OAKLAND -- Wins and losses are an obvious measurement of success in baseball. By that standard, the A’s have already shown marked improvement from the previous two years.

The A’s snapped a streak of back-to-back 100-plus-loss seasons with their 63rd win of 2024 in Tuesday’s series opener against the Astros and followed that with a 5-4 win on Wednesday night at Minute Maid Park that secured a series victory.

With 16 games remaining this season, the A’s have a shot to vastly outperform their ‘23 (50) and ‘22 (60) win totals by a wide margin.

Mark Kotsay knew what he was signing up for when he took on the job as manager of the A’s in December 2021. His hiring came just before the start of a complete roster teardown and rebuild, which meant the losses would likely pile up while the organization sought to identify its next crop of players who could get the club back on a winning track.

Sure enough, those losses came in bunches. But through those failures in the win-loss column, Kotsay was more invested in the process of helping young players improve as big leaguers. This remains true even now as the wins have come more frequently -- Oakland’s 28-21 record since July 14 is second-best in the American League, trailing only the Tigers (29-21).

“Our goal at the start of the season was to improve,” Kotsay said. “It’s nice that the wins and losses are showing the improvement. … I like to look at it in terms of the development aspect and maturation process of these guys becoming everyday big leaguers as opposed to wins and losses.

“The wins and losses are always going to stay with me, and that’s OK. I bought into this and want to see it through. I want to see these guys establish themselves as impact big league players here with this club and help lead this club to a postseason.”

That development has been evident over the past two months.

It is apparent with rookie starter Joey Estes, who limited Houston to three runs (two earned) on seven hits and one walk with two strikeouts through 6 2/3 innings Wednesday.

“He got better and better as the game went on,” Kotsay said. “You could see the energy. We talk about Joey a lot as a competitor. It’s Tim Hudson-like, and you saw it come out of him.”

Estes -- one of two prospects acquired from the Braves in the 2022 Matt Olson trade who are currently on the A’s roster along with catcher Shea Langeliers -- is solidifying himself as a member of Oakland’s rotation for the foreseeable future. The 22-year-old right-hander has allowed three runs or fewer in nine of his past 10 outings. He’s doing it by demonstrating supreme control, having kept his walk count down for the majority of the season.

“I’ve caught him in Triple-A,” said catcher Kyle McCann, who slugged a go-ahead two-run home run off Astros starter Hunter Brown in the sixth inning. “I knew [the success] would happen the whole time. His fastball command is outstanding. On top of that, he’s got offspeed that plays all day long. When he’s throwing like that, it’s fun.”

The first-place team on the other side certainly views this young A’s squad as a team on the rise.

“I wouldn’t say [they are] underrated,” Brown said. “We know they’re good. They do some things as a team that are tough, across the lineup. Top to the bottom, they all do some different things."

That lineup features an emerging star in Lawrence Butler, who returned from a bout with a virus to extend his career-best hitting streak to 19 games.

It includes an elite hitter in Brent Rooker, who notched his 100th and 101st RBIs of the season on a pair of singles and remains among the top six AL hitters in batting average (.299) and home runs (35).

There’s also A’s No. 1 prospect Jacob Wilson, who set the table for McCann’s clutch blast by roping a single to lead off the sixth.

Then there’s flamethrowing All-Star closer Mason Miller, who made quick work of the Astros in a 1-2-3 ninth to record his 24th save of the season, which puts him two away from tying Andrew Bailey for the A’s rookie record.

“The team chemistry is awesome,” McCann said. “Every day, we show up and we’re goofballs in the locker room. That carries out there. … We know we have a solid group here and we’re going to finish the season strong, then come in next year ready to go.”