Ryan Noda homered and the visiting Oakland Athletics scored seven runs in the first inning Wednesday to top the Pittsburgh Pirates 9-5 in the decider of a three-game series.

Jace Peterson added a two-run double, Brent Rooker had two RBIs, and Jonah Bride and JJ Bleday each hit an RBI single for the A’s, who have won back-to-back games for the third time.

Oakland starter Hogan Harris (1-0), making his first major league start, allowed three runs and four hits in five innings, with three walks and two strikeouts.

Trevor May got the final two outs for his first save.

Rodolfo Castro homered and hit a two-run double for the Pirates.

Pittsburgh starter Roansy Contreras (3-5) got rocked for seven runs, six hits and two walks while recording just one out, a strikeout.

Noda opened the game with a walk, went to second on Seth Brown’s single to center and scored on Rooker’s single to left-center for a 1-0 A’s lead. Ramon Laureano walked to load the bases. Peterson doubled down the line in right to drive in two to make it 3-0.

Bride and Bleday had back-to-back RBI base hits and it was 5-0 before Shea Langeliers struck out for the first out. Rob Zastryzny replaced Contreras and walked Noda and Brown, each on four pitches, to force in two more runs for a 7-0 Oakland edge.

With two outs in the second, Castro hit his sixth homer an estimated 430 feet into the Pirates’ bullpen to cut it to 7-1.

In the fourth, Carlos Santana walked with one out, Ke’Bryan Hayes singled to right, and Castro drove both in with a double to left-center to close it to 7-3.

Against Luis Ortiz in the seventh, Noda hit a one-out homer, his seventh, to left to make it 8-3. Brown doubled to center and scored on Rooker’s double to left-center.

A’s reliever Ken Waldichuk walked Connor Joe with the bases loaded in the seventh to make it 9-4, and Reynolds’ RBI in the ninth made it 9-5.

–Field Level Media