Daniel Bard may be closing games for the Red Sox when the 2012 season begins following Jonathan Papelbon's departure as a free agent. Papelbon agreed to a deal with the Phillies on Friday. However, Boston hasn't ruled out putting Bard in their starting rotation, which could leave their closer role open heading into the spring. "It's actually something we've asked the manager candidates, how strongly they feel about having a defined closer going into Spring Training," general manager Ben Cherington said. "It may be that we don't. I do feel that it's important to have a defined closer on Opening Day. I don't think it's critical to have a defined closer in Spring Training, but probably preferable. And we may very well have a defined closer when we open camp. "We know that we're going to add pitching depth, both in the bullpen and in the rotation, and there's different ways to do that, but there are available options out there."