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Dave Roberts

MLB Issues Suspensions Related To Dodgers-Padres Incidents

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Major League Baseball has announced suspensions related to last night’s benches-clearing incident between the Padres and Dodgers. San Diego closer Robert Suarez was suspended three games for “intentionally hitting” Shohei Ohtani with a pitch. Suarez, who was also hit with an undisclosed fine, has elected to appeal and remains on the roster during that process.

Additionally, both managers were suspended for one game for “unsportsmanlike conduct and for contributing to inciting the benches-clearing incident.” Managers do not get an appellate right, so Dave Roberts and Mike Shildt will both be unavailable tonight. The Dodgers are hosting the Nationals, while the Padres welcome the Royals to Petco Park. Roberts told Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic that bench coach Danny Lehmann will manage tonight’s game.

The suspensions are related but not all directly from the same sequence. The managers were suspended for their actions in the top of the ninth inning. Dodgers righty Jack Little, making his MLB debut, hit Fernando Tatis Jr. on his right hand with a 93 MPH fastball. It seems unlikely that Little intended to throw at Tatis, which is reflected in the league’s decision not to impose any discipline. (The Dodgers optioned Little back to Triple-A tonight.)

It was the second time that Tatis had been hit in the series, though. He’d also been hit with a pitch during these teams’ previous series one week before. The final beaning came at the end of a very tense four-game set. Dodger outfielder Andy Pages accused Dylan Cease of throwing at him on Monday. Tatis, Jose Iglesias and Ohtani were all plunked on Tuesday. Stephen Kolek drilled Pages again on Wednesday, and Lou Trivino had hit Bryce Johnson with a cutter earlier in Thursday’s game.

Shildt raced out of the dugout to check on Tatis after Little had plunked him. San Diego’s skipper had some choice words for the Dodger dugout along the way. That prompted Roberts to come onto the field. He got into Shildt’s face and bumped him, leading both dugouts to empty. Both managers were ejected. Tatis was removed from the game as an injury precaution. Little stayed in to finish the inning. The Padres had some trepidation about Tatis’ initial imaging results, but he’s fortunately back in the lineup tonight.

Suarez then came out of the bullpen for the bottom of the ninth. He hit Ohtani on the right shoulder with a 100 MPH fastball on a 3-0 count. That probably would’ve caused benches to clear again had Ohtani not quickly signaled to the L.A. dugout not to do so. Suarez and acting manager Brian Esposito were tossed by home plate umpire Marvin Hudson. San Diego’s closer told reporters tonight through an interpreter that he did not intend to hit Ohtani (video provided by 97.3 The Fan). MLB disagreed and imposed the ban.

Dodgers Sign Dave Roberts To Four-Year Extension

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The Dodgers announced the signing of manager Dave Roberts to a four-year extension that covers the 2026-29 seasons. The team did not confirm salary figures, but Roberts will reportedly be paid $32.4MM — an average annual value of $8.1MM. That surpasses the $8MM AAV on Craig Counsell’s five-year, $40MM deal with the Cubs.

The news doesn’t come as a shock. Clubs generally don’t like to have skippers in “lame duck” position, that is, managing on a deal that is about to expire. Reporting throughout the winter has suggested the Dodgers and Roberts were likely to work out a new deal prior to the start of the 2025 season. It was reported on Thursday that the two sides were making progress on a deal that would see Roberts surpass Counsell’s AAV. On Friday, Roberts referred to the talks as being on “the one-yard line”, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.

Roberts has been at the helm for the Dodgers since November of 2015. The club was already in good overall position at that time, having just won three straight division titles under manager Don Mattingly, but with three straight deflating postseason losses. They lost the NLCS to the Cardinals in 2013 and then suffered quick NLDS defeats in the next two seasons.

Under Roberts, the regular season success has continued and the postseason record improved. They made it to the NLCS in the first season and the World Series in his second and third campaigns. The club lost the 2017 World Series to the Astros and the 2018 series to the Red Sox, both asterisk-marked campaigns for those winning clubs. The Dodgers suffered a quick NLDS exit in 2019 but hoisted the trophy in the shortened 2020 season. The next three seasons saw the club eliminated before the World Series, but they won it all again in 2024, getting Roberts his second ring in five years.

Roberts currently sports a managerial record of 851-506 in the regular season and 56-44 in the postseason, with the Dodgers getting to the playoffs in each season with him at the helm. Roberts has had some loaded rosters to work with but appears to be well-liked by players and other Dodger personnel.

Counsell left the Brewers after the 2023 season with the reported goal of improving the earning power of managers. Joe Torre had been able to secure an $8MM salary in his days with the Yankees but skipper salaries had seemingly stalled. Reportedly, Terry Francona was the highest-paid manager in 2023 with a $4.5MM salary. Counsell managed to get a five-year, $40MM deal from the Cubs, an AAV of $8MM. That seemingly set a baseline foundation, with Roberts able to negotiate his way just over that line. Earlier in the winter, Roberts said he was hopeful of getting a new deal done but wanted “to feel (his) value.”

