OAKLAND -- Right before Matt Olson walked it off Tuesday night with a tenth-inning solo home run against Brewers reliever Josh Hader, Matt Chapman had a chance to do the same thing, but struck out on a fastball. The All-Star third baseman got a fastball from the same left-hander in a similar situation Thursday, only this time, he did not miss.

With the A’s struggling to find that clutch hit, Chapman finally provided it in the eighth inning with a go-ahead two-run blast off Hader that proved to be the deciding factor in a 5-3 victory. The win moves Oakland into a tie for the second American League Wild Card spot.

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Chapman entered the day in a 1-for-27 slump over his past seven games, but a quick eye test would tell you that it wasn’t as bad as the numbers indicated. Chapman was still making hard contact over the tough stretch, often hitting balls right at defenders, including a rocket clocked at 107.4 mph, per Statcast, that was snagged by Brewers second baseman Keston Hiura for an out in the sixth.

“Last couple of games hadn’t been going exactly as you draw it up,” Chapman said. “To come up with an opportunity to help the team, it always comes back around like that I feel. Even when you’re not feeling good, you get a chance to step up. I just wanted to be ready.”

Despite going hitless in his first three at-bats Thursday, it was only a matter of time until Chapman broke out. Just like Olson did two days before, Chapman wasted no time against Hader, jumping all over a first-pitch fastball with an exit velocity of 106.4 mph and sending it well beyond the wall in center, a projected 432 feet, according to Statcast.

Looking to get the fastball lower in the zone, Hader said that the pitch went more outside over the plate than he wanted it to. He’s only allowed 26 hits on the year, but 11 of those have been home runs.

“That’s [Chapman’s] wheelhouse right there, down and in,” Hader said. “That’s a pitch he can get the head to. It’s just one of those things where the location wasn’t the best today.”

Hader was pitching a third consecutive day for the first time in his career, but Chapman said that Hader’s stuff still looked as good as it did in the five or six at-bats that heavily favored the left-hander throughout their Minor League battles.

“I saw him a little bit in Triple-A. I think today was the first ball I’ve ever put in play off of him,” Chapman said. “I’ll take it. I’m pretty sure he struck me out four times, so maybe I was due.”

With a close eye from the on-deck circle during Hader’s at-bat against Robbie Grossman just before him, Chapman made a keen observation. He noticed that Hader only threw his slider twice; in both cases, Grossman laid off for balls before eventually drawing a walk. After falling behind in the count against Hader on Tuesday night, Chapman did not want to risk falling into the same trap Thursday.

“I was ready to hit from pitch one. Not necessarily swing no matter what, but I know he’s trying to get ahead and expand swings,” Chapman said. “I was trying to get a fastball in a good spot. He started me off with a fastball last time I faced him and got ahead. When he’s ahead, he’s tough to hit, so I was trying to jump on something early.”

As has been the case most of the year, Chapman came up big in yet another crucial moment. Of his 24 home runs on the year, 11 of those have been of the go-ahead variety, tied with Angels star Mike Trout for the second most go-ahead homers in the AL.

“I definitely don’t shy away from those moments,” Chapman said. “I do like coming up in those moments. Hitting at the top of the lineup, I’ve been able to calm myself down and come through in those situations.”

“He’s taking the steps to become the player he needs to be,” A’s third-base coach Matt Williams said. “His 11th go-ahead homer of the year, that’s saying something. You get in those situations and you’re able to come through for your team, that’s pretty special."

Bailey living up to expectations

The strategy behind trading for Homer Bailey two weeks before the Trade Deadline was to squeeze a couple of extra starts out of him during a playoff race. The right-hander continued to hold up his end of the deal with another strong outing for the A’s.

Bailey held a tough Brewers lineup to just two earned runs over six innings, his third quality start in four outings for his new club.

“He’s been awesome and gets after it,” Chapman said. “Even when he’s not pitching, he works really hard and is a good teammate. It’s easy to get behind guys like that who throw a lot of strikes. He always gives us a chance to win."