Houck gave up a run on two hits with one strikeout in one-third of an inning Friday to record his third save of the season in a 6-5 win over the Cardinals.

EDGE Analysis

Boston led 6-1 heading into the ninth inning, but after Austin Davis made a mess of things with two outs, Houck got the call and barely escaped the jam, serving up back-to-back doubles to Tommy Edman and Brendan Donovan before finally striking out Paul Goldschmidt. Houck has converted three straight save chances since being moved into a high-leverage relief role, while Friday's run was the first on his ledger since May 15. Out of the bullpen this season, the right-hander has a 3.08 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 29:9 K:BB through 26.1 innings, and he may be the guy to bring some stability to the Red Sox closing picture.