Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts expressed his desire to manage Team USA for the 2028 Summer Olympics, per Dylan Hernandez of the California Post.
“I want to manage the Olympic team,” Roberts said. “That’s what I want to do. In L.A., I want to manage that team.”
The 53-year-old manager went on to list why he is qualified to manage the team.
“I went to school here,” the UCLA graduate said. “I manage the Dodgers. It’s a no-brainer.”
Baseball will return to the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles for the first time since the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Roberts knows a thing or two about taking teams to the mountain top. He’s done so three times as the manager of the Dodgers and has a great chance to do it a fourth time this upcoming 2026 season.
On top of that, Roberts is familiar with the game’s international setting. He represented the United States in the 1999 Pan American Games. In those games, Roberts and Team USA finished in second, which helped them qualify for the 2000 Olympics. In the 2000 Olympics, Team USA came out on top, led by legendary Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda.
Roberts played in the Majors for 10 seasons, from 1990-2008. He was a key member of many of his team’s in the league, including the 2004 Boston Red Sox, the team which ended up winning it all that season to break the dreaded Curse of the Bambino.
As for his time as manager, it started abruptly when he replaced Bud Black as San Diego Padres skipper a little less than halfway through the 2015 season.
His reign didn’t last long as he was replaced by Pat Murphy the very next day after his managing debut. Roberts returned to his bench coach role for the rest of the season. Following the 2015 season, the Dodgers hired Roberts, and since then, there has been no looking back.
As Roberts gets set to manage his 11th season with the Dodgers, he believes he is ready to take the next step and lead Team USA back to the top.
The former player turned manager has all the traits needed to lead, something he has proven time and again throughout his tenure with the Dodgers. Whether Team USA ultimately decides to take a chance on Roberts remains to be seen, but there’s a strong case that he is the best manager in the game.
More news: Joe Kelly Reveals Why Dodgers Can Never Take Down His Mural at Dodger Stadium