Jon Heyman of The New York Post first reported that Roberts and the Dodgers had agreed to a new four-year deal worth slightly more than $8MM annually. Bob Nightengale of USA Today first reported that the deal would start in 2026. Joel Sherman of The New York Post reported the $32.4MM total.

Dodgers, Dave Roberts Making Progress In Extension Talks

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The Dodgers and longtime manager Dave Roberts are making progress on a new contract, reports Joel Sherman of The New York Post. Sherman writes that a deal is expected to be finalized before the team heads to Tokyo next week in preparation for their opening series against the Cubs.

According to Sherman, Roberts is likely to establish a new record for average annual value. That indicates he’ll beat the $8MM salary which Craig Counsell received on his five-year deal with the Cubs last winter. It’s unclear how long Roberts’ next deal will be. He’s currently slated to enter the final season of the three-year extension he signed in March 2022.

A deal has seemed to be a formality for months. The front office has unsurprisingly expressed interest in continuity on the heels of their second World Series within the last five years. Roberts said in early February that negotiations had just gotten underway. He indicated he was hopeful of getting a deal done but added that he wanted “to feel (his) value” on the contract terms. A record-setting deal should do just that.

Roberts has been at the helm in Los Angeles since November 2015. He’s the National League’s longest-tenured active manager. Kevin Cash, who is entering his 11th season in Tampa Bay, narrowly tops him in that regard overall. The Dodgers have made the playoffs in each of Roberts’ nine seasons. Only a 107-win season by the 2021 Giants kept L.A. from winning the NL West every year. Los Angeles had also won the NL West under Don Mattingly in each of the three years preceding Roberts’ hiring.

The 52-year-old Roberts has been fortunate to work with incredible rosters. Still, talent alone doesn’t guarantee success. No other team has made the playoffs in each of the last nine years. Dodger brass was comfortable enough with Roberts’ leadership skills to stick by him despite some criticism about his in-game tactics in the postseason early in his tenure. The veteran skipper adroitly handled a rotation that had been decimated by injury during last year’s World Series run.

Roberts has led the Dodgers to an 851-507 record in the regular season. No other skipper who has managed as many games has bested that 62.7% win percentage. Roberts has helmed the Dodgers to four pennants and a pair of championships. He won the NL Manager of the Year award in 2016.

Dave Roberts Discusses Extension Talks With Dodgers

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It’s been a busy offseason in Los Angeles this winter as the reigning World Series champions have worked hard to improve their roster, bringing in high-profile free agents like Blake Snell and Tanner Scott while also securing the services of 23-year-old phenom Roki Sasaki in international free agency. Frustrations from fans around the game led MLB commissioner Rob Manfred to speak out against the assertion from some fans that the Dodgers and their aggressive spending are “ruining” baseball.

For all the work the Dodgers have gotten done this winter, however, one major piece of the puzzle remains uncompleted: an extension for longtime manager Dave Roberts. Roberts’ contract expires after the 2025 season, and the club’s front office officials have made clear that they intend to keep their veteran skipper around beyond the end of his current contract. In an appearance on the Baseball Tonight podcast with ESPN’s Buster Olney, Roberts revealed that the sides have “just started talking” about an extension, and while his primary focus is on the start of Spring Training he suggested he’s hopeful a deal will get done.

“Hopefully, everything takes care of itself,” Roberts said on the podcast. “But it’s about value. And I love this organization, but yeah, you want to feel your value. Absolutely.”

It’s hard to deny Roberts’s value to the organization. He’s been at the helm for two World Series championships since taking over as skipper prior to the 2016 season, and his Dodgers have made two additional trips to the World Series in 2017 and 2018. Meanwhile, they’ve been dominant in the regular season for his entire tenure with the club: since Roberts took over as manager in L.A. the club has posted an incredible 851-705 record. His .627 career winning percentage as a big league manager (which also includes a one-game stint as skipper of the Padres in 2015) is the best of anyone with at least 1000 MLB games managed, and he’s finished in the top 5 of NL Manager of the Year award voting seven times throughout his career including a win in 2016 as well as second place finishes in both 2017 and 2022.

That Roberts wants to “feel [his] value” when it comes to his next contract is hardly a surprise given that resume, and there’s been an upward trend in salaries for managers around the game recently. Last offseason, longtime Brewers skipper Craig Counsell headed into free agency after not signing a contract extension prior to or during the 2023 season. Once a free agent, Counsell was courted by a number of clubs before ultimately landing with the Cubs on a deal that guaranteed him a record-setting $40MM over five years.

The deal made Counsell the highest-paid manager in the game, and set the stage for well-regarded Red Sox manager Alex Cora to enter the 2024 season without an extension in hand. Cora ultimately extended with the club on a three-year deal that guaranteed him roughly $21.75MM back in July, a deal that seemingly solidified the market for the game’s top managers in the $7-8MM range annually. Roberts is more decorated than either Cora or Counsell as a manager, and while no specifics surrounding the negotiations have been reported at this point it would seem reasonable to expect Roberts to be seeking a deal that at least falls into that range.

