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By Jon Paul Hoornstra
Contributing Sports Writer
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In 1994, the Detroit Tigers selected a UCLA outfielder named Dave Roberts in the 28th round of the MLB Draft.
Thirty-two years later, another Roberts is joining the Tigers organization — fittingly, as a coach.
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The advanced Class-A West Michigan Whitecaps named Cole Roberts, the son of the Los Angeles Dodgers' manager, as their bench coach Monday. It's the first post-playing job for Roberts, who was released last July after topping out at Double-A in the Philadelphia Phillies' minor league system.
Cole Roberts was a 38th-round draft pick out of Loyola Marymount University by the San Diego Padres. Now he'll look to make a name for himself as a coach, following in the footsteps of his three-time World Series-winning father.
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Cole Roberts, 25, played three seasons of minor league baseball with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Philadelphia Phillies organizations. In 97 games from 2023-25, he played three positions (second base, shortstop and left field) and slashed .222/.316/.281.
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In six games with the Phillies' Double-A affiliate last year, Roberts went 3 for 13 (.231).
Now he'll help manager Rene Rivera lead a Whitecaps team that posted a remarkable 92-39 record last year in the Midwest League.
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Ironically, Dave Roberts never managed a game in the minor leagues. He was the San Diego Padres' bench coach when manager Bud Black was fired in June 2015, and served as the team's interim manager for a day.
After that season, the Dodgers hired Roberts to replace manager Don Mattingly. Over the next 11 seasons, Roberts led the team to a 944-575 record, his .621 winning percentage serving as the highest in American or National League history.
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After losing the World Series in 2017 and 2018, the Dodgers broke through with their first championship under Dave Roberts in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. He followed that up with World Series wins in 2024 and 2025, making the Dodgers the first team to win back-to-back World Series in 25 years.
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