OAKLAND -- Shohei Ohtani found an oasis in a season that has resembled a crawl across the desert Tuesday night. The reigning American League Rookie of the Year delivered the type of hit that distinguished his performance a year ago, lining a tiebreaking, two-run single in the ninth inning to

OAKLAND -- Shohei Ohtani found an oasis in a season that has resembled a crawl across the desert Tuesday night.

The reigning American League Rookie of the Year delivered the type of hit that distinguished his performance a year ago, lining a tiebreaking, two-run single in the ninth inning to propel the Angels past the A’s 6-4.

Ohtani was batting .229 when he stepped into the batter’s box for his crucial plate appearance. The Angels had given him an opportunity for redemption, rousing themselves with two outs in the ninth and the score deadlocked at 4-4. Facing Oakland setup specialist Joakim Soria, Tommy La Stella singled and Mike Trout walked. Ohtani came next.

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Ohtani was frozen by a 1-2 curveball that many observers believed was strike three. Working in his favor on that play was A’s catcher Josh Phegley not being able to catch the pitch, which may have cost Soria the call. Ohtani later delivered his big hit on a 2-2 fastball to score La Stella and Trout, precipitating the end of Oakland’s 10-game winning streak.

“I’m not swinging the bat as well as I could right now,” Ohtani said through interpreter Ippei Mizuhara. “But I’m still trying to contribute to victory and I was able to do that today.”

Ohtani’s far short of the numbers he compiled in 2018, when he batted .285 with 22 homers and 61 RBIs in just 367 plate appearances. He acknowledged that he might have heaped undue pressure upon himself.

“I wasn’t getting the results to release the frustration; I think that’s only natural as a hitter,” Ohtani said. “I keep on working hard, trying to get better -- not just what I did last year.

"I’m just lacking skill right now. There were a lot of balls I should have put in play in there.”

A right elbow injury (which required Tommy John surgery) that forced Ohtani to miss the season’s first 34 games has stymied his efforts to progress, while also preventing him from pitching this season -- the talent that made him so unusual as a dual threat. He was activated from the injured list on May 7.

Angels manager Brad Ausmus hasn’t noticed any dramatic differences in Ohtani’s workouts or approach.

“He goes about his business very methodically,” Ausmus explained.

Ohtani stopped just short of admitting that Soria threw him strike three.

“That was a really close pitch. I think it could have gone either way,” Ohtani said. “Today, the plate umpire called it a ball. Whatever the umpire says, goes. Sometimes I’ll get the wrong end of it, today I got the better end of it.”

Ausmus, whose ballclub occasionally has been victimized by disputed umpire’s calls this year, succinctly accepted the Angels’ second victory in six games over the A’s.

"I’m not going to cry in my soup,” Ausmus said, referring to the third strike that wasn’t.