Multiple Dodgers Praise Dave Roberts For Keeping Optimism Everyday Despite Tough Times
Dave Roberts is wrapping up his ninth season as the Los Angeles Dodgers manager, marking his ninth trip to the postseason and the team’s 12th consecutive playoff appearance.
It hasn’t been easy even though no franchise has had more World Series opportunities over the past decade.
With a .627 winning percentage, Roberts holds the highest win rate among all non-Negro League managers. He has also guided the Dodgers to five 100-win seasons, a feat surpassed only by legendary managers Joe McCarthy and Bobby Cox.
How does Roberts stay levelheaded with a high-stress job like this?
According to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic, John Mark Comer’s book “Live No Lies” has tapped Roberts into his faith, to fight three evils: the devil, the flesh, and the world. To Roberts, he explains, the book “keeps me humble.”
“These are things,” he says, “to keep my mind and soul right.”
It also enables him to stay optimistic through the long season which has its low points.
That positivity has been his guiding force. In his first spring with the Dodgers, Freeman was impressed by how Roberts consistently brought energy and enthusiasm to daily meetings, which are usually more low-key and subdued.
“To do meetings every single morning and captivate a room and have everyone listening to you and care about what you’re saying, that’s really, really hard to do,” first baseman Freddie Freeman said.
Second baseman Gavin Lux said, “he brings the same energy every day.”
“It’s so hard,” first base coach Clayton McCullough said, “to be as positive and energetic and consistent as Dave is every day.”
Roberts remains under contract through the end of next season but he isn’t worried about an extension right now.
“Right now, my clear focus is the postseason,” Roberts said. “I have a contract for next year. If we work something out in the winter, great. If we don’t, then I’ll just play it till the end. That’s kind of where my head is at.
“I know that I’ll have a job in baseball. I have a contract for next year. I’m not too concerned about job security. I just want to win another championship for the city of Los Angeles.”
Photo Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
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