Rival skipper unsurprised by A's breakout

This story was excerpted from Martín Gallegos’ A’s Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

OAKLAND – The A’s entered Tuesday's game against the Rangers at the Coliseum just three games back from first place in the American League West.

Considering they lost 112 games in 2023, the A’s (17-19) hovering around .500 and within striking distance in a tough division more than a month into the season is a surprise for most people in the baseball world. Rangers manager Bruce Bochy, however, had an idea this might be coming.

Bochy first took notice of the A’s perhaps being a better team than preseason prognostications indicated during Spring Training. Then came a three-game series at Globe Life Field on April 9-11 in Arlington, when the A’s took two of three from the defending World Series champions, with Oakland’s bullpen -- led by flamethrowing rookie Mason Miller -- leaving him particularly impressed.

“I saw it this spring,” Bochy said during an interview with A’s Cast on Monday. “You can tell this was a much better club. You look at the pitching, the back end of their bullpen is as good as anybody in baseball. That’s how good they’re throwing the ball. They do damage. They slug it. We saw it. … I just think they’re playing with a lot of confidence. Credit goes to [A’s manager] Mark Kotsay. What a great job he’s done here. I’m happy for him. We know we have our hands full here in this four-game series.”

Over his 27 seasons as a Major League manager, Bochy has seen a few of his former players go on to become a big league skipper. Kotsay, who played for Bochy with the Padres from 2001-03, was one of those players whom Bochy envisioned one day making the transition into coaching.

“I look at players when they play for me and the way they lead,” Bochy said. “It can be by example, and what I mean by that is just how hard they play the game with intensity and enthusiasm, because that’s contagious, or they’ll do it vocally. Mark did both. Mark was not afraid to say something to a player when they maybe didn’t do something right or needed a pat on the back. He was a very caring teammate. But also, he wasn’t afraid to be honest with them. As I got to know him, even before he started managing, I knew this would be the path for him. I think he’s going to have a long career as a manager and he’s going to do a great job.”

Kotsay, now in his third season as Oakland’s manager, dished out high praise for his former skipper on Monday before a 4-2 loss.

“He’s done it for a really long time,” Kotsay said of Bochy. “I don’t think we surprise him by [doing] anything. … When people talk about Boch, sometimes they don’t feel like he’s making decisions based on analytics or data, but it’s all there. He’s one of the best at knowing the numbers and having a good feel for players and when to ride them or when to back off them. You’ve seen what he’s done with his bullpen. … He’s well aware of his players and their performance.”