While its theoretically possible that Roberts could follow in Cora’s or even Counsell’s footsteps and hold off on signing an extension until later in the 2024 season or even until he reaches free agency this winter, given the Dodgers’ comfort with high-dollar expenditures and comments on both sides of the negotiation suggesting that Roberts staying in the fold is the preferred outcome, it seems more likely that the sides will be able to iron out a deal, perhaps even before the club heads to Tokyo to kick off the 2025 season against the Cubs next month.

Managers & Top Front Office Executives On Expiring Contracts

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Several teams don’t publicize contract details for their top front office executives or even for their managers, so this list of skipper and execs (any head of a baseball operations department, whether titled as a president of baseball ops, general manager, chief baseball officer, etc.) entering the final year of their deals may not be entirely complete or accurate.  Still, since MLBTR so often focuses on players entering their “contract year,” this post provides a rough outline of which notable team personnel may be feeling some extra pressure as their own deals may be close to expiring.

It is quite possible some of these names may have already quietly signed extensions weeks or months ago, or will sign new deals during Spring Training once clubs turn their attention away from offseason roster-building.  A shorter-term extension may not necessarily indicate much extra job security, as some teams tack an extra year (or at least a club option) onto an executive or managerial contract just to avoid the appearance of that person entering a lame-duck year.  Of course, even a longer contract is no guarantee of job security, as a rough season can instantly put a manager or a front office on the hot seat.

As always, thanks to Cot’s Baseball Contracts for reference information on some of these contract terms.

Angels: Ron Washington is already heading into the final season under contract, as he signed only a two-year deal to manage the Halos in November 2023.  While the Angels were only 63-99 last season, it could hardly be considered Washington’s fault given the subpar state of the roster.  Expectations will be higher in 2025 since the team has been aggressing in adding talent this winter, and since GM Perry Minasian got a contract extension last August, Los Angeles might also look to add a year onto Washington’s deal to at least keep him on line with the guaranteed portion of Minasian’s new contract.  It should be noted that Washington turns 73 this coming April, so he might also prefer to just take things year-to-year if he has any thoughts about retirement.

Astros: Dana Brown is entering his third season as Houston’s GM, and the terms of his contract weren’t made public when he was hired in January 2023.  It is possible Brown might only be working on a three-year deal since his predecessor James Click also received just a three-year commitment, though Click was hired in the singular aftermath of the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal.  This probably isn’t a situation to monitor too closely since the Astros have kept winning during Brown’s tenure, with the caveat that owner Jim Crane and his advisors are known to weigh heavily on baseball operations decisions.  Click was let go within days of winning a World Series due to reported acrimony with Crane, but there hasn’t been any indication of any heat between Crane and Brown.

Athletics: Mark Kotsay’s initial contract covered the 2022-24 seasons, and the A’s picked up Kotsay’s 2025 club option over a year ago.  GM David Forst said in October that “there’s no one I would rather have managing this team,” and that Kotsay “wants to be here,” though there hasn’t been any public word about any extension talks.  As comfortable as Kotsay seems with the organization, it is possible he might be willing to let the season play out and then explore his options, if he has any uncertainty over continuing to manage the A’s through their stint in West Sacramento before their planned move to Las Vegas for the 2028 season.  While no public details were revealed about Forst’s latest contract, the GM has obviously signed some kind of extension since his last deal expired after the 2023 season, and said in November that “I’ve been here for 25 years.  There’s not a thought that I wouldn’t be in this for the long run.”

Blue Jays: Manager John Schneider is entering the last guaranteed season of his three-year contract, as the Blue Jays hold a club option on Schneider for 2026.  It is fair to guess that the Jays might not exercise that option too far in advance, as there is widespread speculation that another disappointing season (or even a slow start) will cost Schneider his job.  The same could be true of general manager Ross Atkins, even though Atkins is under contract through 2026.  Team president Mark Shapiro is also entering the final season of his five-year contract, and while Shapiro’s focus has been more towards bigger-picture projects like Rogers Centre’s renovations, his possible departure might also trigger a larger overhaul unless the Jays turn things around on the field in 2025.

Braves: Manager Brian Snitker is entering the last year of his contract, so the Braves might well look to tack at least one more season onto Snitker’s deal this spring.  Snitker has led Atlanta to the postseason in each of the last seven seasons, highlighted by the team’s World Series victory in 2021.  He has stuck to just shorter-term deals and extensions during his tenure, which is probably due more to his age (Snitker turned 69 in October) than any dissatisfaction on the organization’s part, so no change seems imminent in the Braves dugout.

Cardinals: John Mozeliak’s exit plan is already in place.  The longtime head of the St. Louis front office is stepping down after the 2025 season, with Chaim Bloom already inked to a long-term contract to become the Cardinals’ next president of baseball operations.

