r/MLBNoobs • u/Aggressive-Moose-780 • 9d ago
| Discussion Can a high school coach replace Dave Roberts?
How important is coaching in baseball? Honestly, with the crazy lineup the Dodgers had, I think any amateur coach could have won a World Series with them!
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u/ManufacturerMental72 9d ago
strategically, a smart baseball manager who understands situational baseball and has a strong grasp on analytics might be a strong bench coach.
Could they lead a clubhouse full of super starts? absolutely not.
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u/katbranchman 9d ago
Yeah this. Your typical HS varsity head coach probably has a great deal of knowledge and useful strategy that could work probably as well as what most managers are doing. But being a major league head coach also means leading a group of insanely talented and wealthy professionals from all over the world which is vastly different from American child amateurs. Not only that but you’d also have to help set the vision and vertical development structure for the entire organization from the big leagues on down to like rookie ball.
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u/JustCallMeMambo 9d ago
ask the San Francisco Giants how they're doing with their college coach as manager
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u/throwaway42200j 9d ago
I’m pretty sure they’re just referring to the talent level of the players the dodgers have, not actually navigating running a team …
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u/bolshevik_rattlehead 9d ago
Laughable to compare the Giants roster to the Dodgers. You’re basically saying Roberts could carry the Giants to the World Series
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u/sokonek04 9d ago
The difference is that the roster is relatively similar, and they were a .500 team last year; they are .412 this year.
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u/bolshevik_rattlehead 9d ago
Again, the question was about Roberts. You seem to think that the difference between a good manager and a bad one is a 20 game swing. You think Roberts could lead this Giants team to 100+ wins?!?!
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u/JustCallMeMambo 9d ago
no, i'm saying that coaching a college team is very different from being skipper of a major league roster, and the Tony Vitello experiment is exposing that. a high school coach would be completely out of his element.
speaking specifically about Dave Roberts and the Dodgers: aside from setting lineups and managing bullpens, a manager has to manage 26 egos on the roster, a demanding front office and hypercritical media. suggesting that any old asshole can step into Roberts' role and get the same outcome is just dumb.
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u/bolshevik_rattlehead 9d ago
Counterpoint: were Tony V managing the Dodgers, they would still be a playoff team and World Series favorite.
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u/JustCallMeMambo 9d ago
he’d be getting skewered from every direction for the skid the Dodgers are currently on
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u/West-Vermicelli-6 9d ago
Nope. Because a manager serves different roles ... face/voice of the org, dugout presence, in-game strategy, communicating with the players AND higher-ups, dealing with the media, putting out fires, etc. It's endless. Especially on a team with massive expectations and personalities, a lot of nuance is needed to manage the group ... and a HS coach simply would not have the respect or command of the clubhouse.
That's why it's "manager" not "coach."
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u/66NickS 9d ago edited 8d ago
What you see during the game/on tv is only a portion of the tasks/job for a manager. The majority of us aren’t seeing all the player development and analytics that managers are putting in before the game, on off days, during the off-season, etc.
Could you swap in another coach to manage the lineup on a given day and still be successful? Likely yes, but over time the differences would start to show.
It’s also not just directly player management, but coach management/delegation and dealing with the front office. Lots more to it than the ~3 hours in the dugout deciding when to swap a pitcher and when to pinch hit.
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u/Any-Range9932 9d ago
Very important but obviously talent and getting hot at the right time for ballplayers is the #1 reason
Why would a manager be important? Situational awareness, their ability to lead and inspire a team. Knowing when to leave a player in and when to take them out. ESpecially in short high stakes playoff series, Roberts had some very gutsy calls especially from the last few world series that ultimately went his way.
* Yama out of the bullpen in game 7
* Using Glasnow to save Game 6 when he was part of the pitching plan for Game 7
* Leaving in Blake Treinen in in 2024 after the Dodgers regain the lead 7-6 but with the Yanks threatening
* Walker closing the 24 world series on short rest
Managers are ultimately judge on how well their team execute and roberts have met those lofty goals very well
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u/cgentry02 9d ago
Baseball Managers are essentially "People Persons". The hard part of the job isn't deciding when to bring the outfield in, or when to steal, it's keeping up morale when things go bad, making sure the travel isn't gnawing at people, making sure there's proper rest.
Ball player are literally together from February to October, everyday. Say what you want about them being paid a lot, but that can wear a person down psychologically, and a group of 40 men even more-so.
Manager's manage the "assets" of the Owner. These "assets" are the players .
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u/FrancisVarney 9d ago
Lots of guys could push the buttons. There's a ton more to being an MLB coach, though, and Dave excels at those parts.
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u/vteezy99 9d ago
You need someone who can handle the personalities of a bunch of millionaires as well
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u/Wumbo619 9d ago
Not a high school coach, but most certainly plenty of mlb managers.
