The 2022 season will mark Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman’s seventh working together.
The two have led the organization to tremendous success over the years, including five National League West titles, three NL pennants and one World Series championship in 2020.
And while they haven’t always seen eye to eye, Roberts believes he and Friedman are usually on the same page, via Andy McCullough of The Athletic:
Roberts described himself as “very synced up” with Friedman, who he considers “the best mind, in my opinion, in all of baseball.” “Are there debates? Do we see the world different at times? Absolutely,” Roberts said. “And I think that’s healthy.”
Roberts is entering the final season of the four-year extension he signed in 2018, but remains confident he will eventually work a new contract out with the Dodgers.
While both sides want to get an agreement done, Friedman previously indicated there would be no issues if Roberts entered the 2022 season as a lame-duck manager. Roberts also said he would play out the final year in his contract no matter the circumstances.
Since taking the helm as manager at the start of the 2016 season, Roberts has led the Dodgers to an MLB-best 542-329 record. Despite being a constant target of criticism for some of his in-game decisions, Roberts has been an integral part of the organization’s success, and the expectation is that a new agreement eventually will be worked out.
Roberts: Dodgers must ‘read and react’ once MLB lockout ends
When a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is agreed upon by MLB and the Players Association, there is expected to be another run on free agents as teams look to build out their roster for the 2022 season.
Roberts relayed the Dodgers are already formulating different plans on how to proceed in free agency once business resumes, with the starting rotation expected to be an area of focus.
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