Instant Analysis: Five takeaways as A's power past Rangers

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OAKLAND — The offbeat, colorful uniforms worn by the A’s gave a different feel to Friday night’s game.

Khris Davis’ home run stroke? That’s identifiable no matter what the slugger is wearing.

The A’s mustered just four hits against Texas. Luckily for them, two of those were homers off the bat of their left fielder. Those solo shots made the difference in a 3-1 victory to open this three-game series against a Rangers team that’s in the thick of the American League Wild Card race.

The A’s wore brightly colored uniforms — green jerseys, yellow sleeves and yellow hats — as part of the first ever Players Weekend concept adopted by MLB and the Players Association this year. Everyone wore a nickname on the back of their jerseys, and Davis’ lived up to his “Khrush” moniker.

He now has 36 homers, leaving him just six shy of last year’s career-high 42 with 34 games remaining. Worth noting: His 35 homers from the cleanup spot are third most in Oakland history by a No. 4 hitter. Mark McGwire hit 51 in 1996 and 38 in 1995.

It was 1-1 when Davis lashed his second homer, a blast to center in the seventh, off Nick Martinez (3-5). That marked his AL-best 17th go-ahead homer of the season. The game wrapped in a tidy 2 hours, 26 minutes.

ROUNDING INTO FORM: Starter Kendall Graveman gave up just a first-inning run, then settled in for a strong seven innings to notch the victory. He scattered nine hits, struck out six and didn’t issue a walk. Coming off a n outing in Houston in which he walked three and admittedly wasn’t his sharpest, Friday’s effort appeared more like vintage Graveman.

BACK END OF BULLPEN SHINES: Chris Hatcher and Blake Treinen appear to have settled into eight and ninth inning roles in Oakland’s bullpen. Hatcher handled the eighth and got the ball to Treinen, who recorded his sixth save with the A’s and struck out two.

‘D’ HELPS GRAVEMAN: A’s officials have raved for some time about Matt Olson’s defense at first base, and the rookie justified it with several standout plays to back Graveman. In the second, he took a throw from Matt Chapman, then fired a throw back across the diamond to nail Rougned Odor, who tried advancing from second to third on Chapman’s throw. In the eighth, with a runner on first, he made a great pick on Shin-Soo Choo’s sharp grounder that would have gone for extra bases down the right-field line.

CANHA GET AN OPPORTUNITY?: Mark Canha was recalled from Triple-A Nashville to take the roster spot of center fielder Rajai Davis, traded Wednesday to Boston. Manager Bob Melvin indicated that the right-handed hitting Canha is in line to get some starts in center field against left-handed pitchers, beginning Saturday with Texas’ Cole Hamels. Expect Chad Pinder to get a look in center here and there but the A’s also value him in the corner outfield spots. Regarding center, Melvin once again sang the praises of rookie Boog Powell, who entered Friday hitting .433 (13-for-30) in 10 games since coming up from the minors.

The A’s have several potential candidates in the mix to man center field next season, but Melvin said of Powell: “To this point you can’t help but think about next year and the potential of him in center field for us.”

BLACKBURN HITS THE DL: It wasn’t too surprising when right-hander Paul Blackburn joined the 10-day disabled list Friday with a right hand contusion. Blackburn is still in plenty of discomfort with little mobility in his throwing hand since taking a liner off the hand Tuesday against the Orioles. His DL stint is retroactive to Aug. 23, making him eligible to return Sept. 2. Right now there are no plans to immobilize his hand.

Given the injury, what are the biggest challenges right now in everyday life?

“Getting dressed and drying yourself off,” Blackburn offered.

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