It’s been a busy offseason in Los Angeles this winter because the reigning World Sequence champions have labored arduous to enhance their roster, bringing in high-profile free brokers like Blake Snell and Tanner Scott whereas additionally securing the companies of 23-year-old phenom Roki Sasaki in worldwide free company. Frustrations from followers across the sport led MLB commissioner Rob Manfred to converse out in opposition to the assertion from some followers that the Dodgers and their aggressive spending are “ruining” baseball.
For all of the work the Dodgers have gotten executed this winter, nevertheless, one main piece of the puzzle stays uncompleted: an extension for longtime supervisor Dave Roberts. Roberts’ contract expires after the 2025 season, and the membership’s entrance workplace officers have made clear that they intend to maintain their veteran skipper round past the tip of his present contract. In an look on the Baseball Tonight podcast with ESPN’s Buster Olney, Roberts revealed that the edges have “simply began speaking” about an extension, and whereas his major focus is on the beginning of Spring Coaching he advised he’s hopeful a deal will get executed.
“Hopefully, every part takes care of itself,” Roberts stated on the podcast. “However it’s about worth. And I like this group, however yeah, you wish to really feel your worth. Completely.”
It’s arduous to disclaim Roberts’s worth to the group. He’s been on the helm for 2 World Sequence championships since taking up as skipper previous to the 2016 season, and his Dodgers have made two extra journeys to the World Sequence in 2017 and 2018. In the meantime, they’ve been dominant within the common season for his total tenure with the membership: since Roberts took over as supervisor in L.A. the membership has posted an unimaginable 851-705 report. His .627 profession successful share as a giant league supervisor (which additionally features a one-game stint as skipper of the Padres in 2015) is the very best of anybody with not less than 1000 MLB video games managed, and he’s completed within the high 5 of NL Supervisor of the Yr award voting seven occasions all through his profession together with a win in 2016 in addition to second place finishes in each 2017 and 2022.
That Roberts desires to “really feel [his] worth” in terms of his subsequent contract is hardly a shock on condition that resume, and there’s been an upward development in salaries for managers across the sport not too long ago. Final offseason, longtime Brewers skipper Craig Counsell headed into free company after not signing a contract extension previous to or throughout the 2023 season. As soon as a free agent, Counsell was courted by quite a lot of golf equipment earlier than in the end touchdown with the Cubs on a deal that assured him a record-setting $40MM over 5 years.
The deal made Counsell the highest-paid supervisor within the sport, and set the stage for well-regarded Crimson Sox supervisor Alex Cora to enter the 2024 season with out an extension in hand. Cora in the end prolonged with the membership on a three-year deal that assured him roughly $21.75MM again in July, a deal that seemingly solidified the marketplace for the sport’s high managers within the $7-8MM vary yearly. Roberts is extra adorned than both Cora or Counsell as a supervisor, and whereas no specifics surrounding the negotiations have been reported at this level it will appear affordable to anticipate Roberts to be in search of a deal that not less than falls into that vary.
Whereas its theoretically potential that Roberts may comply with in Cora’s and even Counsell’s footsteps and maintain off on signing an extension till later within the 2024 season and even till he reaches free company this winter, given the Dodgers’ consolation with high-dollar expenditures and feedback on each side of the negotiation suggesting that Roberts staying within the fold is the popular end result, it appears extra seemingly that the edges will have the ability to iron out a deal, even perhaps earlier than the membership heads to Tokyo to kick off the 2025 season in opposition to the Cubs subsequent month.
