Dave Roberts Reportedly Will Return as Dodgers Manager Despite 2019 NLDS Exit

Dave Roberts will return to the Los Angeles Dodgers for a fifth season, according to Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times.

On almost any other team, Roberts' future wouldn't have been a question heading into the offseason.

The Dodgers have won four National League West titles and two NL pennants in his four years in the dugout. They also set a franchise record with 106 regular-season wins in 2019.

However, Roberts has failed to achieve the franchise's benchmark for success. Since Guggenheim Baseball Group purchased the team from Frank McCourt in 2004, the Dodgers have coveted a seventh World Series title. Especially with the team where it is, anything short of a championship is a disappointment.

The nature of Los Angeles' exit from the playoffs also raised doubts about whether Roberts would be back for 2020.

With the Dodgers holding a 3-1 lead in the seventh inning in Game 5 of the National League Division Series, Roberts brought Clayton Kershaw out of the bullpen. Kershaw got through the seventh unscathed and promptly gave up back-to-back home runs to Anthony Rendon and Juan Soto in the eighth as the Washington Nationals tied the game.

The decision to bring in Kershaw was enough of a head-scratcher. He may be one of the best starting pitchers of his generation, but he isn't accustomed to entering in the middle of high-leverage situations.

Roberts made an even bigger tactical error when he had Joe Kelly start the 10th, which was his second inning of work. The Nationals loaded the bases, and Howie Kendrick hit a grand slam to go ahead 7-3.

Meanwhile, Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen was warming up in the bullpen. He got the final two outs of the inning, yet the damage was done.

It's often unfair to judge managers or coaches for tactical moves after the fact. The outcomes from Roberts' two biggest gaffes were predictable, however.

ESPN's Jeff Passan argued Kershaw was in the game due to his reputation rather than his 2019 performance. Kershaw's 3.86 FIP was his highest since his rookie season in 2008, per FanGraphs, and his fastball averaged a career-worst 90.54 mph, according to Brooks Baseball.

Passan had similar criticism about keeping Kelly on for the 10th:

"OK. Kelly was rested because in his last outing he walked three, gave up a hit and two runs and didn't record an out. Coming off that, Roberts was asking him to do something he hadn't done in more than six weeks. Even if Kelly's ground ball tendencies -- and they're exceedingly strong -- match up well with Kendrick's predilection to hit the ball on the ground, sticking with him after a walk and a double, with Jansen ready to go, shows a fidelity to the numbers that does not match the moment."

Some will argue firing Roberts would have been harsh after the Dodgers won a franchise-record 106 games. Playoff series can be unpredictable, and that's especially true in the best-of-five format.

Roberts' skeptics will counter that the postseason exposed his weaknesses in the dugout.

The Dodgers should be right back in the thick of the title race in 2020.

Although Kershaw is no longer his old self, Walker Buehler is ascendant and poised to be the new ace. Offensively, Los Angeles has one of the game's best hitters, Cody Bellinger, and a pair of young stars in Gavin Lux and Alex Verdugo who will likely continue to improve next year.

All of the pieces are there for L.A. to end a 32-year championship drought. If that dry spell extends to a 33rd year, then Roberts could be out of a job this time next winter.