New York Mets made right decision last winter

Jason Burke | Oct 21, 2024

Jul 10, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza (64) prior to the game against the Washington Nationals at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Last offseason the New York Mets were interviewing candidates to take over managerial duties following the departure of Buck Showalter. They ultimately landed on Carlos Mendoza, and their new skipper just took them to Game 6 in the NLCS. They were eliminated by the Los Angeles Dodgers, but the Mets went further than most people thought they would this season, so it was certainly a successful season.

One of the other candidates that was interviewed for the Mets job was A's manager, Mark Kotsay. Now, this isn't to say that Kotsay couldn't have had the same level of success with this Mets team, but just that the task that has been in front of him has been completely different. Kotsay is managing a young roster through a tough rebuild while also serving as the face of the franchise when it comes to any relocation related questions.

Mendoza has been dealing with managing in the biggest media market and quite a few players that are on large contracts, as well as some big personalities. It's a different room to navigate, and Mendoza did a superb job this season.

When in comes to the 'OMG' celebrations, it's tough to see Kotsay approaching that differently, being that he likes to let his guys have personalties in the clubhouse. Most of the rest of the other celebrations were fan-led and had less to do with the team, so Grimace wouldn't have been something for Kotsay to deal with.

The Mets outperformed their pythagorean record by one win, finishing with an 89-73 record--a 14-game improvement over 2023. The A's improved by 19 wins over their 2023 campaign, but they also had a lot more improving to do after winning just 50 games a year ago. They also finished one win better than their pythagorean record.

It's impossible to say whether or not Kotsay would have had the same level of success with the Mets as Mendoza did because the situations are completely different. What we can see is that Kotsay is the right person for the role that he is currently in, providing the right temperament and mindset to a young clubhouse as the organization strives for better seasons in the future.

Kotsay is signed with the A's through the 2025 season, the team's first of at least three in Sacramento. GM David Forst said earlier this offseason that an extension would be something they'd need to talk about at some point. It doesn't appear to be out of the realm of possibility that Kotsay coud be permitted to interview for another gig elsewhere around the league this winter, should an intriguing option open up.

Despite the 179-307 (.368) record, Kotsay is very respected for the job that he has done with this club, considering the rosters he was given in 2022 and 2023, along with the entire relocation saga.