Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts is a member of one of MLB’s most exclusive clubs.
In professional baseball’s more than 100 years of continuous operation, according to Baseball-Reference.com, only 69 managers on the major league level have won 1,000 or more games. Between the hiring and firing of dugout leadership, managers at times wear different hats to get the best out of their players. Whether being a father figure, a talent evaluator, or someone clever enough to patch together a lineup on a regular basis that succeeds more times than not, this is the modern-day MLB manager.
Roberts, now in his 11th season steering the Dodgers, on June 30 in West Sacramento, California, claimed his 1,000th win. A 9–3 victory at Sutter Health Park over the Athletics welcomed Roberts to the game’s most exclusive managers’ club. Claiming win 1,000 came in his 1,606th game as Dodgers manager. Roberts is the quickest manager to attain win No. 1,000 in MLB history.
“Dave’s a great baseball man who’s on top of every phase of the game,” former MLB manager and current Los Angeles Angels bench coach John Gibbons wrote in an email to The Epoch Times on July 7. “His playing career has served him well in his knowledge of the game, and he’s been able to lead superstars and deal with the press, which isn’t always easy to do. I tip my hat to him.”
In the days following Roberts’s historic victory, Gibbons isn’t alone in praising the Dodgers skipper, who has collected three World Series championships and five National League pennants since taking over the reins in his rookie season. Gaining his first win on Opening Day over the Padres in San Diego, 15–0, on April 4, 2016, is an accomplishment that has put him on course to join the National Baseball Hall of Fame in the years to come.
Jack McKeon knows a thing or two about winning ball games. He is the only manager to have attained 1,000 victories on both the MLB and the minor league levels.
For 16 seasons, beginning in 1973, managing the Kansas City Royals and completing his career in 2011 while guiding the Florida Marlins, McKeon understands the work Roberts had to put in to reach the milestone he hit a week ago. During a phone conversation on Monday with The Epoch Times from his North Carolina home, McKeon recalled how he felt upon reaching the 1,000 managerial win club.
“It was exciting. When you win that many ball games, you realize you have been around for a long time,” he said.
“My best strength was handling players. My philosophy was that I wanted unselfish players that were willing to do the little things to win a ball game. My teams had to enjoy coming to the ballpark every day. As a manager, you have to be a salesman of your program and get the players to buy in. From then on, you just write the lineup. From what I can see, Dave is excellent at understanding his players.”
McKeon, who has a 1,051–990 MLB record working for five different clubs, became the oldest manager to win a World Series title in 2003. After replacing Jeff Torborg as Marlins manager during the regular season, McKeon, then 72, led his club to a six-game win over the New York Yankees to claim the franchise’s second championship.
“As a manager, no question winning a World Series is the highlight. It took me 30 years in the big league to get there. Looking back on it, the joy I got winning in 2003, that was for my family. They suffered with me all those years moving around. It was gratifying for me that they got to celebrate something special with me,” he said.
Earning baseball’s ultimate prize came far sooner in Roberts’s career than the wait McKeon endured. In years two and three (2017 and 2018), Los Angeles won consecutive pennants. In his fifth season piloting the Dodgers in 2020, Roberts won his first World Series championship. In the past two seasons, the Dodgers have earned back-to-back championships.
“I remember my first big league win as a manager in Anaheim, California,” McKeon said. “It was against the California Angels. After the game, I felt dreams do come true. With all the success Dave is having, how could he not be excited to come to work everyday?”
The one managerial asterisk attached to Roberts’s post-playing career is the one game that he was in charge of the 2015 Padres. When the club fired manager Bud Black, Roberts, serving as San Diego’s bench coach, was inserted as the temporary manager. After his one-game experience in writing out the lineup, the Padres brought in Pat Murphy to run the club for the remainder of the season.
Heading into Wednesday’s game at Dodger Stadium against the visiting Colorado Rockies, Roberts’s win total is 1,004.
Cincinnati Reds’ Terry Francona leads all current MLB managers in victories with 2,075 and is 11th on the all-time wins list.