Cubs: The Cubs have posted 83-79 records in each of the last two seasons, but they still haven’t reached the postseason during Jed Hoyer’s four-year tenure as president of baseball operations.  2025 is the last year of Hoyer’s original five-year contract, and acquiring Kyle Tucker (who is a free agent next winter) in a big-ticket trade might indicate that Hoyer is feeling some heat to win as soon as possible.  It can be argued that Hoyer has been somewhat hamstrung by ownership’s reluctance to spend at the top of the market, but that might also indicate that ownership could be considering hiring a PBO with more experience in building contenders on limited budgets.

Dodgers: Reports surfaced earlier today that the Dodgers are planning to work out an extension with Dave Roberts, as the skipper is entering the last season of his last three-year extension with the club.  It comes as no surprise that L.A. wants to retain Roberts in the wake of the team’s second World Series title during his tenure, and it stands to reason that president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman is also a candidate for a new deal, perhaps regardless of the terms of his last agreement.  Friedman came to the Dodgers on a five-year deal in October 2014, then signed an extension of an unknown length in November 2019.  If that next contract was another five-year pact, Friedman is a technically free agent right now, but there has no zero indication that Friedman (who has been as busy as ever in bolstering the Dodgers roster this winter) is going anywhere.

Guardians: This is a speculative entry since it has been well over a decade since Chris Antonetti’s contract terms were publicly reported.  Even if he is approaching the end of his current deal, there hasn’t been any sense that the Guardians are planning a front office change, especially not in the wake of another AL Central crown and a trip to the ALCS.  Antonetti has been a member of Cleveland’s front office since 1999, and in his current role as president of baseball operations since October 2015.

Mariners: Jerry Dipoto has been extended twice since the M’s first hired him in September 2015, and his last extension in September 2021 was a multi-year deal of unspecified length.  It is therefore possible this could be Dipoto’s final season under contract as Seattle’s president of baseball operations, unless another extension has been signed in the last three-plus years.  Despite four straight seasons of 85 or more wins, the Mariners reached the playoffs just once in that span, as a lack of hitting has hampered the team over the last two years in particular.  It remains to be seen if ownership is okay with just being competitive (or, as Dipoto infamously put it, winning “54 percent of the time“) or if any impatience is growing over the Mariners’ difficulty in truly breaking through as a contender.  The Mariners were sparked to a 21-13 record down the stretch after manager Dan Wilson was hired last August, so it could be that the managerial change (and a change of hitting coaches) is what was needed to get the M’s back on track, but Dipoto and Wilson could both face pressure if Seattle again falls short of postseason baseball.

Orioles: Mike Elias has been Baltimore’s GM for six seasons, though his contract terms haven’t been made public at any point during his tenure.  Manager Brandon Hyde signed a three-year deal when first hired prior to the 2019 season, and he has signed at least one or perhaps two extensions since, leaving his contract status a bit of a mystery.  This is another situation where job security probably isn’t an issue, as the Orioles have come out of their rebuild to reach the playoffs in back-to-back years, even if the club has yet to record even a single postseason win in that span.  New owner David Rubenstein is eager to win but hasn’t shown any inclination to changing the leadership structure since he bought the Orioles earlier this year.

Pirates: Ben Cherington has now completed five full seasons as the Buccos’ general manager, so he either signed a somewhat unusually long contract when first hired, or he has already inked one extension that has escaped public attention.  Pittsburgh fans are impatiently waiting for the first winning season of Cherington’s tenure, as the team has flirted with contention in each of the last two years before finishing with identical 76-86 records.  Paul Skenes has at least emerged as the crown jewel of the Pirates’ lengthy rebuild process, so regardless of Cherington’s contract terms, it doesn’t appear as though he is in any danger of being fired.

Rangers: Bruce Bochy’s return to managing saw him sign a three-year contract with Texas, so 2025 represents the final year of that deal.  Bochy turns 70 in April but didn’t give any hints about retiring when speaking to reporters at the end of the season.  A second straight losing season might change the equation either on Bochy’s end or on the front office’s end, but the Rangers’ 2023 World Series title (to say nothing of Bochy’s three previous rings as the Giants’ manager) has naturally brought him a lot of leeway within the organization.  Both sides might prefer to go year-to-year just to maintain flexibility, but it wouldn’t be surprising if Bochy soon gets another year added to his contract.

Rockies: Bud Black has signed three straight one-year extensions to remain as Colorado’s manager, and past reports have indicated that Black is on something of an unofficial year-to-year rolling contract with the organization.  It is perhaps notable that Black’s most recent deal wasn’t finalized until this past October, whereas his previous two extensions were completed prior to the start of the seasons.  This might indicate that ownership and/or Black himself are starting to think harder about continuing the relationship in the wake of six straight losing seasons, even despite the Rockies’ well-known penchant for staying loyal to long-term employees.  The same logic could extend to GM Bill Schmidt, though Schmidt’s contract terms haven’t been known since he was elevated to the full-time general manager position in October 2021.

Royals: Matt Quatraro is entering the final guaranteed year of his initial three-year contract as manager, though the Royals have a club option on his services for the 2026 season.  J.J. Picollo has also completed two full seasons as the team’s general manager since being elevated to top of Kansas City’s baseball ops ladder in September 2022, though his contract status in the wake of that promotion wasn’t known.  Regardless, it doesn’t seem like either is going anywhere, and extensions could be in order since the Royals enjoyed an 86-win season and a return to the playoffs last year, including a wild card series win over the Orioles.

