With another year comes another fantastic regular season by the Los Angeles Dodgers.
This is far from a surprise under MLBbro manager Dave Roberts. The expectations for the Dodgers have been consistently sky high and this is due to the monumental bar set by the Dodgers’ manager.
Roberts has been involved in the big leagues since his career as a player began in 1999.
He had a pedestrian career that was highlighted by clutch base running in the 2004 ALCS against the mighty Yankees for the eventual World Series champs, the Boston Red Sox.
Ultimately, however, his MLB legacy will be the extreme amount of success he has achieved in his secondary career as the Dodgers’ skipper.
Since 2011, the Los Angeles Dodgers have not posted a record below .500. But, under the leadership of Dave Roberts, the Dodgers have taken an even bigger leap.
Since taking over the team he has won three National League Pennants and a World Series Championship (2020). Roberts also won the National League manager of the Year award in 2016 while dealing with one of the most injury-plagued teams in Major League history, placing an unprecedented 28 players on the IL.
It is no secret that the superstar Dodgers are a revolving door of high-level talent. The team has been filled with a litany of All Stars, blue-chip prospects, and key free agent signings that have fueled the team’s dominance over the past decade.
But no matter how the roster changes, Roberts has always kept them in a position that leads to constant winning and sustained success.
He has converted starting pitchers to relievers, former All Stars to quality role players, and even castaways from other organizations to mainstays in Los Angeles.
Although Dave Roberts has already established himself as one of the best managers in the game, if not the greatest, there is still much more he can accomplish. More money to make too.
Having won one out of three trips to the World Series, Roberts knows that he can again claim the ultimate prize by leading the team to success in October.
The Dodgers started the year as World Series favorites, something that has been a recurring theme during Roberts’s tenure.
Roberts is in a unique spot. With Los Angeles being one of the biggest markets in the sports world, there is always constant pressure to be great and reach lofty expectations.
His regular season success is something to lean on, but ultimately it won’t keep him safe when the team is in “championship or bust” mode.
With former American League MVP MLBbro Mookie Betts, and former National League MVP Freddie Freeman, he has a lineup that is averaging over 5 runs per game which leads the Majors.
His pitching staff, despite the loss of Trevor Bauer, also leads the league with a 2.25 ERA.
Dave Roberts is indeed an elite manager. With another World Series title in 2022, which is very well within his grasp, he could join an even greater pantheon of managers who have gone on to win multiple championships.
Mark Gray and Manny Brown debate the validity of Aaron Judge’s contract demands and the audacity of Dave Roberts’ confidence in his Dodgers team after a slow first week.
LOS ANGELES, CA— Now that the 2022 MLB season is officially happening thanks to both sides representing the players and the owners coming to an agreement, that famous saying, “play ball” can truly have meaning.
As teams prepare schedules and maneuver through free agency, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has many things weighing on him for the start of the season including a new deal.
No new deal has been reached, however Roberts via a zoom call to local media stressed that he was encouraged on how the talks are continuing to progress daily.
We’re moving forward. Hopefully we can get it done sooner rather than later. I think we’re really close,” Roberts said. “I don’t think that it’s going to be an issue here in the coming days.”
In the final season of his current contract, many wondered if the Dodgers would allow Roberts to enter into the season without a new deal in place.
Under his tenure, Roberts has guided the Dodgers into the playoffs all six years, winning five National League West titles and brought the franchise a World Series title in 2020. The first time Los Angeles has won a championship since 1988.
As Roberts was elated that Spring Training, hewill arrive in Arizona on Sunday. the As baseball gets closer to starting, many questions loomed concerning free agent pitcher Clayton Kershaw, Max Muncy, and the status of Trevor Bauer’s return to the team.
“Making sure guys are healthy and ready to go, and the guys that weren’t totally ramped up just kind of seeing where they’re at.”
On Friday one of those questions was answered in the form a one-year deal for Kershaw to remain on the mound in Los Angeles. Roberts has maintained a solid relationship with Kershaw, which made this deal fit perfectly.
As it pertains to a more difficult subject, Robert addressed the future of pitcher Trevor Bauer who made 17 starts for the team in 2021.
Roberts said that he doesn’t want to “close the door completely” on having Bauer join the team at some point during camp. The L.A. District Attorney’s office ruled in February Bauer wouldn’t face criminal charges on allegations of sexual assault, MLB placed Bauer on administrative leave for a week. The league continues to investigate the incident and could consider a suspension.
Dave Roberts said he won’t completely close the door on Trevor Bauer coming to spring training. Roberts said didn’t know all the things going on with Bauer’s situation, w/ his lawyers & MLB. #Dodgers
Roberts was also confident that current first baseman Max Muncy would be ready for the start of the regular season.
Roberts was also asked about sought after free agent first baseman Freddie Freeman.
“I would love to see Freddie Freeman in a Dodger uniform. I think that who wouldn’t? He’s a heck of a ballplayer. …certainly, in the conversation for us but ultimately it is going to be his decision.
If Freeman is indeed signed by the Dodgers, Muncy made it clear he would not have a problem moving to second base.
With the contracts and players being aligned on the field during Spring Training as they prepare for the regular season, Roberts has shown that he is an essential piece of this puzzle that has all of the potential to make it back to the World Series under his leadership. The Dodgers should have a deal for him in place sooner than later.
