BOSTON -- Unlike in Anaheim or Houston, there was no danger of the Red Sox losing via a walk-off. That's one of the joys of returning home, along with sleeping in your own bed, reintroducing yourself to your family and remembering whether or not you own a dog.

But despite Rick Porcello's best start in seven weeks; a stirring, nine-pitch mano-a-mano between Junichi Tazawa and Cuban strongman Yoenis Cespedes; and Koji Uehara's first two-inning stint in over a year, the Boston Red Sox still faced late-inning peril against the Detroit Tigers.

But against all odds, hanging-by-a-thread Sox reliever Justin Masterson and catcher Ryan Hanigan escaped an 11th-inning jam with a strike-him-out, throw-him-out double play with Victor Martinez at the plate.

And in the bottom of the 11th, against the soft underbelly of the Tigers' bullpen, the Red Sox ended their longest losing streak of 2015 by -- wait for it -- winning in walk-off fashion. Xander Bogaerts hit a soft line-drive single into center field off Tigers left-hander Blaine Hardy, and Mookie Betts beat Anthony Gose's throw to the plate for a 2-1 Sox victory before 37,650 in Fenway Park. The win ended an eight-game skid, their longest since losing eight straight Aug. 17-24 of last year.

Just as the Sox waited until umpires confirmed Jose Altuve's walk-off home run Thursday night in Houston, the Tigers remained on the field for an excruciating 4 minutes and 36 seconds until crew chief Tim Welke emphatically spread his arms, signaling that the "safe" call stood.

The Sox had flown home from Houston Friday morning after losing all seven games on their road trip, the first time since 1951 the club had lost every game on a road trip of seven games or longer. They played without Dustin Pedroia, who sat out his second straight game because of lingering soreness in his right hamstring, and David Ortiz, who got a scheduled day off.

The runs, just as they had been on the losing streak, were hard to come by. Singles by Shane Victorino, Hanigan and Brock Holt accounted for a run in the third off Tigers starter Justin Verlander, but Verlander allowed just four more singles before his night ended after eight innings.

Porcello, against his former team, was just as stingy, giving up a run in the second on a double by Jose Iglesias and single by Ian Kinsler, but giving up just two more singles before being lifted after seven. That was his longest start since June 2.

Tazawa entered in the eighth and gave up a two-out triple to Kinsler, setting up a confrontation with Cespedes, traded last December to Detroit for Porcello. Throwing nothing but fastballs, Tazawa finally disposed of Cespedes on a swinging third strike on his ninth pitch.

Uehara was perfect through the ninth and 10th. Masterson was anything but perfect in the 11th, giving up a single to Kinsler, throwing a wild pitch, and walking Cespedes.

Masterson and Martinez were once dealt for each other in a trading-deadline deal in 2010, Martinez coming to the Sox and Masterson one of three young pitchers going to Cleveland in a 3-for-1 deal. Martinez went down swinging, and Hanigan threw out Kinsler at third, setting the stage for the finish.