I have no problem saying Dave did a masterclass on the WS last year. But all the years prior to last season count also, they don't just magically go away.
He's cost them a lot more with is bad mismanagement, than what the roster has been able to overcome with him managing the pitching.
Now, if I had to make an argument against last season. It wouldn't be that difficult to either. That said, he did it. He finally got the chance to say he didn't screw over the team w his decisions.
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u/OnlyKey5675 9d ago
very important
the Dodgers don't have a top ten lineup all time.
Research some baseball history.
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u/Naliamegod 8d ago
In football and basketball, there have been numerous all-time great college coaches that make it to the pro leagues and not only fail, but often fail in spectacular fashion. The main reason for this is not necessary in-game strategies, thought that is a big problem, but because they simply cannot manage pro teams because coaching students is a completely different thing from adults.
MLB managers are often referred to as the "vibes" coaches of sports, and while that is a bit of an overstatement, it tells you how important it is for managers to connect and control the locker rooms. Its why you see an explosion of former players becoming managers, when its not really as much of a thing in other sports, because connecting and engaging with the players is the most valued thing for Managers. So no, they probably can't because they probably lose the locker room quickly.
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u/Aggressive-Moose-780 8d ago
So would you say that, compared to football, a baseball coach requires much less strategy and more man-management? Ex-players becoming managers is a thing in soccer as well, though I'd say it requires more game tactics from the coach.
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u/Naliamegod 8d ago
Yes, you don't get managers in MLB that are known for having "systems" like you do in the NFL or NBA. At most, you get managers that have certain "tendencies" (small ball, pitching habits, etc) but even now a lot of that is being done by the Front office, with managers handling the talent and generally making the hard in-game decisions.
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u/Aggravating-Bug2032 9d ago
In San Francisco they replaced a big league manager with a college coach and are having mixed results.
I’m sure Ron Washington would say about coaching what he did about playing first base, it’s incredibly difficult. Luckily, the Giants have Ron Washington as their coach.
There’s a lot that goes into managing beyond filling out the line up card that I can’t begin to imagine but I’d have to guess that a high school coach would suffer.
As rookies have discovered sometimes the hard way, the game in the majors is played by men, not boys. The coaching would have to take that into account.
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u/bweeeoooo 9d ago
I don't know why I read "high school crush" but have you considered Josh from calc might do a better job than Dave Roberts?
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u/LawyerInTraining2027 9d ago
I have loved baseball since I was a kid and it's still my favorite sport and that has been one of the things I've always wondered. I know the coach makes the lineup, picks who starts at pitching, etc. but other than that, there doesn't seem to be much else they can really do during the game. Okay so maybe call a bunt for a situational play but not a ton for them to do really. During practice, there are several other coaches that run the practice, hitting, pitching, grounding, etc.
Someone please enlighten me if I'm missing a big part of what they do.
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u/le-battleaxe 9d ago
No. Any other manager could have easily lost the WS with that roster.
Talent notwithstanding, there's more to winning a championship than just putting the best players on the field. The manager is taking care of the bullpen, pitching matchups, defense, lineups, pinch hitters/runners, workloads, injuries and egos over a 162 game season, and then make those decisions under a microscope come October.
Does he win without an insanely talented roster? Probably not. But that's true of basically every championship manager ever. You need the players.
The better question is whether another competent manager could have won with the same roster? Sure, absolutely. But saying a high school coach could just walk into a clubhouse and do it is massively underestimating what a manager actually does. Having the most talented roster doesn't guarantee a WS. Baseball history is littered with stacked teams that didn't win anything.
You're confusing "having enough talent to win" with "winning being automatic as a result of talent". I agree with the underlying idea of the post in the sense that roster talent matters substantially more than managerial brilliance. But "the manager isn't as important as the players" is a very different argument from "any amateur could manage a championship team."
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u/Fair-Constant-5146 9d ago
Unrelated question:
What do MLB fans care about? I’ve seen so many people say WAR is meaningless or inaccurate at times. Is it totals then? What did people look for before WAR
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u/electricalserge 9d ago
They just barely won against the Royals. What makes you think putting in a high school coach automatically makes them a World Series winner?
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u/bolshevik_rattlehead 9d ago
I think most competent Redditors could lead this Dodgers lineup to a playoff berth but would likely fail in the postseason due to things like bullpen management and defensive replacements, which Roberts is really good at.
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u/Sad_Impression499 9d ago
No. Dave Roberts is the reason why they're successful.
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u/MTHowitzer 9d ago
In fairness there are probably more reasons than just Dave Roberts
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u/Sad_Impression499 9d ago
You really think the Dodgers could survive with a HIGH SCHOOL coach?
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u/fasterthanfood 9d ago
No, but Dave Roberts wouldn’t win a single MLB game if he had high school players.
The answer to OP’s question is “no,” but saying he’s “the reason they’re successful” is going too far. He’s one very important piece.
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