Dave Roberts was criticized by many including us following the Los Angeles Dodgers’ playoff disappointment this year, but that won’t cost the manager his job, according to a report.
The Los Angeles Times reported on Thursday night that Roberts will return as the Dodgers’ manager.
Roberts was in a contract showdown with the Dodgers last year, and the team decided to sign the manager to a four-year deal. He still has three years left on that contract.
The decision shows that the Dodgers are not going to overreact to their early postseason exit by firing their manager. The decision also shows that the front office may not place as much blame on Roberts for the team’s exit as the fans and media are.
Many believe that Roberts works cohesively with the front office, if not at their direction, which would mean if moves backfire, that could be a reflection of the front office’s poor thinking as much as the manager’s.
Some of Roberts’ poor Game 5 moves, in our view, included pitching Clayton Kershaw in the 7th instead of Adam Kolarek, and letting Kershaw go in the eighth instead of Kenta Maeda. Then the decision to allow Joe Kelly to pitch the 10th and continue pitching despite getting into trouble was equally confounding.
The Dodgers won 106 games in the regular season and lost in the NLDS, after they fell in the World Series two years in a row. They keep coming up short of their ultimate goal but are sticking with Roberts.
