The Athletics won 8-5 over the Houston Astros on Saturday at Minute Maid Park, but the final box score doesn't show the fight Oakland had to do to secure the win.
When the A's fell behind 4-1 after the first inning, it appeared like it would be a long game for Oakland with Houston teeing off on starting pitcher Cole Irvin.
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However, the A's batters chipped away at the deficit and displayed the fight they've shown in previous games. Then Seth Brown gave Oakland the lead with a three-run home run in the top of the fifth inning.
The 30-year-old studied how Astros pitcher José Urquidy had pitched to him his first two at-bats and took advantage of the third appearance at the plate.
"I was just looking for something up," Brown told NBC Sports California's Chris Townsend and Dave Stewart on "A's Postgame Live" after the win. "[Urquidy] had been starting me off with changeups, my previous two at-bats.
"And so I kind of had a look at that and knew I needed to get something up, and I was lucky enough he gave me one that was kind of started middle in a little bit and kind of faded into the middle of the plate. So, yeah, it was just one of those things where I had a picture of what I wanted in my mind."
When Brown hit the three-run home run, the A's never looked back following their rough start. But Brown wasn't the only hero for Oakland on Saturday.
After a rough first inning where Irvin gave up three home runs to Aledmys Díaz, Kyle Tucker and Trey Mancini, with speculation that the he was tipping his pitches, the 28-year-old ensured that his start got back on track.
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Irvin would recompose himself and go seven innings for the A's, not allowing a single run after the first inning and giving his team a chance to stay in the game and eventually take the lead while he was still on the mound.
"You learn from past experiences," Irvin told reporters postgame. "That first inning has just been kind of my bugaboo in my career. It's been that way since college. Been that way since high school. Just something that just happens. I try to combat it, try to be ready a little bit sooner, but I want to come out and attack.
"And I'm not always trying to pay attention to what the opposition is trying to do against me. I had to recognize it and make the adjustments. And Murph did a great job of helping me recognize it. And fastball counts ended up being the reason why we got into that seventh inning."
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The A's are attempting to finish the season on a high note and will try to split the series with the Astros on Sunday when they send Ken Waldichuk (0-1, 5.40 ERA) to the mound. Houston will counter with Framber Valdez (15-5, 2.55 ERA) to go for the series win.