ARLINGTON -- Yet again, flashes of Oakland’s future were on display in its series opener against Texas on Monday. But it's going to take more of a consistent beam to help the club out of a slump as the A's fell to the Rangers, 2-1, to extend their losing streak to nine games.

"It’s not easy,” manager ​​Mark Kotsay said. “It’s a very difficult transition from where they’ve been to where they’re at now, and there’s going to be growing pains.”

With their losing streak nearing double-digits, the A's have now fallen to a season-high 34 games under .500 (41-75) for the 1st time since finishing the 1979 season 54 games under .500, at 54-108.

Oakland’s lone run came courtesy of a solo shot off the bat of Nick Allen. The 23-year-old second baseman drove the 104.6-mph homer to left field to put the A’s ahead in the third inning. It was the rookie’s third homer of the season and second in as many days.

Allen, who was called up in April and optioned twice before being recalled again in late June, has shown promise this month after a rough July where he was slashing .157/.192/.186. So far through August, Allen is slashing .281/.361/.500, with two homers and nine hits through 11 games.

“In the box, I’m definitely looser with my hands, you know, I’m not gripping the bat as hard,” Allen said, recalling the adjustments he’s made between July and August. “I’ve definitely just been trying to get a good pitch to hit, and I’ve been hitting.”

The solo shot -- which was countered by Marcus Semien with a home run of his own in the bottom of the third inning to knot the score at 1-1 -- would be Allen’s only hit of the game, as he finished the night 1-for-3 with a walk.

But Allen's poke represented the entirety of the A's offense on a frustrating night at the plate. Were it not for the recently-called-up Cal Stevenson, however, the Rangers could have separated themselves early.

Stevenson, who made his Major League debut on Wednesday, robbed the hot-hitting Corey Seager of a double with a diving catch in the third inning just after Semien rounded the bases.

The outfielder also drew two of the team's nine walks -- six of which were given up by Rangers starter Glenn Otto -- but the offense wasn’t able to capitalize on Texas’ struggles.

“Offensively, we got three hits tonight,” Kotsay said. “You’re not going to win many games when you get three hits, no matter if you have nine walks.”

Since coming off a July that saw Oakland post its first winning month this season, the team has consistently struggled at the plate in August. The A’s are currently tied with Miami and Detroit for the lowest batting average in the league this month, with an overall slash line of .210/.303/.313 over the last 15 days.

“We’re all fighting right now, competing really hard,” Allen said. “The [hits] will start falling and they’ll start dropping. We’ve got a lot of great hitters on this team. We’re just going to keep going out there every day and putting in the work.”