Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts delivered a blunt message to his team as the defending World Series champions continue to work through a prolonged slump.
The Dodgers have faced mounting questions during their recent slide, and Roberts made it clear what he believes needs to change for Los Angeles to get back on track. The 54-year-old, three-time World Series-winning manager blasted his Los Angeles Dodgers’ lack of urgency Monday after losses in eight of their last nine games jeopardized a top playoff seed.
The skid has erased Los Angeles’ cushion for a first-round playoff bye, leaving the manager searching for answers before a pivotal seven-game homestand opening Monday against the Kansas City Royals.
Roberts didn’t hold back before first pitch, delivering an unusually blunt assessment of a team that has gone 3-10 over its last 13 games.
“Kind of thinking about it on the plane yesterday, we’re a wild-card team right now,” Roberts said. “We gotta get going,” as quoted by the California Post‘s Jack Harris.
The Dodgers sit at 70-48 and still hold a comfortable lead in the National League West by 7 1/2 games. But the bigger picture is murkier. Los Angeles now trails both the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers for the top two overall NL seeds, putting a risky wild-card series squarely back on the table for the back-to-back World Series champions.
| KANSAS CITY ROYALS STARTING LINEUP | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP: Noah Cameron (LHP, #65) • 6-8, 4.37 ERA, 116 K | ||||||||
| August 10, 2026 • Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA • 10:10 PM EDT | ||||||||
| # | Player | Pos | B | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | OPS |
| 1 | Nick Loftin | 3B | R | 5 | 35 | 1 | .243 | .717 |
| 2 | Bobby Witt Jr. | SS | R | 13 | 42 | 31 | .284 | .805 |
| 3 | Jac Caglianone | 1B | L | 20 | 49 | 4 | .264 | .797 |
| 4 | Salvador Perez | C | R | 16 | 49 | 0 | .216 | .635 |
| 5 | Carter Jensen | DH | L | 16 | 55 | 1 | .227 | .722 |
| 6 | Starling Marte | RF | R | 2 | 14 | 2 | .250 | .630 |
| 7 | Michael Massey | 2B | L | 9 | 39 | 2 | .262 | .720 |
| 8 | Isaac Collins | LF | S | 6 | 35 | 6 | .239 | .705 |
| 9 | Kyle Isbel | CF | L | 3 | 13 | 5 | .233 | .619 |
| Lineups subject to change. | ||||||||
Dave Roberts Calls Out Dodgers’ Fastball Woes
Most of Roberts’ frustration centered on an offense that ranks fourth in the majors in runs scored and second in OPS for the full season, yet has collapsed to 24th and 21st in those same categories since July 1.
“It never feels good to be bullied. And to know that teams go after us with the fastball more than any team in baseball, that’s bothersome. That would bother me,” Roberts said, according to the Post.
No club has seen more four-seamers and sinkers than the Dodgers during the slump, and the results have been rough. Los Angeles owns the worst weighted on-base average in the majors against those pitches over that stretch, the Post reported.
“You’ve got to look into your zone and get the bat head to it,” Roberts said. “It’s something that, I hope our guys take that personally. We shouldn’t get bullied [with fastballs by opposing pitchers].”
Roberts also took ownership of the collapse, saying it falls on him to manage with more urgency down the stretch.
“Everyone’s trying,” he said. “But I think the effort could still be enhanced and improved and more focused. So yeah, I think it’s just a reminder. A good reminder. There’s plenty of time. We’re still plenty good. But we gotta play like it.”
| LOS ANGELES DODGERS STARTING LINEUP | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP: Tarik Skubal (LHP, #29) • 7-6, 2.81 ERA, 122 K | ||||||||
| August 10, 2026 • Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA • 10:10 PM EDT | ||||||||
| # | Player | Pos | B | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | OPS |
| 1 | Shohei Ohtani | DH | L | 26 | 71 | 6 | .292 | .937 |
| 2 | Andy Pages | CF | R | 19 | 76 | 11 | .272 | .797 |
| 3 | Freddie Freeman | 1B | L | 15 | 55 | 5 | .303 | .851 |
| 4 | Tommy Edman | LF | S | 3 | 22 | 3 | .279 | .762 |
| 5 | Mookie Betts | SS | R | 13 | 36 | 1 | .229 | .674 |
| 6 | Miguel Rojas | 2B | R | 3 | 18 | 0 | .286 | .728 |
| 7 | Teoscar Hernández | RF | R | 11 | 41 | 2 | .249 | .717 |
| 8 | Max Muncy | 3B | L | 22 | 52 | 2 | .248 | .827 |
| 9 | Hunter Feduccia | C | L | 2 | 12 | 0 | .235 | .643 |
| Lineups subject to change. | ||||||||
Los Angeles Dodgers’ Path Back Runs Through the Rotation
Roberts sees the fastest route to a turnaround on the mound. Tarik Skubal makes his Dodger Stadium debut Monday night, Blake Snell returns from the injured list Tuesday, and Tyler Glasnow made progress in his rehab assignment over the weekend. Shohei Ohtani played catch again Monday as he builds toward a return, while Yoshinobu Yamamoto has remained the rotation’s steadiest arm all season.
Los Angeles navigated a similar summer swoon a year ago and still went on to defend its World Series title, a history Roberts leaned on Monday, even as he made clear the current approach isn’t good enough.
“‘We’re gonna be OK and we’re good,’ that’s not good enough,” Roberts said. “Clearly it’s not, given how we’ve played over the last month. So we put ourselves in this position. [We have] a lot of talent. But I think across the board, we need to play with more urgency. And our guys know that.”
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