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OAKLAND -- Outfielder Charles Thomas got to McAfee Coliseum a good four-plus hours before Monday's game against the Devil Rays, unsure whether he'd even be in uniform for the first pitch.

Four-plus hours after the first pitch, drenched in sweat following a postgame workout, Thomas wore the satisfied look of a man who'd survived one of the most emotionally taxing days of his brief big-league career.

"I went from E to E today," said Thomas, who started the 11th-inning rally that Mark Kotsay capped with a two-out, game-winning single to give the A's a 5-4 win and stop their losing streak at eight games.

"Exasperation to exhilaration."

The exasperation stemmed from shortstop Bobby Crosby's return from the disabled list. Thomas, who entered the game batting .098, knew full well that he was a prime candidate for demotion as the A's pondered the roster move they needed to make.

"The worst part is not knowing," Thomas said somberly during batting practice. "I mean, at any minute you could get tapped on the shoulder and called into the office."

Another candidate -- a regular, albeit puzzling candidate in such situations -- was infielder Marco Scutaro. Twice ticketed for Triple-A Sacramento before injuries to Mark Ellis (2004) and Crosby (Opening Day 2005) helped him beat the reaper, Scutaro had been a savior of sorts for the A's infield, and the third candidate, infielder Keith Ginter, was armed with a two-year, guaranteed contract.

"I didn't think it'd be Keith," said Thomas.

It was, though. Ginter was optioned after batting practice, and like Thomas, Scutaro celebrated his security in style. He entered the game as a pinch-runner in the ninth, his perfectly placed hit-and-run single in the 11th moved Thomas to third base and, after Thomas was erased in a rundown after Jason Kendall grounded to third, he scored the winning run from second on Kotsay's single to right.

"Kind of a cool night," said Thomas.

Cool in a lot of ways.

Trailing, 4-1, the A's rallied for two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, the second coming on a clutch single by struggling third baseman Eric Chavez.

Kendall, another one of Oakland's long-scuffling stars, forced extra innings with a two-out single in the bottom of the ninth.

And the A's bullpen combo platter of Keiichi Yabu, Justin Duchscherer, Ricardo Rincon and Huston Street put in 6 1/3 scoreless innings in relief of rookie starter Joe Blanton.

"There hasn't been a whole lot to be happy about around here," admitted Kotsay, who went 2-for-5 with a double and added to his highlight reel of sensational catches with a wall-bashing grab in the seventh. "I think it's huge for this club -- the morale, the spirit."

Manager Ken Macha has long been insisting that morale hasn't been a problem, and Thomas' enthusiasm in the ninth inning was emblematic.

"I was looking around to see if he was ready to pinch-run, and he already had his helmet on," said Macha. "He was ready to go."

After rookie outfielder Nick Swisher, down to the A's last strike of the game, singled off Rays reliever Danys Baez, Thomas got his chance. Another successful sub, pinch-hitter Adam Melhuse, singled Thomas to third, and Kendall's sharp single to left gave Oakland the new life it needed.

"We used the whole roster tonight," said Macha, "and everybody contributed."

Bobby Kielty opened the scoring with a solo homer off Devil Rays starter Scott Kazmir in the bottom of the first inning, but Tampa Bay came right back to take the lead on a two-run homer by rookie Damon Hollins in the top of the second off Blanton. Julio Lugo drilled an RBI single later in the frame, and Aubrey Huff's RBI double in the fifth made it 4-1.

"Obviously, any win is nice," said Kotsay. "But to come back from a three-run deficit late like that ... it's extra nice to see everyone just grind it out and battle to the very end and get rewarded for it."

Added Thomas: "It's a great feeling. And not just for me. For everybody."

Mychael Urban is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.