Tigers: Likewise, Detroit is also coming off a playoff appearance and a wild card series victory, as a magical late-season surge left the Tigers just one game short of the ALCS.  It is therefore safe to assume that president of baseball operations Scott Harris has plenty of job security, and while his contract terms aren’t known, it is probably safe to assume Harris received more than a three-year guarantee when he was hired in September 2022.

Twins: Some larger-scale changes could be afoot in Minnesota since the Pohlad family is exploring selling the Twins, and some shuffling in the front office has already taken place, with president of baseball ops Derek Falvey also becoming the president of business operations and Jeremy Zoll replacing Thad Levine as general manager.  Falvey’s previous deal was up after the 2024 season so obviously he signed an extension, but while manager Rocco Baldelli’s previous extension is known to have run through at least the end of the 2025 campaign, it is unclear if the coming season is the final year of that deal.  If Baldelli is indeed heading into a lame-duck year, the ownership situation might prevent the skipper from getting at least another season added to his deal, just so a new owner could potentially have a clean slate in evaluating things once they take over the team.

White Sox: This is more of a speculative entry, just because Chris Getz’s contract terms weren’t released when he was named Chicago’s general manager in August 2023.  A GM wouldn’t normally be considered to be on the hot seat so soon after being hired, nor are immediate results expected since the White Sox are quite obviously going through a hefty rebuild.  While nobody expected the Sox to contend in 2024, however, there’s a difference between just being a losing team and having a league-record 121 losses.  Another embarrassment of a season might give owner Jerry Reinsdorf second thoughts about Getz’s stewardship of the rebuild effort, or the possibility exists that Reinsdorf could sell the team, which should shake the organization up entirely.

Yankees: Aaron Boone quieted some of his critics when the Yankees both returned to the postseason, and captured the first AL pennant of Boone’s seven-year stint as the Bronx manager.  This result led the Yankees to exercise their club option on Boone’s services for 2025, and while no negotiations had taken place about a longer-term deal as of early November, it stands to reason that some talks will take place before Opening Day.  Then again, Boone’s current deal wasn’t signed until after he’d already completed the final season his previous contract, so it could be that the Yankees will again play wait-and-see.  There isn’t much sense that Boone is in jeopardy, and while expectations are always high in New York, ownership’s loyalty to Boone through some relative lean years would make it unusual if he was let go so soon after a World Series appearance.

Dodgers Expected To Discuss Extension With Dave Roberts

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The Dodgers are expected to discuss a contract extension with longtime manager Dave Roberts this offseason, per a report from Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times. Roberts’ current contract is slated to expire following the 2025 season.

It’s hardly a surprise that the Dodgers would look to lock up their skipper before Spring Training begins. Club brass acknowledged last month (as noted by The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya at the time) that the sides had not yet discussed an extension in the aftermath of the club’s World Series championship but was quick to add that he hopes to keep Roberts in the dugout long-term. Even aside from those comments, teams often prefer to avoid having managers play out the final year of their contract without an extension in hand in hopes of avoid a “lame duck” situation, and it’s difficult to argue that Roberts’s performance hasn’t merited an extension.

Since joining the Dodgers as manager back in 2016, Roberts has led the club to nine consecutive postseason appearances, eight division titles, four NL Pennants, and two World Series championships. Ignoring the 60-game 2020 campaign where the Dodgers went 43-17, the club has never won less than 91 games in a season under Roberts’s guidance, and after winning the NL Manager of the Year award in 2016 he’s subsequently been a finalist for the award two more times and received votes in every season of his time at the helm in Los Angeles. Overall, Roberts has a lifetime 851-507 as a manager, giving him a .627 winning percentage. That’s the highest winning percentage of any manager in MLB history with at least 1000 games managed in his career and translates to approximately 102 wins in a 162-game season.

Given the Dodgers’ desire to keep Roberts in the fold long-term and his phenomenal work during his tenure as L.A.’s skipper, Harris goes on to suggest that a record-shattering extension could be on the table for the longtime skipper. Last offseason, Craig Counsell signed a record-breaking extension with the Cubs that guaranteed him $40MM over five years. Counsell is widely considered to be among the best managers in the game at the moment, but he’s never led a team to the World Series or won a Manager of the Year award. In other words, Roberts’s resume is much more robust than Counsell’s was last winter, and it’s not hard to imagine a high-spending club like the Dodgers rewarding their skipper with a record-breaking deal.

Of course, that’s by no means guaranteed to occur. Counsell signed his $40MM deal with Chicago on the open market after playing out the final season of his deal with Milwaukee and had a number of teams vying for his services as the Guardians, Astros, and Mets joined the incumbent Brewers in vying for his services before he ultimately landed on the north side. That stands in contrast to Red Sox skipper Alex Cora, who appeared poised to follow in Counsell’s footsteps and test the open market before ultimately opting to sign a three-year extension in Boston that guaranteed him around $21.75MM total.

