Dodgers News: Dave Roberts Believes Rookie Starters Are Unaffected by Trade Rumors

Being a professional athlete can be one of the most rewarding jobs because you normally get paid a lot of money to play the sport you love. It’s something that most people in the world can’t do because the competition is so intense around the different leagues.

But no matter the sport, there can be a downside to being a professional athlete and that’s dealing with your name being in trade rumors.

This is especially true for players who aren’t established or aren’t on the star level. It can distracting for people but most players do a good job of blocking things out, or at least they are forced to do so.

For the Los Angeles Dodgers, they are expected to make some moves to upgrade their roster as the trade deadline approaches. They have a need in their pitching department, where they have relied upon multiple rookies to carry the load this season. But as the deadline comes up, those rookies are unaware of what any potential moves could mean for their future with the big league club.

However, despite this, manager Dave Roberts doesn’t believe that the young arms are worrying about the rumors and continue to go out and perform, according to Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register.

“It’s out there. But I don’t think it affects these guys,” Roberts said. “I mean, for them to be who we need them to be and expect them to be, you’re going to have to handle noise and skepticism, positive feedback, whatever it’s gonna be. That shouldn’t affect performance.”

Per The OC Register

Roberts is correct here because if they want to be big league pitchers, this could be a common occurrence. It may not be fair but it’s how the game is played. As a professional athlete, you have to deal with different rumors and the potential of being shipped off in a trade.

But so far, the rookies have seemed to just go out and play. Bobby Miller, Emmet Sheehan and Michael Grove have been relied upon heavily this season and will continue to do so unless otherwise noted. Sheehan gave his thoughts on the situation and it was a strong sign of how he handles these types of things.

“I don’t read much of it. I mean, I’m on Twitter but not that much,” he said. “I feel like if I do my job, then nothing is really going to affect me. That’s all I can really think about, just doing my job.”

All any of these young pitchers can do is go out and play their game. They can’t control whether or not they are moved or remain with the team so it’s about controlling what they can.

Each one has been productive for LA this season and if the Dodgers don’t make any big moves, they will continue to gain more experience in the big leagues.

Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

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