LOS ANGELES -- If all goes according to plan, A’s second baseman Zack Gelof will get a chance to one day match up with his younger brother, Jake, a second-round pick by the Dodgers in the 2023 MLB Draft.

With the A’s beginning a three-game series at Dodger Stadium, the thought of such a moment crept into the elder Gelof’s mind as he took the field on Tuesday night.

"That would be cool," Gelof said. "Hopefully, he’ll be hitting a lot of homers in this stadium someday."

They may not have been playing on the same field, but the two brothers found a way to somehow still be in sync.

While playing for the Dodgers rookie-level club in the Arizona Complex League on Tuesday afternoon, Jake hit the first home run of his professional career. About an hour later in Oakland’s 7-3 loss to the Dodgers, Zack, the A's No. 3 prospect by MLB Pipeline, sent an 0-1 fastball from Lance Lynn into the left-field seats for a 364-foot solo shot in the sixth inning.

"I just got a text [that Jake homered], so I sent him a text," Gelof said. “That is pretty cool. Not happy with getting the loss here, but I’m happy for him. … Getting here is a far way away. He’s just got to take it day by day and have fun doing it.”

If the Gelof genetics are consistent, it might not be too long until the brothers unite in the Majors. Zack was drafted 60th overall in the 2021 MLB Draft by the A’s and received his first callup to Oakland almost exactly two years later on July 14. Coincidentally, Jake was also the 60th overall selection by Los Angeles in last month’s Draft.

While Jake looks to carve his own path, Zack continued what has been an encouraging first showing with the A’s. His homer was part of a two-hit night, and the rookie has now recorded at least one hit in 10 of his first 15 big league games.

On Tuesday, Gelof showed an impressive ability to adjust in a showdown with a 12-year MLB veteran in Lynn. After smashing a 103.7 mph groundout and striking out in his first two at-bats, Gelof came to the plate in the sixth with a better idea of how to time the right-hander’s fastball. Sure enough, Gelof took a curveball for a strike before turning on a 91.6 mph fastball from Lynn for his fourth career homer.

That adjustment was a microcosm of the cat-and-mouse game that most young players, the 23-year-old Gelof included, find themselves in when first reaching the big leagues. Opposing pitchers will always identify weaknesses and look to attack them. It’s up to the hitter to adapt.

So far, Gelof has been able to do so, with a fair amount of success.

"A big thing is categorizing the pitchers," Gelof said. "Knowing what their pitch does. It’s easy to look out there and see big Lance Lynn and know that I’ve watched him for so many years. But in the end, he’s just throwing the baseball over the plate. They’re all going to be putting together game plans, and I have to adjust."

Gelof’s homer helped open up the scoring for the offense, which later saw homers by fellow rookie Jordan Diaz and All-Star Brent Rooker in the seventh off Lynn.

Ultimately, the A’s were dug into too large of an early deficit, beginning with Ken Waldichuk, who after starting out the game with three hitless innings was unable to complete the fourth after walking in a run and paving the way for a four-run rally for Los Angeles.

"In the fourth, he got two outs and had a chance to get out of the inning,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said of Waldichuk. “The two walks and the hit-by-pitch were reflective of the grind he was going through. This is a deep lineup. They took some good at-bats and worked his pitch count up early. Whether it was fatigue or just a loss of command in that inning, he was good for three. That’s progress from where he’s been. We’ll continue to work."