BOSTON — Manager Mark Kotsay called a team meeting in the visitors’ clubhouse shortly after the Athletics arrived at Fenway Park on Friday, and outfielder Lawrence Butler had no idea why.
The A’s slugger surveyed his teammates — none came up with the correct answer. Eventually they got the news: The organization and general manager David Forst mutually agreed to part ways after nearly three decades before the A's dropped their series opener, 13-1, to the Red Sox.
“When you show up to the ballpark, you’re not expecting to hear that,” Butler said. “I was kind of in shock. I’d say that for all of us.”
In a release sent out just before 1 p.m. PT, the franchise named assistant general manager Dan Feinstein as interim general manager for the remainder of the 2026 season.
"David has been an integral part of the A’s and our success for nearly three decades," A’s owner and managing partner John Fisher said in the release. "His leadership, dedication, and commitment to this team have helped shape our baseball operations department and position us for the future. We are grateful for everything David has done for our organization.”
“It was truly an honor to spend the last 27 years with the A’s, especially the last 11 as the GM,” Forst said in the release. “This organization is full of incredibly talented, devoted, and good people, and I am lucky to have worked alongside them for so long.”
Forst, 50, began his front-office career as a scout with the then-Oakland Athletics in 2000. He was named assistant general manager to Billy Beane in 2004 and was later promoted to general manager after Beane left the role following the 2015 season.
In 10 full seasons under Forst's leadership, the A's won the AL West once, in the shortened 2020 season, and made the playoffs three times from 2018-20.
Kotsay’s relationship with Forst dates back more than two decades, to November 2003, when the A’s acquired Kotsay from the Padres for Ramon Hernandez and Terrence Long. One early memory from the ballpark in which he spoke stood out.
When Forst served as assistant general manager, Kotsay, a four-year player for the A’s, threw him batting practice. They placed a bet on the former’s ability to hit a ball off the famed Green Monster. Forst, an All-American shortstop at Harvard who played two seasons of independent league ball, delivered. Kotsay still owes him.
In four-plus seasons leading the franchise on the field, Kotsay’s A’s sport a 300-463 record (.393).
“We’ve faced our certain circumstances, challenges, together,” Kotsay said. “That’s what’s tough, not being able to see it through with him.”
Kotsay called a team meeting to deliver the news. His message to the players?
“We’re all responsible in some way, shape or form,” Kotsay said. “He’s given these guys the opportunity to be big leaguers … My ask of them is to go out and win as many games as possible from this point forward for him and for this organization.”
For outfielder Carlos Cortes, Forst provided a much-needed opportunity. A member of the Mets organization from 2018-23, Cortes signed a Minor League deal with the A’s in November 2024. The A’s were the first organization to reach out when he hit free agency, and the 29-year-old made his MLB debut last year before becoming a mainstay this season.
“I owe him a lot,” Cortes said. “I’m super grateful for him.”
Shortstop Jacob Wilson echoed other players in categorizing the news as a surprise. The sixth overall pick in the 2023 MLB draft, Wilson fast-tracked to the big leagues and debuted the following year. Just minutes after learning about the news, Wilson expressed gratitude for Forst’s efforts while prepping for the three-game set against the Red Sox in an otherwise unusually silent clubhouse.
“Right now, it’s too soon to even have a huge opinion on it,” Wilson said. “We’re still focused on going out there and playing games. … It’s just so new right now to the point where we don’t have too many thoughts.”
Plagued by injuries to the core of their youth movement, the A's entered play Friday 45-70 (.391), facing the likelihood of a fifth consecutive losing season. Butler, 26, is the player with the longest history in the organization. A sixth-round pick in the 2018 Draft, Butler developed a strong friendship with Forst’s son, Judah.
“It’s tough,” Butler said. “You’ve just got to go out there and try to win a game, that’s all you can do. After hearing something like that, you just try to go out there, play hard and win a ball game.”