The Los Angeles Dodgers have agreed to a contract extension with manager Dave Roberts, making him the highest paid skipper in baseball and ensuring Doc stays with the team through the 2029 season.
Roberts was entering the final year of his contract and coming off his second World Series title in L.A.
His new deal adds three years to the back end of his contract with an estimated total value of $32.4 million, according to the MLB Network and the New York Post’s Jon Heyman.
The extension also makes Roberts the highest paid manager in MLB history, edging out Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell, who took the title in the previous offseason.
Roberts has the highest winning percentage among all eligible managers in MLB history to go along with two World Series titles.
He also had a ten-year playing career with stops in Cleveland, Boston, San Diego and San Francisco. He suited up for the Dodgers from 2002-2004.
A player’s coach known for his close personal relationships with his roster, Roberts has been the subject of criticism over a lack of perceived postseason success while fielding one of the most dominant and expensive regular season rosters in the sport.
After the team’s success in the 2024 postseason and World Series, highlighted by his use of a masterclass tightwire act with the roster’s depleted pitching staff, many of those complaints have either quieted or been ignored altogether.
It’s now widely expected that Roberts will have a bust in Cooperstown when he leaves the dugout a final time.
Heyman says the official announcement of Roberts’ new deal is expected in the coming days.
The Los Angeles Dodgers will begin their quest for a World Series repeat next week in Tokyo. They’ll return to California for a brief return of preseason play before hosting their home opener against the Detroit Tigers on March 27.
