Recently at his charity event, Kenley Jansen was nice enough to talk about the Houston Astros sign-stealing allegations. Furthermore, Jansen feels that if Houston is guilty; serious action needs taken by baseball.
Next up, Jansen gives us a look inside the Los Angeles Dodgers’ clubhouse culture. Specifically, this clubhouse that he says was created by manager Dave Roberts. Remember – in the wake of game five of the NLDS – Ken Rosenthal questioned whether or not the Dodgers would still trust their manager.
However, Jansen says that Roberts has shaped a true team atmosphere inside the bowels of Chavez Ravine. Take a look at this key quote:
“What he built around here in the clubhouse, it wasn’t like this before he came here. This is more of a team now with everyone united and how everyone is. Doc kind of built this, it’s one team. It’s not about one player, it’s one team. We all buy into that and try to win a championship. It’s frustrating we lost but next year is gonna be another year, and we’re gonna be there.”
By comparison, Jerry Hairston Jr. also spoke positively about the job Roberts does when given the opportunity.
While it’s possible Jansen was trying to sound harmonious, the part about Roberts emphasizing the importance of being one unit not solely focused on one player is likely very true. For example, you see this with all the interchangeable parts the Dodgers use within a ballgame.
Finally, there are plenty of things to be critical of Roberts about. I would say managing a clubhouse and a group of guys through adversity is definitely his strong suit. The Dodgers have a guy who scores high in that department, if we are scoring him.
NEXT: Breaking Down Why Dave Roberts is Returning as Manager