Cora doesn’t quite compare to Roberts in terms of resume, with just one World Series championship and a .536 winning percentage under his belt in six seasons as manager in Boston. Even so, the extension between the Red Sox and their well-regarded skipper came in at just over half the total guarantee the Cubs offered Counsell and with a lower yearly salary. That outcome at least left the door open to the possibility that Counsell’s record-setting deal with Chicago was more of an outlier caused by multiple aggressive suitors rather than a new norm for manager salaries in the league.

Andrew Friedman On Roberts, Kershaw, Offseason Plans

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Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman met with the media (including Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times) on Tuesday afternoon, alongside GM Brandon Gomes. The two executives discussed the disappointing conclusion to another Dodgers season, potential changes to the major league coaching staff, and the team’s offseason plans.

Speaking on his ballclub’s unceremonious exit from the playoffs, Friedman could not deny that the words “organizational failure” ring true once again (he used the same phrase last season). Putting it bluntly, he said, “Our goal was to win 11 games in October, and we didn’t win one.” Indeed, Diamondbacks hitters trounced the Dodgers pitching staff in Game 1 of the NLDS, and L.A.’s own powerful offense rarely came through. Notably, Friedman also used the term “organizational failure” to avoid blaming any specific people or groups of people for his team’s poor performance. “Organizational failure means it’s on all of us,” he explained.

On that note, Friedman left no doubt that manager Dave Roberts and his entire coaching staff would be back in 2024, confirming that there won’t be any changes in the clubhouse. “I think [Dave Roberts] and our coaching staff did an incredible job this year,” he said, “And none of us did an incredible job in those three games versus Arizona.”

Unsurprisingly, Friedman says his top priority this offseason will be starting pitching. That means assessing internal options as well as considering potential trades and free agent signings. Dodgers’ starters struggled in 2023, posting an uncharacteristic 4.57 ERA and 4.37 SIERA. Things became especially bleak toward the end of the year; ten different pitchers started a game for the Dodgers in September, combining for a 4.87 ERA. The team had no shortage of depth, but too few reliable options.

Clayton Kershaw and Julio Urías will be free agents after the season, as will Lance Lynn – presuming the Dodgers decline his $18MM club option in favor of a $1MM buyout. On top of that, Tony Gonsolin will be out for most, if not all, of the 2024 campaign recovering from Tommy John surgery. Dustin May’s status for next season is also up in the air, after the righty underwent flexor tendon surgery in July.

That leaves Bobby Miller, who just completed his rookie season, and Walker Buehler, who hasn’t pitched since June 2022, as the only healthy, established starters remaining in the Dodgers rotation. The team has several young starting pitchers on the roster, including Ryan Pepiot, Emmet Sheehan, Michael Grove, and Gavin Stone, but none with more than 100 innings of big league experience. Friedman expressed confidence in Miller and Buehler during his press conference, but he understands the need to augment the rotation.

As for Kershaw, Friedman made it clear that the Dodgers are “absolutely” interested in bringing the superstar pitcher back for another season. However, the ten-time All-Star hasn’t yet told the team if he plans to return. “I think he and [his wife] Ellen are going to take some time right now and assess,” the team president said (relayed by Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic). “The ball’s squarely in their court.”

In addition to starting pitching, Friedman will also look to address position player needs during the offseason. The Dodgers had an excellent offense in 2023, finishing second in baseball in OPS and runs scored. That said, designated hitter J.D. Martinez, utility man Enrique Hernández, and outfielders Jason Heyward and David Peralta will all be free agents after the conclusion of the World Series. The team will need to replace Martinez and Heyward’s production in particular. In addition, the Dodgers might look to add a new infielder so Mookie Betts can return to a regular role in right field.

Gomes didn’t speak as much as his boss, but he did confirm a report that he declined to interview for the GM opening in Boston. “I’m very flattered and appreciate the interest,” he said (per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register). “But I love it here, and my family loves it here. I’m passionate about this organization and solely focused on winning multiple championships here.”

Dodgers’ Friedman/Gomes Discuss Roberts, Kershaw, Bellinger, Justin Turner

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The Dodgers were baseball’s best team in the regular season, winning a franchise-record 111 games. They cleared the next-closest team, the Astros, by five games and finished ten clear of anyone else in the National League.

That didn’t translate to postseason success, however, as Los Angeles dropped three of four to the division-rival Padres in their Divisional Series. As they enter the offseason earlier than hoped, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and general manager Brandon Gomes met with reporters this afternoon (links via Jack Harris of the L.A. Times and Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic).

The executives predictably expressed their disappointment with the early postseason exit, with Friedman suggesting it was the most painful series loss of his tenure atop baseball operations. Yet he quickly downplayed the need for sweeping organizational changes, pointing to the volatility inherent in a short playoff series. While Friedman credited the Padres for outplaying the Dodgers during the Division Series, he noted the lack of situational hitting which plagued L.A. in the postseason is the sort of thing that tends to ebb and flow throughout a year.

