OAKLAND -- The Rangers could stride confidently into Monday night’s series opener against the A’s. Oakland was swept by Toronto over the weekend and went homerless in those three games. By contrast, Texas had won six of its previous seven contests and would be represented on the mound by Mike Minor, who shut out the Angels in his previous outing.

None of these storylines developed as expected. Minor was often effective but allowed four runs in six innings as the Rangers fell, 6-1, at Oakland Coliseum.

A’s starter Chris Bassitt, making his 2019 debut, yielded two hits in five scoreless innings. Texas' lone run came on a pinch-hit RBI double by Patrick Wisdom in the seventh inning.

Leading 2-0, the A’s essentially settled matters in the seventh inning on Chad Pinder’s RBI double and Stephen Piscotty’s sacrifice fly.