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Sometimes players need a kick in the butt. Or maybe they just need to air things out. For the Los Angeles Dodgers toward the end of the regular season, their manager thought they needed a reminder of how good they can be.
Dave Roberts called an in-season meeting in mid-September, something he doesn’t recall doing in his first nine years as manager. It helped jumpstart the Dodgers' run to the World Series, their fourth under Roberts' guidance.
“I was just feeling that there was a little bit of wavering with the roster as far as enough talent to win 11 games in October,” Roberts told The Athletic.
The Dodgers were going through it with a depleted pitching staff and a tough streak before the playoffs. Roberts, who's been around Major League Baseball clubhouses all but two years since his debut as a player in 1999, knows how to read a locker room well. He figured his squad full of stars, although missing a few, could rally together and push for a title.
“They realized beyond a shadow of a doubt that there was enough talent on this team to win a championship,” Roberts said. “As a coach, the messaging is also, I can believe in you until the cows come home. But if you guys don’t believe in each other more than I believe in you guys, then it’s all for naught. It was a challenge to the guys.”
The Dodgers closed the regular season with 11 wins in their last 14 games to claim the best record in the league.
Dave Roberts ready to face bullpen challenge
One of the biggest talking points for the Dodgers throughout the playoffs has been their pitching plans. It seems like Dave Roberts is asked every day what he'll do in the World Series. He's at least been steadfast in his approach.
The Dodgers have three traditional starters at their disposal, Jack Flaherty, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Walker Buehler. Flaherty and Yamamoto will get the ball in Games 1 and 2. While it hasn’t officially been announced yet, Buehler would presumably start Game 3.
That leaves Roberts and Los Angeles with a likely bullpen game in the middle of the series. The Dodgers rode a bullpen game to a pennant-clinching victory in Game 6 of the National League Championship Series. They deployed seven pitchers to get the job done.
Dave Roberts has made the right calls for the most part this postseason. Moving Tommy Edman up in the lineup in Freddie Freeman's absence paid off tremendously and he's pulled the strings well in the bullpen. Los Angeles relievers have a 3.16 ERA across 11 games this postseason.
The Dodgers are four wins away from the ultimate glory. Will Roberts get his third ring?
