GLENDALE, Ariz. — After a flurry of roster moves over the past two offseasons, the Dodgers have finalized one more contract to bring it all together, coming to terms on a four-year deal that will make Dave Roberts MLB’s highest-paid manager per season, according to multiple outlets Monday.
The New York Post and The Athletic both reported that Roberts will make slightly more than $8 million per season in a deal that replaces his contract for 2025 while adding three more seasons to keep the two-time World Series winner on the bench through 2028.
“I can’t talk so much about it, but I do think there’s finally some closure,” Roberts said after Monday’s 6-2 Cactus League victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks, while noting the deal is not yet official. “I’m excited. Obviously, this is the place where I want to be. I’m sure I will go into it more, but hopefully there is an announcement coming soon. I’m waiting.”
Roberts’ per-season pay surpasses the previous high of $8 million per season the Chicago Cubs are paying to Manager Craig Counsell, whose deal signed before the 2024 season was for five years.
Roberts had been set to make $4 million over the final year of his previous deal.
Roberts’ Dodgers are set to face Counsell’s Cubs on March 18 and 19 in Tokyo to open the 2025 regular season.
“I just think it all comes down to value,” Roberts said earlier this spring. “And I think whatever anyone does, they want their value.
“… It’s not (the goal) to be the highest-paid manager. If that’s the fallout, fine. But that’s not why I do my job. I do my job because I love baseball, I love the Dodgers and I love the players. But I do feel the body of work is pretty dang good.”
The Dodgers have reached the playoffs in every season Roberts has been the manager, going 851-506 (.627) in nine seasons, while winning eight National League West titles. He has guided the team to the World Series four times, including the title in 2020, as well as last season’s championship in a masterful managing job as injuries mounted, especially among the pitching staff.
The Dodgers were nearly eliminated by the San Diego Padres in the National League Division Series but won the final two games of the matchup to advance. Counting those two victories, the Dodgers closed the playoffs on a 10-3 run to win the eighth title in franchise history.
Roberts turned a series of bullpen games into a title run that ended in a five-game World Series triumph against the New York Yankees.
Roberts has matched Tommy Lasorda’s total World Series titles and is two behind franchise leader Walter Alston.
“This is the place where I’ve always wanted to be and I just love what we’re doing,” Roberts said, as the team prepares to depart for Japan on Wednesday. “I think it’s been a good spring training. I think our guys are ready to break camp and get to Tokyo. Our guys are in a good spot. This is a pretty special day.”
FINAL PREP
Right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto made his final Cactus League appearance before he takes on the Opening Day assignment on March 18 against the Chicago Cubs in his native Japan.
Yamamoto made four spring starts, finishing with a 4.15 ERA over 13 innings with 14 strikeouts.
The 26-year-old is nearly a full year away from his March 21 major-league debut in 2024, which did not go as planned. In a start against the San Diego Padres in Seoul, South Korea, Yamamoto lasted just an inning, giving up five runs on four hits with a walk and two strikeouts.
“I think this year, mentally and physically things have been going my way compared to last year,” Yamamoto said through an interpreter.
He quickly moved on from that outing by going 3-0 with a 1.64 ERA over his next six starts, while finishing the regular season 7-2 with a 3.00 ERA in 18 starts after working his way through a rotator cuff strain while beginning a 12-year, $325 million contract.
He was 3-0 in four playoff starts with a 3.86 ERA and gave up one run on one hit over 6⅓ innings while winning Game 2 of the World Series against the New York Yankees.
“He’s had a really good spring, but I just know that there’s more in there,” Roberts said of Yamamoto. “We saw that, obviously, later on in the (2024) season and throughout the postseason. So it was just a professional way to get ready for this season. And I just know his focus is going to be that much more honed once we get started.”
FIVE HOLE
Roberts said the decision already has been made to leave the team’s No. 5 starter in the United States when the team travels to Tokyo on Wednesday. What he won’t reveal is whether that fifth starter is Tony Gonsolin or Dustin May, both of whom are returning from injuries.
“We’ve got to talk to the players first,” Roberts said Monday morning before noting in the afternoon that those conversations still are pending. “I’ll be having (roster conversations) throughout the day.”
An All-Star in 2022, Gonsolin last pitched in a major-league game on Aug. 18, 2023, before undergoing Tommy John surgery. May last pitched in the major leagues on May 17, 2023, before also undergoing Tommy John surgery. He had an additional medical concern with an esophageal tear that extended his downtime.
One tradeoff the Dodgers will explore is to name one of the two pitchers the No. 5 starter that stays behind, while the other is named to the 31-player traveling party for Japan as a long reliever.
Yamamoto, Sasaki, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow will occupy the first four spots in the rotation.