Mookie Betts joined the hit parade as the Dodgers crushed the Braves in Game 5, so don’t count out Dave Roberts team just yet
Facing elimination, Dave Robert’s team was able to force another game as the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Atlanta Braves 11-2 in Game 5.
The Braves now lead 3-2 as the series shifts back to Atlanta.
After going hitless in Game 4, our MLBbro Mookie Betts went 1-for-5 at the plate with a run scored, and his teammates stepped up in a big way this game.
Going into Game 4, Betts talked about how the team needed to turn things around.
“Sometimes you don’t get hot,” he said. “ I feel like we haven’t gotten hot as a unit. It makes it really hard to win like that. We have to find a way to get hot.”
Well the Dodgers certainly found a way to get hot in this crucial game.
Chris Taylor hit a pair of two-run homers and a solo shot to propel the Dodgers offense to a key victory.
“I don’t know…. I never look cool doing anything!” – Chris Taylor on his curtain call
He finished the game with four hits (three home runs) and six RBI.
The Dodgers knew what was at stake going into Game 5 and did not want their season to end just yet.
Unlike Game 4, they dominated throughout the game both on offense and defense.
Even though the Braves jumped out to a 2-0 lead to start the game, the Dodgers quickly responded and never looked back.
Seven players in the Dodgers lineup all had hits and five of them had multiple hits. This Dodgers offense has been one of the best all season and that’s a big reason why they are still playing right now.
With Betts being the leadoff hitter on a loaded team, he’s in a good position to give that team the spark they need, especially when the bats aren’t hot.
He’s been a spark all postseason and the few games he hasn’t, his teammates have had his back.
Dave Roberts had faith in his team coming into this game despite facing elimination and they certainly did not disappoint him.
One thing about the Dodgers is that they have multiple weapons on offense and on the mound and can beat you in many ways.
If one player is struggling, you better believe that another player is going to step up.
This is now seven consecutive elimination games that the Dodgers have won.
“I guess when our backs are against the wall we play our best and fight,” Roberts said after the game. “It’s not an ideal spot to be in, even right now, an elimination game on Game 6, but I guess it brings out the best of us.”
Dave Roberts discusses calling in Andy Burns to replace Justin Turner and the mentality of the #Dodgers heading into a must-win Game 5 vs. the Braves. pic.twitter.com/CnznhbqrNB
LOS ANGELES — The 2021 season for the Los Angeles Dodgers could easily be a reality television series that gives fans every emotion and feeling possible.
From dealing with injuries throughout the lineup, to the saga of pitcher Trevor Bauer that has more drama than a General Hospital episode, and battling to claim the NL West while falling short by one game to their hated rival San Francisco Giants made this season a challenging one to say the least.
Manager Dave Roberts has seen and experienced it all, from his time as a player winning a World Series championship with the 2004 Boston Red Sox to becoming the franchise’s first minority manager being of Black and Japanese heritage.
Despite the criticisms over the years, Roberts has guided the Dodgers to multiple World Series appearances, battling against cheating scandals surrounding the Houston Astros in 2017 and Red Sox in 2018 and he’s always stood tall on his focus.
His determination and tremendous baseball knowledge finally guided the Dodgers to their first championship in 32 years in 2020. Unfortunately, it happened during one of the most deadly global pandemics our generation has experienced.
It didn’t happen at Dodger Stadium, therefore, there were limited fans attending the World Series in Texas. It came down to a sixth game and on the arm of a young phenom in lefty Julio Urias to secure the final three outs.
His young stable of hitters led by Corey Seager became the World Series MVP, acquiring one of the greatest talents in the game in Mookie Betts paid dividends especially defensively, and we saw the emergence of players like Walker Buehler, Cody Bellinger and Kike Hernandez under Roberts’ tutelage.
The 2021 season saw his Dodgers with their backs against the wall against a feisty and successful St. Louis Cardinals team that had won 17 consecutive games in September and won 19 out of their last 20.
Was Roberts unfazed by his opponent? You better believe it. Though he respected his opponent, he knew the type of talent and the attitude of his players who can play with a chip on their shoulder the size of Frito-Lay most times.
Only in Los Angeles where a team could win in dramatic fashion in the bottom of the ninth inning in a winner-take-all Wild Card game against the Cardinals at Dodger Stadium. Roberts continued to smile in the faces of his critics, and focused on his team defeating his NL West rival Giants in the NLDS.
This was a tall task seeing how the Giants clinched the division with a franchise-record 107-win season. Ultimately it came down to a do-or-die Game 5 at Oracle Park in San Francisco. Of course, Roberts’ methods would come into question again, as in the eleventh hour the probable starter Urias was changed to Corey Kneble. This decision came after Roberts proclaimed Urias would be starting Game 5.
Again, he managed his team out of NLDS and into the NLCS in a rematch against the Atlanta Braves. The Dodgers overcame a 3-1 deficit to win that series last year.
It’s time to put some serious respect on Roberts’ name and trust his decision- making more, especially with the proven track record he’s laid down. I often wonder if Roberts didn’t have the appearance he has, would he be questioned as much as he is.
He’s won a championship as a Black manager in a league that has just eight percent Black American baseball players on the field. There is a serious need for not only more Black players but more Black managers in positions to lead MLB teams.
Roberts is like Tom Cruise, no mission is impossible and could be well on his way to capturing another World Series title in 2021. The Roberts hire also shows when given an opportunity to manage with the proper personnel, anything is possible!
