Red Sox 7, Twins 6: Mike Aviles hit a three-run homer and Jarrod Saltalamacchia delivered a two-run single as Boston nearly blew a huge lead for the second time in four games before hanging on to sweep host Minnesota.

Dustin Pedroia went 3-for-3 with a triple, double and single for the Red Sox, who won their third straight following a five-game losing streak, which included a 15-9 loss to the Yankees on Saturday when they led 9-1 after six innings.

Trailing 7-1, the Twins scored five runs on six hits and sent 10 batters to the plate in the sixth before reliever Matt Albers escaped further trouble by getting Sean Burroughs to hit into an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded.

Joe Mauer had a two-run single, Denard Span and Justin Morneau contributed RBI doubles and Trevor Plouffe's run-scoring single finished the uprising.

The inning also provided a scary moment when first baseman Chris Parmelee was hit in the head by a Justin Thomas pitch. After laying on the ground for a few moments, Parmelee walked off the field under his own power.

Boston starter Clay Buchholz (2-1) allowed 10 hits and five runs in 5 1/3 innings. Vicente Padilla pitched a perfect seventh and Franklin Morales recorded a 1-2-3 eighth.

With one out in the ninth, closer Alfredo Aceves walked Plouffe and yielded a base hit to pinch hitter Ryan Doumit. After retiring Ben Revere on a one-hop liner to first, Aceves hit Alexi Casilla to load the bases before striking out Span to earn his fourth save in six chances.

Minnesota's Liam Hendriks (0-1) allowed seven runs and nine hits in four innings.

Aviles' three-run shot in the second gave Boston a 4-1 lead and Saltalamacchia made it 6-1 in the third. Cody Ross' RBI single put the Red Sox ahead 1-0 in the second and Adrian Gonzalez's run-scoring single in the fifth made it 7-1.

Casilla had three hits, including an RBI single in the second for the Twins.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Twins have been outscored 109-71 in their 5-14 start. ... Buchholz has allowed 33 hits in 22 1/3 innings. ... Boston last swept a series at Minnesota in 2000 - a four-game set. ... Hendriks threw 32 pitches in the first and ended the inning when he got Gonzalez to ground out after a 15-pitch at-bat.