HOUSTON -- Somebody needed to stop the madness of the Red Sox being unable to accomplish anything offensively during their stay in Houston.

That somebody wasn’t necessarily whom you expected. But it sure did come at a good time.

It was Christian Arroyo -- who didn’t have a home run in 110 consecutive plate appearances dating back to Sept. 18, 2020 -- who came up with the big knock on Thursday afternoon.

• Box score

Arroyo’s three-run homer to left provided a second-inning jolt and lifted the Red Sox on their way to 5-1 victory at Minute Maid Park. That allowed Boston to salvage the final game of a four-game series in which it scored a total of four runs in the first three games, all defeats.

“It was a big at-bat, especially the way we swung the bats in the first three nights,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “You got first and second, 3-2 count, we’ve been chasing a lot of pitches, and he put a good swing on it. It was actually a really good at-bat, and you could feel it in the dugout, kind of like we were able to breathe. For him to hit that home run, it was big for us.”

No majestic shot was this. Arroyo’s homer left his bat at a modest 93.2 mph, traveled a projected distance of 339 feet and carried an expected batting average of .020.

“It’s always good to get the first one on the board,” said Arroyo. “It’s funny, I talked with Hunter [Renfroe] in Spring Training about it, he’s like, ‘You always forget that you can hit homers until you get the first one.’ There’s been some times where I thought maybe I had a chance earlier when it was a little bit colder, the ball wasn’t flying as far. I’ll take it. Good to get the first one.”

Combine Arroyo’s early clutch swing with a masterful pitching performance by lefty Martín Pérez (7 2/3 shutout innings), and it was a great day for the Red Sox.

Xander Bogaerts, mired in an 0-for-24 slump -- his longest stretch without a hit since his rookie season of 2014 -- ended the drought at just the right time with an insurance two-run double down the left-field line in the seventh.

“We walked a few times, right? That’s something we talk about, controlling the strike zone,” said Cora. “Alex [Verdugo] did a good job going the other way, walked twice. [Kevin] Plawecki walked. We hit the ball the other way. Christian gets a count to 3-2, puts a good swing and hits a home run. It was better.”

It turned out to be more than Pérez needed. In the technical pecking order of Boston’s rotation, Pérez is No. 5. Don’t let that fool you, though.

During the same period that projected staff ace Eduardo Rodriguez has been mired in a slump, the team’s other lefty starter has come up big with one of the best stretches of his career. In his past seven starts, Pérez is 4-1 with a 1.98 ERA.

“I just go out there and compete, man. Just pitch for contact,” Pérez said. “I know these guys swing a lot, and they're aggressive at home plate. I'm just trying to throw quality pitches and get out of the inning quickly. I was throwing a lot of fastballs up, two-seamers down and away, changeups. I think I threw everything tonight, and it was a fun game. I enjoyed it, and we got the win.”

The only drama left after the Red Sox padded the lead was whether Pérez could get the third complete-game shutout of his career, and his first since he had back-to-backers April 18 and 23, 2014.

With Cora ejected after arguing balls and strikes earlier in the game, bench coach Will Venable lifted Perez at 82 pitches with two on and two outs in the eighth.

“I can go nine or 10. It doesn't matter,” said Pérez. “They decided that it was over for me, and [Adam] Ottavino comes in and made five pitches. It was a great game. I'm happy to help the team and the organization to win.”

Now the Red Sox head to New York with at least a little wind in their sails as they embark on the first series of the season between the longtime archrivals. It starts Friday night with the first of three games..

“Happy flight is what we call it,” said Arroyo. “Take this momentum, keep it rolling and roll into the next series.”