Ken Macha, whose three-year contract with the A's expired Sunday, will not return as manager in 2006. "I'm disappointed, certainly," Macha told MLB.com on Wednesday. "Mainly because of the players. I've made it pretty clear how special I think those guys are, and my hope all along was that we could work something out so I'd be back." The club issued a statement moments before general manager Billy Beane was to make the announcement during a conference call with reporters. "We were unable to reach an agreement with Ken regarding a contract extension that was satisfactory for both parties," Beane said in the statement. "We would like to thank Ken for his seven years of service to the A's organization, in particular his last three seasons as our big league manager. We wish him well in all of his future endeavors."