CHICAGO - The Red Sox skipped Daniel Bard’s last start then used the righthander in relief for an inning Monday. It seemed like a precursor to moving him back to the bullpen for good.

That proved not to be the case. Bard started against the Chicago White Sox Friday night and continued to make a compelling case to stay in the rotation, pitching seven strong innings in a 10-3 victory.

That’s five straight wins for the Red Sox, who have found life away from Fenway Park quite accommodating. They have outscored the Twins and White Sox, 44-19, on a road trip that has two games remaining.

Bard scattered six hits and allowed three runs, two earned, to drop his earned run average to 3.72 and raise his record to 2-2. He walked one and struck out six.

“I honestly do feel like I’ve gotten better with each outing, going all the way back to the spring,’’ Bard said. “I’ve gotten more comfortable throwing offspeed [pitches] in fastball counts. I’m more consistently throwing strike one with my fastball, which tonight was huge for me.

“Just a combination of things. I’m learning the little nuances of starting and tonight was a step in the right direction.’’

Veteran Aaron Cook is 3-0 with a 1.33 ERA in four starts for Triple A Pawtucket and can declare free agency Tuesday if he is not in the majors. As manager Bobby Valentine said, that has put Bard under a microscope. But it doesn’t show on the mound.

“I’ve been very impressed with his focus. Those things could have gotten him mentally out of touch with his start,’’ Valentine said. “There was a lot to like from what I saw tonight.’’

Bard was efficient, throwing 63 of his 96 pitches for strikes. He threw first-pitch strikes to 19 of the 29 batters he faced and changed speeds with his slider, throwing it as hard as 85 miles per hour and then dropping it down to 78 to induce contact.