To that point about the team not requiring any kind of drastic overhaul, Friedman confirmed previous reports manager Dave Roberts would be back for an eighth season. “I feel like Dave and his coaching staff did an incredible job during the regular season to lead this team to 111 wins,” Friedman said, noting that the skipper would “100%” return to the role in 2023. “I don’t feel like it’s a switch that was then turned off or the players needed a different voice in those (playoff) games. That’s my personal belief.”

Friedman added he doesn’t expect there to be any changes to Roberts’ coaching staff, implying that everyone will be offered a chance to return. Each offseason, teams run the risk of seeing a coach depart to take on a more impactful role with another club. Bench coach Bob Geren and first base coach Clayton McCullough each got some managerial attention last winter, for instance, and it’s possible their names are floated again in searches this offseason.

Turning to the playing personnel, Friedman and Gomes touched on a few key decisions they’ll need to make early in the offseason. Los Angeles will see franchise icon Clayton Kershaw hit free agency for the second straight winter. Last offseason, the Dodgers surprisingly elected not to make Kershaw a qualifying offer. Friedman later explained the Dodgers didn’t want to pressure the future Hall of Famer into making a decision whether to return within the 10-day window allotted to qualified free agents. Kershaw didn’t make a decision until after the lockout, and he eventually re-signed on a one-year, $17MM guarantee in Spring Training.

Because Kershaw didn’t receive a qualifying offer last winter, he’s eligible for one again. Friedman didn’t explicitly rule out the QO this time around but strongly hinted they’d again opt against it. “Like I said last year, I think for him to take the time and put his head together with (his wife) Ellen and figure out what makes the most sense for their family is what we’re going to give him time to do,” the Dodger president said. Friedman called it his “strong hope” that Kershaw elects to return for a 16th season in L.A.

This year’s qualifying offer has been set at $19.65MM. That’s a perfectly reasonable price to pay for the three-time Cy Young winner, who remains among the best starters in the game on a rate basis. Kershaw pitched to a sterling 2.28 ERA across 126 1/3 innings this past season, striking out an above-average 27.8% of opponents against an elite 4.7% walk rate. He lost roughly a month apiece to hip and back injuries, but he didn’t seem to feel any ill effects of the forearm discomfort that cut his 2021 season short.

Kershaw has stated a few times in recent weeks that he’s presently leaning towards continuing his career. Immediately after the series loss, he told reporters that “as of right now, I’d say I’ll play again.” He added that spending time with his family early in the offseason had the potential to change his mind, however, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Kershaw take his free agency process slower than most players do. Last winter’s decision seemed to come down to a return to L.A., joining his hometown Rangers, or retiring. It figures to be a similar story this winter, with both the Dodgers and Rangers sure to have significant interest in signing him. (Other teams would obviously call if Kershaw broadened his geographic range, but that’d be quite surprising).

While the ball is primarily in Kershaw’s court as to whether he returns to Dodger Stadium, the onus falls on the team to decide how to proceed with 2019 NL MVP Cody Bellinger. Bellinger is arbitration-eligible for a final time this winter, and MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects him to receive an $18.1MM salary if tendered a contract. Only Juan Soto has a higher arbitration projection, a testament to Bellinger’s early-career accomplishments. Those earned lofty salaries early in his career, and the arbitration system is designed so that salaries almost always escalate year-over-year.

However, Bellinger’s offensive production has evaporated over the past few seasons. He followed up his 47-homer MVP campaign with a slightly above-average showing (.239/.333/.455) in 2020. While that looked like a potential blip in an anomalous season, he’s seen a continued sharp drop-off at the plate. Bellinger hit .165/.240/.302 over 350 trips to the plate last year. He rebounded slightly this past season, but his .210/.265/.389 line across 550 plate appearances was still markedly worse than average.

Among 172 hitters with 800+ plate appearances over the past two seasons, Bellinger ranked dead last with a .256 on-base percentage. His .355 slugging mark is in the bottom ten. Bellinger’s 7.7% walk rate and 27.1% strikeout percentage are each worse than average, and his hard contact rate is down notably from its 2019 peak. Those extended struggles would seem to point towards Bellinger being non-tendered in lieu of such a large salary, but he’s been a strong plus outside the batter’s box. He swiped 14 bases in 17 attempts this past season and rated as an above-average baserunner overall. More importantly, he’s checked in as a plus defensive center fielder throughout his career, including a +5 runs above average from Statcast this season.

Neither Friedman nor Gomes made a definitive statement on the possibility of a non-tender, but Gomes generally praised Bellinger’s overall value. “Belli has had spurts of being really successful throughout the season,” the GM said. “I think elite defense has continued to be there, and we still think there’s (offensive) upside. So those are discussions we’re going to have moving forward as we look into what 2023 looks like.”

Friedman offered a similar sentiment when asked about the club’s $16MM option on third baseman Justin Turner. Friedman called Turner “a huge part of our success” but noted the front office needed more time to think through key roster decisions. Turner looked to be trending towards a $2MM buyout with a .256/.330/.403 showing in the first half of the season, but he made that a tough call for the front office by posting an excellent .319/.386/.503 line coming out of the All-Star Break.

