ATLANTA - Freddie Freeman hit a three-run homer, one of four by Atlanta, and the Braves beat the Oakland Athletics 7-2 on Friday night in the opening game of the interleague series.
Justin Upton and Evan Gattis hit homers off Jason Hammel (1-5) in the second inning. Rookie Phil Gosselin hit a two-run homer, the first of his career, off Jesse Chavez in the sixth.
It was a rare power surge for the Braves, who had not scored more than four runs in any of their past six games.
The Braves entered the game having lost 12 of 15.
Alex Wood (9-9) allowed only two runs in six innings - a two-run homer by Nate Freiman in the fourth.
The A’s have lost three straight and five of six.
Wood allowed four hits in six innings. Relievers David Carpenter, Jordan Walden and James Russell combined for three hitless scoreless innings.
Atlanta is six games behind first-place Washington in the NL East.
Hammel allowed five runs and six hits, including three homers, in three innings. He was pulled after walking B.J. Upton to open the fourth.
Gosselin’s homer followed a two-out fielding error by Freiman, the first baseman, on Jason Heyward’s grounder.
The Braves had their second four-homer game of the homestand and only their fourth game with four or more homers this season. They also hit four homers in a 7-6 win over Washington on Aug. 8.
Before that, the Braves hadn’t hit four homers in a game since May 25 against Colorado. Their high mark was five homers at Philadelphia on April 14.
Freeman’s homer, his 17th, drove in Heyward and Gosselin, who reached on singles. Justin Upton leads Atlanta with 22 homers.
NOTES
CF Craig Gentry, on the 15-day disabled list with a broken right hand, will take batting practice with Triple-A Sacramento on Saturday.
RHP Sonny Gray will try to snap a streak of losses in three straight starts in Saturday night’s game. The three-game skid is the longest of his career.
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