OAKLAND -- Every newcomer is in search of that first big moment to make them feel like they are truly a part of the team. That moment finally came for Austin Allen.

After a quiet start to his first season with the A’s, Allen was at the forefront of Wednesday night’s 6-4 win over the Rangers at the Coliseum. The rookie catcher’s first Major League home run came at a good time, as his go-ahead, two-run blast off Ian Gibaut in the seventh inning put Oakland ahead for good.

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“Talk about a huge hit and a huge homer,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “Then calling a win behind the plate and finishing it out. It was a big day for him. This will be a day that he’ll remember forever.”

Entering the night, Allen was 1-for-11 over his first five games. As can sometimes be the case with young players, the 26-year-old backstop appeared to be pressing a bit at the plate early on.

“He won’t press anymore,” Melvin said. “His first homer was about as impactful as it can be. Now, I think he can relax a little more.”

Allen, a left-handed-hitting catcher, was acquired from the Padres this past offseason in a trade that sent infielder Jurickson Profar to San Diego. Allen’s teammates in the A’s dugout immediately erupted as soon as he made contact, smashing a 2-0 fastball from Gibaut with an exit velocity of 103.9 mph per Statcast. The ball went 406 feet to right-center field.

The trip around the bases was an emotional one for Allen, who said he didn’t even feel the ball hit the bat upon contact.

“Being traded over here and getting close with this group of guys has been unbelievable,” Allen said. “These guys have helped me out every single day. They’re giving me tips and advice. I’m so happy to be an Oakland A, and hopefully I can stay here for a long time.”

It was Oakland's fifth win in a row, and it should come as no surprise that the streak comes in the middle of a power surge. The home run has long been embedded in the A's DNA. It's what they do when they're at their best. Dating back to Monday's 11-1 win over the Mariners, the last 11 runs scored by the A's have come via homers.

The A’s swatted four homers, with two coming from Matt Olson, who first crushed a go-ahead, two-run shot off Kyle Gibson in the first and later added a solo blast in the eighth to increase Oakland's lead to 6-4.

“We’ve been known to hit some homers before and score all our runs with homers,” Melvin said. “It’s not a surprise.”

Bullpen makes up for Manaea’s tough start
Sean Manaea appears to be split into two different pitchers through the early part of the season.

There’s the Manaea who shows up in the first three innings of his starts, allowing only one run in those frames through his first three outings. Then, there's the middle-innings version of Manaea, who appears to hit a wall. Those struggles returned after the third vs. the Rangers.

Manaea brushed off a leadoff homer by Shin-Soo Choo and racked up five strikeouts through three innings. At that point, he was pitching with a 2-1 lead, but that was given back to the Rangers in the fourth, when the left-hander was tagged for three runs and pulled with one out in the inning. Manaea allowed four runs on six hits and a walk.

The tough fourth continued a troubling trend for Manaea. Opponents are now 13-for-25 with five doubles and eight RBIs the second time through the order against him this season.

“His location kind of quit on him a little bit,” Melvin said. “He got some balls in the middle of the plate. Just having trouble getting through those middle innings. At some point, I believe he’ll get through them. He’s just struggling in that fourth to where we need to go to someone else.”

In relief of Manaea, the A’s bullpen continued to impress, shutting down the Rangers with 5 2/3 scoreless innings. Burch Smith, who took over for Manaea with a runner at first, turned in three perfect frames, retiring all 10 batters he faced and striking out four. After T.J. McFarland pitched two-thirds of an inning, Joakim Soria set down all five batters he faced, recording three strikeouts and earning his second save.

The A’s relief corps is making an early case for team MVP as a group. Over 52 innings, Oakland relievers have a 1.90 ERA, which ranks second in the American League behind only Cleveland (1.65). Smith hasn't allowed a run in 7 1/3 innings, allowing only three hits.

“Burch is nasty,” Allen said. “He’s got that fastball that just spins. He can throw his curveball and changeup at any point, too. He’s one of those guys that just comes out and attacks hitters, like you saw tonight.”