Dodgers “Expected” To Retain Dave Roberts As Manager

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The Dodgers’ postseason run is over much earlier than expected, and however the team might respond to its upset loss in the NLDS, moving on from manager Dave Roberts doesn’t appear to be under consideration.  Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports that Roberts “is expected” to return to the dugout next season.

The news isn’t overly surprising, considering that Roberts has yet to even begin the three-year contract extension he signed last March.  2022 was the final season of Roberts’ previous contract with the team, and his new deal will keep him as manager through the end of the 2025 season.

Through seven seasons in Los Angeles, the 50-year-old Roberts has enjoyed enough success to put him on a Hall of Fame path.  Roberts has a 632-380 record over those seven years, and as Harris notes, Roberts’ .632 winning percentage is the highest of any skipper in MLB history who has managed at least 315 career games. (Negro League managers Bullet Rogan, Vic Harris, and Rube Foster are the only managers with a higher winning percentage in any recognized major league.)  The Dodgers have reached the postseason in all seven of Roberts’ seasons, won six NL West titles, three NL pennants, and one World Series championship in 2020.

Amidst that tremendous resume, of course, winning “only” one title has brought some criticism Roberts’ way, given how the Dodgers have been favored almost every one of their trips to the playoffs.  This year, L.A. dominated the league en route to a franchise record 111 wins in the regular season, only to be upset by the Padres in four games in the NLDS.  It marked just the second time in Roberts’ tenure that the Dodgers didn’t win at least one playoff round.

The decision to remove Tyler Anderson after five shutout innings in Game 4 loomed large after the Padres took the lead in a five-run seventh inning, and it joined a rather lengthy list of bullpen decisions that have backfired on Roberts in the postseason.  Beyond just the bullpen, however, the normally dangerous Los Angeles lineup went into a collective slump in the NLDS, going 5-for-34 (.147) with runners in scoring position.  It’s hard to blame Roberts for such a breakdown, and yet given the Dodgers’ consistent track record of regular-season success, nothing short of another Series championship will fully quell the criticism.

Dodgers Sign Dave Roberts To Three-Year Extension

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7:09pm: The team has officially announced the extension.

4;53pm: The Dodgers and manager Dave Roberts have agreed to a three-year extension, reports Jon Heyman of the MLB Network (Twitter link). He is now under contract through 2025.

This has seemed like an inevitability for some time. Reports emerged during the lockout that the team and skipper were motivated to get a new deal done before the start of the regular season. Roberts had been headed into the final year of his contract, and teams can be hesitant to avoid entering the season with a manager in a lame-duck situation.

That’s not to say Roberts’ job ever looked to be in jeopardy, even before news of extension negotiations was made public. Los Angeles hired the former 10-year MLB veteran to replace Don Mattingly over the 2015-16 offseason. It was Roberts’ first managerial gig, perhaps a risky proposition for a team that had won the NL West in each of the previous three seasons under Mattingly.

Despite his lack of experience, Roberts has guided Los Angeles’ consistently talented rosters to plenty of success. They won the division in each of his first five seasons at the helm, getting past the Division Series in three of those years. The Dodgers won back-to-back pennants between 2017-18 but dropped successive World Series against the Astros and Red Sox, respectively.

Like any manager, Roberts came under some fire from the fanbase for some of his pitching decisions in the postseason. Throughout his tenure, though, the front office maintained confidence in both his leadership of the clubhouse and his bullpen management when the lights were brightest. Dodgers brass clearly never believed Roberts’ postseason management was fatal to their chances of winning a title, and they were proven right in 2020. After an incredible 43-17 record in the shortened regular season, the Dodgers stormed through the postseason to claim their first World Series since 1988. That was in spite of that year’s unique playoff format, which required all teams to advance through four rounds (instead of the customary three) thanks to an expanded field.

The stretch of division championships came to an end last year, although that wasn’t a reflection of any lack of team success. The 106-win Dodgers were narrowly edged out by a 107-win campaign from their archrivals in San Francisco. Nevertheless, they took down the Cardinals in the final NL Wild Card Game, then beat the Giants in the NLDS. Los Angeles lost to the Braves in the NLCS, but it marked another season as one of the league’s most successful teams overall.

Los Angeles has made the playoffs in all six seasons of Roberts’ tenure, the only team in MLB to do so. They’re 542-329 in regular season play in that time, winning more than 57% of their games. Roberts has certainly had the fortune of overseeing one of baseball’s most talented clubs on an annual basis, but there’s little questioning the organization’s run of success. The front office and ownership seem happy with his work behind-the-scenes, and he’s now slated to stick atop the dugout through 2025.

If Roberts remains Dodgers’ manager through the term of his new deal, he’ll reach a full decade in the position. Only three skippers — Hall of Famers Walter Alston, Tommy Lasorda and Wilbert Robinson — have reached the ten-year milestone in franchise history. That trio and another Hall of Famer, Leo Durocher, are the only skippers to lead the Dodgers to more wins than Roberts has in the past six years.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

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