Dodgers critics won’t like this eye-opening Dave Roberts stat

Roberts’ first managing job technically came with the San Diego Padres in 2015. However, he managed just one game with the Padres. He was then hired as the Dodgers manager and has not looked back.

With the exception of the shortened 2020 campaign, which was the year LA won the World Series, the Dodgers have won at least 91 games each season under Roberts.

Los Angeles has made three total World Series appearances with Dave Roberts leading the way. They were defeated in 2017 by the Houston Astros, but Houston’s sign-stealing scandal made the Fall Classic controversial to say the least. In fact, Roberts feels like the Dodgers had a World Series stolen from them.

“I hate to sound like sour grapes. But we (Dodgers) got ’17 stolen from us,” Roberts said in 2022, via Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register. “They admitted it. That’s fact.”

The Dodgers then lost to the Boston Red Sox in the 2018 World Series. They returned in 2020 and defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in six games.

Los Angeles has won at least 100 games over the past three years. Yet, the success has not translated in the playoffs. 2021 was understandable, as the Dodgers were defeated by the eventual champion Atlanta Braves. Atlanta featured a talented roster and the Dodgers were fresh off a Fall Classic victory so it was not a huge deal.

In 2022 and 2023, though, the Dodgers were upset in the NLDS by the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks. Los Angeles dominated in the regular season in both years, and that is especially true for the ’22 campaign as they won 111 games that year. But the playoff struggles continued.

Pressure in 2024

The Dodgers took another step this offseason to present themselves with the best opportunity to win a World Series. Los Angeles signed stars such as Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Teoscar Hernandez. They also acquired Tyler Glasnow via trade.

Anything less than a World Series victory will be a failure for Dave Roberts and the Dodgers in 2024. It does not matter how many wins the team gets during the regular season. Heck, they could go 150-12 and it wouldn’t mean much if Los Angeles came up short in the postseason.

All eyes will be on the Dodgers throughout this season. It’s already led to a “circus“, as Roberts recently stated during an interview  with Timothy Parker of Spectrum News 1 SoCal.

“You know, I think we’re doing a good job so far,” Roberts said. “It’s certainly a big circus and rightfully so. He (Shohei Ohtani) has a chance to be one of the best players to ever put on a baseball uniform. Now you layer in the Japanese media and the attention that he draws.

“I think that Shohei does a great job of sort of staying focused on the job at hand. I think his teammates are doing a great job. We’re not used to this kind of media circus. But that’s a good thing for the Dodgers, good thing for baseball. Once the game starts, it’s all about baseball. I think our guys understand that.”

Roberts’ future in LA

It’s difficult to predict Roberts’ future with the Dodgers. Again, the pressure to win was already immense. Now, that pressure has increased.

Regardless, Dodgers players seem to respect Roberts. He’s a player’s manager, who truly seems to want the best for everyone on the team.

The Dodgers’ all-around performance will be under a microscope all season long, though. It will be interesting to see how Roberts and LA fare in 2024.