Roberts, Dodgers sign extension through '25

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Despite not having an agreement at the beginning of Spring Training, manager Dave Roberts and president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman made it clear that coming to terms on a contract extension for the Dodgers' skipper was a matter of when, not if.

On Friday, the Dodgers and Roberts came to an agreement on a three-year extension that will keep the former Major League outfielder in Los Angeles through the 2025 season. This season was to be the final year of Roberts' contract.

“To get it done before the season, I think, it’s exciting for me and my family,” Roberts said Friday. “You guys know how excited I am and what it means for me to put this uniform on every day and really respecting the Dodger tradition and the people that came before me and what it means. For ownership, the organization, Andrew in particular, to entrust me going forward is everything.”

Though the agreement didn’t come until two weeks before the team’s Opening Day on April 8, the decision to keep Roberts at the helm was an easy one for the Dodgers. In Roberts’ first six seasons as the Dodgers’ manager, the team has not missed the postseason a single time. During that span, the Dodgers have won the National League West five times, made the NLCS five times, won the NL pennant three times and snapped the organization's 32-year championship drought with the 2020 World Series title.

Roberts, the 2016 NL Manager of the Year, is 542-330 as a manager, a .622 winning percentage. That’s the highest winning percentage by any manager in National League or American League history. He’s fifth in Major League history in that category behind four Negro Leagues managers. During his tenure, the Dodgers have at least 100 more wins than every other team in the NL West.

“Since becoming the manager in 2015, Dave Roberts has consistently demonstrated elite leadership skills and infectious energy,” Friedman said in a statement released by the team. “He has been a vital part of the Dodgers’ success over the last six-plus years and we all look forward to seeing him lead the organization from the dugout for a long time to come.”

Even with all the success over the last handful of seasons, Roberts admitted that there were times where he questioned just how long he wanted to be at his current position. The demands of being a Major League manager are high, especially when you wear a Dodgers uniform and have to deal with the yearly expectations of winning a World Series. When you don’t, it comes with plenty of scrutiny.

But every time Roberts thought of the possibility of stepping away, he always came to the same conclusion. Being the manager of the Dodgers is what Roberts has wanted to do over the last six seasons and what he hopes to do for the foreseeable future.

“Pressure, expectations, it’s what you play for, it’s what you coach for, and that’s a good thing,” Roberts said. “I’d like to think I embrace it. I wouldn’t change a thing. But I also understand kind of how to navigate it and manage it and keep it about the Dodgers and winning baseball games, doing right on the field and off the field, and I think our players echo that sentiment.”

Over the last few seasons, Roberts also has become more outspoken about social justice issues. Last spring, Roberts, who is the son of a Japanese mother and Black father, emailed everyone in the organization condemning the increasing trend of violence and harassment against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders stemming from xenophobia and worsened by the coronavirus pandemic.

In 2020, Roberts stood in solidarity with his team in protest of the police shooting of Jacob Blake.

“I think you guys have seen me more vocal outside of the baseball lane the last couple years,” Roberts said. “I take a lot of pride in that and not being lost that I’m a baseball manager and not a political voice or a social voice. But I do believe that I’m in a position to do some good things off the field and impact lives, whether it’s with the Dodger Foundation or kids or minorities.”

Now that Roberts has an extension, he has a chance to embed himself even deeper in Dodgers history. If Roberts is still the manager through the end of his new deal, he will have been the Dodgers’ manager for 10 seasons. The last Dodgers manager to maintain the position for at least 10 years is Hall of Famer Tommy Lasorda.

“I love this organization so much,” Roberts said.