Manager Mark Kotsay helped the Athletics navigate a difficult three seasons while the franchise lost a lot of games, built a young roster and dealt with an emotional departure from Oakland.

Now he gets the chance to lead during potentially happier times.

Kotsay and the Athletics have agreed to a contract extension through the 2028 season that includes a club option for 2029.

“I’m very humbled right now,” said Kotsay, a former Santa Fe High and Cal State Fullerton standout. “Outside of the day I married my wife, I think this is going to go down as one of the best days of my life. The opportunity has been given to me to lead this group forward.

“When I started this journey in 2022, as a manager, all I wanted was the chance to keep moving this forward and see this through.”

The 49-year-old Kotsay has led the A’s through a period of upheaval that’s included a move from Oakland to Sacramento, where they will play at a minor league stadium for the next few seasons. The eventual plan is to end up in Las Vegas.

The A’s had a 69-93 record in 2024, which was a 19-win improvement over a 112-loss season in 2023. The team appears to be on the rise with a young lineup that includes Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, Lawrence Butler and JJ Bleday as it is eyeing a return to the playoffs for the first time since 2020 after having a 32-32 record following the All-Star break last season.

Kotsay originally had a three-year contract covering 2022-24 and in November 2023 the team exercised his 2025 option. Now the manager and former big league outfielder — who played for the Athletics from 2004-07 — has some job security as the team starts its tenure in Sacramento.

DEVERS has no desire to give up third base

The Red Sox’s ballyhooed signing of Alex Bregman was met with considerable resistance Monday when Rafael Devers said he wouldn’t cede third base.

Devers, a three-time All-Star, has played the hot corner for Boston since 2017 and himself received a major deal just two years ago.

“Third base is my position,” Devers said through an interpreter. “It’s what I play. I don’t know what their plans are. We had a conversation. I made it clear on what my desires were. Whatever happens from here, I don’t know.”

When asked if he would be willing to become a designated hitter, without waiting for his interpreter to relay the question, Devers said, “No.”

The Red Sox signed Bregman on Saturday to a three-year, $120 million contract that includes a $5 million signing bonus. A two-time All-Star, Bregman has hit more than 20 home runs each of the past three seasons.

Landing Bregman was a key, the Red Sox hoped, to ending a stretch in which Boston has missed the playoffs five of the past six years.

Devers signed an 11-year, $331 million contract in January 2021 and has been even more productive in recent seasons than Bregman. Devers hit 28 homers and drove in 83 runs last season despite playing just 138 games because of an assortment of injuries. The year before, he had 33 homers and 100 RBIs while playing in 153 games.

That production and the financial investment by the Red Sox could give Devers some leverage in his push to stay at third.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora noted that Devers “was very vocal last year” about how the club needed to improve.

“The decisions that are going to be made here about roster construction and about what we’re going to do in the future, we’re going to make sure we have the best team possible out there,” Cora said. “(Devers) has a lot of pride. We know that. He feels like he’s a third baseman. He’s going to work out as a third baseman and then we’ll make decisions accordingly.

“I think here it’s not about Bregman or Devers or Cora. It’s about the Red Sox. Whatever decision we make is for the benefit of the team.”

Cora said Bregman could wind up at second or third base and Devers at third or DH.

“There’s competition here,” Cora said. “I think flexibility and versatility are huge for us.”

mets’ starting pitcher montas shut down

Right-hander Frankie Montas, who signed a two-year, $34 million free-agent contract in December with the New York Mets, will be shut down from for six to eight weeks because of a strained back.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said it was a high-grade lat strain and that Montas was heading to New York for an injection. After the shutdown, Montas will need a spring training-like buildup, meaning he won’t pitch until May at earliest.

The injury creates uncertainty for a starting rotation that went through an offseason makeover.

The Mets filled holes in their rotation with free-agent deals for Montas, Sean Manaea and Griffin Canning.

Montas missed most of the 2023 season because of shoulder surgery. He returned last season but went 7-11 with a 4.84 ERA while playing for the Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers.