The Oakland Athletics announced today that they have agreed to long-term contract extensions with Vice President of Baseball Operations Billy Beane, General Manager David Forst and Manager Bob Melvin.
The A’s brain-trust has been in place for a long time. Beane, once an A’s player and then an advance scout under Sandy Alderson, is approaching 30 years as a member of the club’s front office. Forst, who began scouting with the A’s 18 years ago and then worked his way up he ladder, has held the A’s GM job since Beane was elevated from the GM chair to VP of Baseball Operations following the 2015 season. Melvin has been the skipper since the middle of the 2011 season.
The A’s surprised everyone in baseball this past season, winning 97 games and the second AL Wild Card despite being picked my most experts to finish at or near the bottom of the division.
Terms of the extensions are not yet known, but it’s pretty darn clear that A’s ownership wants these guys in place for a long time.