BOSTON -- The new and improved Joe Kelly won his seventh straight start to lift the Boston Red Sox to a 7-5 inter-league victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night.

Kelly, banished to Triple-A in June with a 2-5 record, has returned as a different pitcher and Friday night turned in six strong innings as the Red Sox won the opener of a three-game series between two last-place teams.

Kelly (9-6) might have gone longer, but a 29-pitch, two-run fourth inning fueled by first baseman Allen's inability to turn a double play, settling for one out, helped Kelly run up 106 pitches in his six innings.

The right-hander has allowed just eight earned runs in his last six starts.

The Red Sox survived a late uprising by the Phillies to get away with the win.

Reliever Jean Machi got the first two outs with a five-run lead but shortstop Freddy Galvis singled, center fielder Odubal Herrera homered (his third hit), shortstop Cesar Hernandez singled and scored on right fielder Aaron Altherr's third hit, a double.

Left-hander Robbie Ross Jr. was summoned and struck out Ryan Howard -- the designated hitter in the American League -- on three pitches for his first career save.

Shortstop Xander Bogaerts had two hits and two RBIs, right fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. hit a solo homer and scored twice, center fielder Mookie Betts (10-game hitting streak) stroked a pair of doubles, scoring after one and driving in a run with the other and second baseman Brock Holt had two hits and a sacrifice fly for the Red Sox.

With the score 3-2, three relievers worked the seventh inning for Boston. The Phillies had first and second with nobody out before Alexi Ogando got Galvis to foul out on a bunt and left-hander Tommy Layne and righty Noe Ramirez struck out Herrera and Hernandez, respectively.

Junichi Tazawa worked the eighth before fellow righty Machi came on.

Rookie left-hander Adam Morgan (5-5) gave up the tying and go-ahead runs in the fifth and then yielded Bradley's seventh homer of the season, sixth in his last 22 games, with one out in the eighth. Bogaerts' force-out grounder got the fifth run home against reliever Jeanmar Gomez, who then yielded a two-run double by designated hitter David Ortiz.

The first three Red Sox collected hits, but Morgan managed to keep the damage to one run in the opening inning.

Betts opened with his first double, took third on a single by Holt and scored on Bogaerts' first hit of the night. But Morgan struck Ortiz out on three pitches and went on to escape down just 1-0 -- and he had back-to-back strikeouts to end a perfect second.

Herrera led the game off with a single and was forced at second by Hernandez -- and Kelly then picked Hernandez off first.

The Phillies were quiet until the fourth when Hernandez led off with an infield single and took second when Altherr was hit by a pitch. Howard, DHing in the American League park, then hit what should have been a double play grounder to Craig, who got one out instead of two, leaving runners at second and third.

The visitors tied the game on left fielder Darnell Sweeney's groundout -- to Craig -- and went ahead when first baseman Darin Ruf singled to deep short. Third baseman Cody Asche walked before Ruf was picked off second by catcher Ryan Hanigan, but the Red Sox messed up the play and Ruf wound up at third with his first major league stolen base. Kelly got out of the inning by fanning catcher Cameron Rupp.

The Red Sox took the lead back in the fifth.

Hanigan singled and Bradley Jr. walked before Betts tied it with his second double. Holt line drive sacrifice fly scored Bradley.

NOTES: Red Sox 3B Pablo Sandoval was a late scratch with mid-back tightness after leaving the field during batting practice, Travis Shaw replacing him in the lineup. ... RF Domonic Brown suffered a concussion falling over a wall at Citi Field in New York on Wednesday night and could be out for the season. This is his second concussion in three years. ... The Phillies selected OF Brian Bogusevic from Triple-A Lehigh Valley, where he hit .296 with 12 homers, 57 RBIs. The Phillies transferred LHP Elvis Araujo from the 15- to the 60-day disabled list to make room for Bogusevic on the 40-man roster. ... 2B Dustin Pedroia (hamstring) hopes to return to the Boston lineup Thursday. ... RHP Alec Ascher makes his second major league start when he faces LHP Wade Miley on Saturday -- Miley making his third attempt at his team-high 11th victory.