with a 1.33 ERA after a win Monday night in Pawtucket - in the starting rotation.

Bard, who told Valentine that he would not be agreeable to back-to-back appearances because of health concerns (since he hasn’t done it all year) likely will be shut down now until he makes his start Friday. But is that the best use of him?

“I asked a lot of questions as to what their goals were in this,’’ Bard said before the game. “They said right now they had every intention of it being temporary and that I’d make my start on Friday. That’s where I’m at right now. I still view myself as a starter and they said they do, too. It’s where they said they want me in the long run. For now, they want to address a need for a couple of days, keep me from going 10 days without throwing. I told them I was OK with it for now.’’