Dodgers Team News

Dodgers: Dave Roberts Calls Out Astros Manager Dusty Baker for Inaction

In the wake of the wild 6th inning in the Dodgers’ 5-2 win over the Astros, Dave Roberts and Joe Kelly became hot commodities around baseball circles. While Kelly smartly avoided interviews, Doc spent some time with Jim Rome on Wednesday to defend his reliever.

Moreover, Roberts chose his words carefully on the Jim Rome Show, understanding that Major League Baseball was still investigating the accounts of that inning. At the time, the manager’s big hope was that the inning didn’t escalate.



It did.

The Jim Rome Show: Dave Roberts on Joe Kelly and the Astros

Here’s what Dave had to say.

I was thinking I hope it doesn’t get out of control, and that’s my job. My job is to help us win baseball games and to make sure things don’t get out of control — especially under these circumstances with social distancing. And I certainly gotta do better.

Kelly may have been wild or there may have been intent on his part — that much we’ll never know — but he and the Dodgers were walking off of the field after the final out of the inning. Astros players, however, were marching toward Kelly and the visiting dugout.

Notably, this was before Roberts was issued a one-game suspension from MLB, so one could imagine that he might have been a little more animated as he continued his thoughts on the incident.

I think [Astros manager Dusty Baker] needs to do his part as well and control both our clubs. But there was chirping on the other side, and the ball that got away to [Carlos] Correa was a breaking ball… I don’t think it was intentional.

Given that the Dodgers have been steadfast in saying that their only concern heading to Houston was winning ballgames, it’s hard to imagine that the club would take it into their own hands on the field — especially in the way that unfolded in the 6th. First of all, Joe Kelly wasn’t on the 2017 Dodgers that were robbed of a fair shot at the commissioner’s piece of metal.

More importantly, if the team was looking for vengeance, you’d think that an Astro batter would have actually been hit. 

So to Astros players, I cite the word of the legendary Kobe Bean Bryant… “soft.”

NEXT: Astros Manager Dusty Baker Doesn’t Understand How Things Work

Clint Pasillas

Clint Pasillas has been writing, blogging, and podcasting about the Los Angeles Dodgers since 2008. Under Clint's leadership as the Lead Editor, Dodgers Nation has grown into one of the most read baseball sites in the world with millions of unique visitors per month. Find him online on Twitter/X or his YouTube channel!

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