Despite the A’s coming off a second consecutive 100-loss season and finishing with the worst record in the Majors, general manager David Forst praised manager Mark Kotsay for his ability to navigate a young and inexperienced team through a challenging year.
On Monday, the A’s reaffirmed their belief in their skipper by announcing that the club option on Kotsay’s contract for 2025 has been exercised, keeping him on board for the next two seasons.
“From our end, it was kind of an obvious decision,” Forst said. “I talked after the year about the job I think Mark has done the last two years in leading this group and managing the clubhouse by really establishing himself as the leader and kind of the face of the franchise on the field. I couldn’t be happier with the work he’s done there, so this was easy from our end.”
The win-loss record does not reflect favorably on Kotsay, who carries a managerial record of 110-214 through his first two seasons with Oakland. Those two years, however, have coincided with a major rebuild the A’s began shortly after Kotsay took over as manager before the start of the 2022 season by trading away several star players who made up the core of recent successful clubs.
What Forst believes makes Kotsay the right man for the job is his ability to draw on the multitude of experiences from a 17-year Major League playing career. He brings a relatability to his players, regardless of what stage of their careers they’re currently at.
With prospects such as Zack Gelof, Lawrence Butler, Tyler Soderstrom and Mason Miller having reached the big leagues this season -- a group that the A’s hope will form its next playoff-contending core -- Kotsay will get an opportunity to continue playing a part in their development.
“Mark comes from a unique background in terms of having experienced so many different things in the game as a player,” Forst said. “I see him almost on a daily basis be able to pull a player aside and talk to him about what they’re going through from a first-person perspective. It’s not something every manager or coach can do. … I find that to be such a huge part of building relationships and credibility with the players.”
Kotsay was granted permission to interview for the Mets’ managerial vacancy and has been linked to the Astros’ managerial opening, though the expectation is that he will remain at the helm for the A’s in 2024 and beyond.
“He did interview [with the Mets],” Forst said. “Opportunities come and I do think it’s important that employees are committed to where they are. … Mark will be here going forward.”
As for the rest of Kotsay’s coaching staff, Forst indicated that he expects “a couple” of changes for the upcoming season.
“We’re close to finalizing that,” Forst said. “I’m hoping to get that done by the end of the week. … We can address those [changes] once it’s finalized and we’re ready to announce the whole staff.”