MINNEAPOLIS -- Don't fault Minnesota Twins right fielder Torii Hunter if he was feeling a bit sentimental on Monday night against the Oakland Athletics.

With May the 4th being celebrated at Target Field and "Hughes the Force" bobbleheads (in honor of Twins starter Phil Hughes) handed out to select ticket holders, the "Star Wars" theme song blared over the loud speakers as Hunter rounded the bases after his three-run homer in the sixth inning.

Hunter's home run was the difference for the Twins in an 8-7 win, extending Minnesota's winning streak to five games.

Long since replaced by Prince's "Let's Go Crazy" as the Twins' home-run anthem at Target Field, the "Star Wars" theme is what used to be played at the Metrodome when Hunter first broke into the big leagues in 1997.

The 40-year-old Hunter channeled the late-1990s version of himself in the sixth, turning on a 1-0 fastball from Oakland reliever R.J. Alvarez and launching it just inside the left-field foul pole for his third homer of the season. The blast turned a 5-5 game into an 8-5 lead for the Twins and made Hughes, on his bobblehead night, the winner.

"That guy (Alvarez) throws like 96 (mph)," Hunter said. "He threw (Twins second baseman Brian) Dozier like five sliders and I just figured he was all slider'd out (so) let's look for the fastball. He threw the first one up -- I'd never seen it before, never faced him. I just tried to size him up. He threw the fastball down and in; I just capitalized."

Hughes allowed a grand slam in the first inning to A's catcher Stephen Vogt but used his offspeed stuff more effectively after that, lasting six innings and allowing five runs on nine hits and a pair of walks.

"After the first inning, I knew whatever I did after that, it wasn't going to be pretty," Hughes said. "My goal was to eat some innings for us, keep us in the game and keep us right there and hopefully the guys would score some runs. They did in a big way."

Vogt finished with three hits and came a couple feet from tying the game with a long double high off the wall in right field against Twins closer Glen Perkins with two outs in the ninth. The grand slam was the first of his career and the five RBIs established a new career best.

"Pretty much summed up our night," Vogt said of the ninth-inning double.

"A microcosm of our season at this point," A's manager Bob Melvin said. "That ball -- just not quite enough and we end up one run short."

Vogt's homer in the first inning was his third consecutive at-bat with a home run; he hit a pair of home runs in his final two at-bats against the Texas Rangers in a 7-1 win on Sunday.

"I just feel good. I have confidence," Vogt said. "For the first time, when the organization tells you, 'Hey, you're going to be our catcher on Opening Day,' that does a lot for your psyche and your confidence. I've just felt like myself all year and I've been hot. Things are feeling good."

After Vogt's blast in the first put the A's ahead 4-0, the Twins rallied to tie the game in the second, stringing together four one-out hits, including RBI singles by center fielder Jordan Schafer and shortstop Danny Santana, to make it 4-2. Second baseman Brian Dozier followed with a two-run double to deep left that Oakland left fielder Mark Canha couldn't handle.

Canha's fourth homer of the year cleared the second deck in left field, giving Oakland a brief 5-4 lead in the sixth.

Oakland starter Jesse Hahn took the loss, allowing six runs on 10 hits in five-plus innings.

"Up, more than anything," Melvin said. "Hung a curveball to (Twins left fielder Eduardo) Escobar, some fastballs that normally are sinking down in the zone were up today."

Perkins worked around Vogt's RBI double in the ninth, stranding the tying run on second base when he struck out left fielder Craig Gentry for his ninth save.

Schafer tied a season high with three hits, drew a walk and made the defensive play of the game, robbing A's center fielder Billy Burns of extra bases with a diving catch in the right-center-field gap to end the inning.

"The guy got jammed a little bit and that's a tough read," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "He just closed on it really well. That was a big play at that time. They had a little momentum going, and to get off the field was a good thing for us."

Burns and third baseman Brett Lawrie had two hits apiece for Oakland, which has lost eight of its past 11 overall.

"It's frustrating; there's no hiding it anymore," Vogt said. "We're squaring balls up right at people. We're giving up broken-bat two-RBI doubles. We're struggling late in games to get people out. It's just frustrating."

NOTES: Oakland OF Josh Reddick was named the co-American League Player of the Week on Monday. Reddick hit .478 with three homers, 12 RBIs and eight runs scored last week. ... Athletics LHP Eric O'Flaherty's MRI revealed no structural damage to his throwing shoulder. O'Flaherty was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Saturday with a left shoulder strain. ... Twins OF Oswaldo Arcia was placed on the DL with a right hip flexor strain. ... Twins OF Eddie Rosario was recalled from Triple-A Rochester. Rosario is hitting .242 with three homers at Triple-A. ... The Athletics and Twins will play the second of a four-game series at Target Field on Tuesday. Oakland LHP Jesse Chavez (0-2, 2.55 ERA) will oppose Minnesota RHP Trevor May (2-1, 4.43 ERA).