Each season the Los Angeles Dodgers are among the World Series favorites, and that again held true for 2022, even before the team signed Freddie Freeman to a six-year, $162 million contract.
Freeman’s addition to the Dodgers lineup further heightened expectations, and manager Dave Roberts raised them when predicting a 2022 World Series win during a recent appearance on “The Dan Patrick” show.
Roberts’ prediction drew a response from Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Tyler Matzek and others have mocked him as well. Roberts nevertheless has stood by his message and reiterated his confidence as the Dodgers wrapped up their Spring Training schedule.
“No. Shouldn’t that be my take?” Roberts began when answered if he regretted making the prediction. “Here’s my thing. For me to put it out there and believe this is what’s going to happen, I think is very powerful. It raises the bar for myself and everyone that’s part of the Dodgers.
“And I think in life, in anything, when you give yourself an out there’s an easy exit. I think for me, knowing this team, this organization, I feel for me to put myself out there and put my team out there and say, ‘I guarantee we’re going to be the last team standing,’ I don’t want to walk it back.
“I believe in these guys, but again, that’s easy to do. The hardest part to do is now every single day get better and win enough baseball games to put ourselves in position to accomplish our goal. But yeah, there’s no walking things back.”
Roberts: Dodgers clubhouse aligned with World Series guarantee
Some wondered if Roberts’ bold claim would have a negative impact on players despite the roster being full of veterans with championship experience.
“I think it’s our expectation,” Roberts said. “It’s very clear what our goal is, and anyone that knows baseball expects that from us anyway. So every man in the clubhouse feels the exact same way.”
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