There’s a very real chance that major league players could participate in the Olympics for the first time. If they do, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has strong feelings about who should lead Team USA at the 2028 Summer Games.
Himself.
“I want to manage the Olympic team,” Roberts told the California Post. “That’s what I want to do. In L.A., I want to manage that team.”
Roberts went on to list his qualifications.
The Olympics will be in Los Angeles and the baseball competition will be staged at Dodger Stadium.
“I went to school here,” the UCLA graduate said. “I manage the Dodgers.
“It’s a no-brainer.”
Roberts also represented the United States at the 1999 Pan American Games. Because the U.S. finished second, it qualified for the 2000 Olympics, at which it won a gold medal with Tommy Lasorda as its manager.
Something else Roberts didn’t mention: The son of an African American father and Japanese mother, he reflects the wide range of cultures that can be found in Los Angeles.
Want patriotism?
Roberts’ late father, Waymon, spent three decades in the Marines.
“In L.A., I want to manage that team,” Roberts said. “No one’s more relevant to do that than me.”
Bryce Harper has said he wants to play in the Olympics. So has Shohei Ohtani.
“Of course,” Ohtani said in 2024.
Because Major League Baseball has refused to pause its season to release players for an international competition it doesn’t control, the United States has fielded teams consisting of collegians or minor leaguers at previous Olympics. Japan has used players from its professional league in each of the last four Games in which baseball was included.
For players such as Ohtani and Harper to be cleared to play, an agreement must be reached between Major League Baseball, the players’ union and LA28, the organizing committee for the 2028 Olympics.
Commissioner Rob Manfred has sounded increasingly optimistic that a deal could be made. A major obstacle was removed in November when LA28 announced a new schedule for its baseball, with the competition requiring just a slightly extended All-Star break from MLB.
The opening game of the Olympic tournament is now slated to take place on July 13, a day before the opening ceremony. The final would be on July 19.
Under that scenario, MLB could be able to hold its annual All-Star Game on its traditional Tuesday date on July 11.