The A’s officially named Mark Kotsay their next manager Tuesday, less than 24 hours after Audacy Sports’ Jon Heyman reported the move.
Kotsay, 46, succeeds his friend and mentor Bob Melvin as the 31st manager in franchise history and 19th manager in Oakland A’s history. According to the team, Kotsay signed a three-year contract with a club option for the 2025 season.
Melvin was the longest-tenured manager in Oakland A’s history before he was granted an opportunity to speak with the San Diego Padres earlier this year. Melvin agreed to a three-year accord with the Padres and brought trusted bench coach Ryan Christenson with him to San Diego, leaving Kotsay as the prime in-house candidate.
Kotsay spent four of his 17 MLB seasons in Oakland from 2004-07 and cultivated a reputation as a hard-nosed grinder throughout his career, where he mainly played center field. He spent last season as a third-base coach, but had been part of Melvin’s staff as a bench coach and quality control coach since 2016.
A’s right-handers Chris Bassitt and James Kaprielian tweeted out their approval of Kotsay’s hiring on Monday afternoon.
Kotsay beat out a reported field of finalists that included Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro, Astros bench coach Joe Espada, A’s bullpen coach Marcus Jensen and A’s hitting coach Darren Bush.
With five seasons on the A’s coaching staff, the respected Kotsay provides the most seamless transition the front office could ask for. He also probably fits the teams budget constraints as a first-year skipper and figures to shave some payroll off Melvin’s projected $4 million salary for 2022.
When/if the MLB lockout is resolved, the A’s could be looking at a roster rebuild next season, with stars like Matt Chapman, Matt Olson, Bassitt, Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas potentially available for trades.
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