Kotsay extended as A¡¯s manager through ¡®28
Martin Gallegos
@MartinJGallegosMESA, Ariz. -- Since taking over as manager of the Athletics amid a roster overhaul that took place just before the start of the 2022 season, Mark Kotsay has made it clear that he desires to guide this team fully through a challenging rebuilding process and back into contention.
Entering a new era with higher expectations as they temporarily relocate to Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento for the next three seasons before a planned move to Las Vegas in 2028, the A¡¯s are now fully committed to Kotsay as their man at the helm for the foreseeable future.
The A¡¯s and Kotsay, whose contract was set to expire following 2025, finalized a three-year contract extension on Monday that keeps him in charge as manager through the 2028 season, with a club option for 2029.
¡°I¡¯m very humbled,¡± Kotsay said. ¡°Outside of the day that I married my wife, I think this is going to go down as one of the best days of my life. ¡ When I started this journey in ¡®22 as the manager, all I wanted was to be given a chance to see this thing through. ¡ I want a winning season, and I want to see that happen from this group that I started this journey with.¡±
Every A¡¯s player and coach, along with owner John Fisher and a front-office contingent led by general manager David Forst, gathered inside the home clubhouse at Hohokam Stadium on Monday morning. During a full team meeting before the club¡¯s first full-squad workout, Kotsay¡¯s extension was announced to the room.
To officially announce the new deal, the A¡¯s set up a press conference in a media room at the club¡¯s Spring Training complex. Upon walking into the room, Kotsay received an unexpected surprise: Every single A¡¯s player and coach was in attendance and greeted him with a standing ovation.
¡°It¡¯s rewarding to know that this organization believes in me and that they put their faith in me leading this group,¡± Kotsay said. ¡°I¡¯ve always wanted to lead this group to a World Series championship, and that¡¯s the goal. All of these faces in here can be a part of that group, and I am fully of the mindset that we can make this happen.¡±
The overall win-loss record in Kotsay¡¯s first three years of 179-307 may not reflect kindly, but the A¡¯s have not wavered in their belief that he is the right man for the job. That confidence stems from the culture Kotsay has established inside the clubhouse while navigating a young and inexperienced team through difficult seasons and uncertainty about where the club would be playing beyond 2024.
¡°Very few [managers], if any, have gone through what we experienced,¡± Forst said. ¡°Starting with player transition to stadium transition to city transition. All these things are unique. ¡ I know that there¡¯s stability that Mark brings to the clubhouse. A passion and honesty and integrity that everybody around him knows he believes what he¡¯s saying.¡±
Through those tough times, the A¡¯s have formed a core of players ¨C a group including Brent Rooker, Lawrence Butler, Mason Miller, Shea Langeliers, JJ Bleday and Zack Gelof ¨C that led the charge over an encouraging second half of 2024 in which they finished 39-37 over the final 76 games.
That momentum was only boosted this offseason with the signings of veterans such as Luis Severino, Jos¨¦ Leclerc and Gio Urshela, as well as a trade for left-hander Jeffrey Springs. Now, the A¡¯s will look to Kotsay ¨C whose passion for the A¡¯s organization was first sparked while he donned the green and gold as a player from 2004-07 before returning in 2016 as a coach ¨C to mold it all together for a club that has generated positive momentum and carries serious aspirations to contend for the playoffs in 2025.
¡°There¡¯s not a better guy to lead our group and lead our team moving into this new era of Sacramento and then Las Vegas,¡± said Rooker, who earlier this offseason received a five-year contract extension with a club option for 2030. ¡°He¡¯s a big reason that a lot of us in this room have improved as individuals and as a team. Having him on board for the next several years is extremely exciting for everybody involved.¡±