Bard did not allow a baserunner and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning to earn the save Thursday against the Cubs.
Bard was tasked with protecting a one-run lead, and he retired Sergio Alcantara, Matt Duffy and Rafael Ortega in order to record his 17th save. Bard appears to be returning to form after allowing five earned runs across three innings in three appearances between July 23 and July 31, as he now has two consecutive scoreless outings. For the season, Bard has a 4.23 ERA with 57 strikeouts across 44.2 innings.