HOUSTON -- The A's used the long ball to claim an early lead against the Astros in Monday's series opener at Minute Maid Park.
Facing right-hander Gerrit Cole, who had not yielded a home run since July 4, the A's got two-run blasts from Marcus Semien and Matt Chapman for a 4-0 advantage. Semien got to Cole with two outs in the second for his 11th homer of the season, while Chapman collected his fourth in as many games and 21st overall in the third.
Chapman's 2-run jack in 3rd The red-hot Chapman has an MLB-best 28 extra-base hits since the All-Star break, including 11 homers.