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Dodgers: Reviewing Dave Roberts’ month of June
The month of June was very kind to the Dodgers as they cruised through with a 21-7 record. Some of this may be attributed to Cody Bellinger’s NL Player of the Week tear, and some of it can be attributed to the team’s new franchise record for home runs in a month. Whatever the reason behind it is, manager Dave Roberts deserves credit for the team’s success.
The Dodgers came into the month with a 1.5 game lead over the rest of the NL West teams and left it 3.5 games up. Roberts’ team has been battling with the Rockies and Diamondbacks all year as they have all traded places in first place. The highlight of the month came from the Dodgers’ 10 game-winning streak, where they swept the Reds, Mets, and Rockies.
Man, June was a fun month to be a Dodgers fan.
So, how did Dave Roberts assist this team? Well, his biggest contribution may have been his roster management. With 25 MLB caliber players on this roster, Roberts has an excellent problem on his hands. His ability to find playing time for each of these guys has been remarkable to me. Granted, I would love to see Chris Hatcher in fewer games, but I look more towards Friedman on that front.
Doc’s ability to find playing time for these guys isn’t the only thing he excelled in this month. He also was able to bring in the right guy at the right time.
Take, for example, June 14th against the Cleveland Indians. With the game tied after seven innings, the Indians looked to Andrew Miller to preserve the game for them. However, Roberts had a trick up his sleeve. He called upon Kike Hernandez who proceeds to break the tie with a wall-scraping home run against the elite reliever.
It has also been fascinating to see how he has managed the lineup day in and day out.
One day we may see Joc leading off, and the next day he’s down to the eight hole. Now, while I may not always agree with the decisions he makes with the lineup, they have more than worked out for the team. Roberts has been able to find some consistent chaos in his lineup, and the gamble is paying off, evident by the month’s record.
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Everything can’t be perfect, however, and I have had some issues with his management of the pitching staff.
Like I said earlier, its time to give up on the Chris Hatcher project, and it is time to stop giving him the ball in the late innings of one-run ballgames. It has also been evident that he has been reluctant to go to Kenley Jansen because of the traditional thinking in closers. You have one of the best bullpen arms in the game Dave, give him the ball and let Hatcher sit on his hands in the bullpen.
As hot as the Dodgers were this month, the players cannot get all the credit. Yes, they may do the heavy lifting, but without the brainpower that Roberts brings to this team, they are nowhere near having this sort of success.
I love the way Roberts seems to get along with the players in the dugout and how he handles the media, something we never actually saw from Mattingly. I love the fire and aggressiveness he brings to this team, which was apparent in the death gaze he aimed at Padres manager Andy Green.
Next: Brandon Morrow's Revival
The Dodgers are the hottest team in baseball at the moment and arguably the most talented. With Dave Roberts at the helm and his ability to rally the troops to play hard for him, this team has got a shot.