Even though having the endorsement of players is not a prerequisite when a team is looking to hire a new manager, it certainly doesn’t hurt – especially when those endorsements are made directly to team ownership as opposed to… say… the president of baseball operations or the general manager, who are actually responsible for doing the hiring. So when Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez (among several others) spoke with Dodgers chairman and principal owner Mark Walter expressing their support of Dave Roberts to become their new manager, it may have been the push needed to give Roberts an edge over current Dodgers Director of Player Development Gabe Kapler. Roberts, as you know by now, was named as the team’s new manager this past Monday.

Although we will most likely never know what was said between the players and the big boss – nor should we – Gonzalez did share his thoughts on the hiring of his former Padres teammate with LA Times Dodgers beat reporter Dylan Hernandez.

“He’s a guy that has played all kinds of roles,” Gonzalez told Hernandez. “He was a fourth and fifth outfielder. He was a starter. He had a few really good seasons. He’s a guy that’s come off the bench and done incredible things. He’s going to be able to relate to a lot of the situations that players are in. … He’s probably the best human being I’ve ever met. People see that and people respond to that.”

It’s hard to believe that Roberts’ endorsement by Gonzalez and several other Dodgers players didn’t have at least some influence on him becoming the new Dodgers manager. (Photo credit – Jon SooHoo)

Again, what was said between AGon and Walter is not known, but if it was anything even remotely close to what he said to Hernandez – and one has to assume that it was – it was indeed a huge endorsement for Roberts.

But what about when it comes to high-end free agents say… like… 2015 NL Cy Young runner-up Zack Greinke? Could naming Dave Roberts as the Dodgers new manager influence an extremely cerebral guy like Greinke into remaining in Los Angeles instead of chasing a bigger (and undoubtedly longer) contract elsewhere?

Allow me to elaborate.

During his own introductory press conference back on December 11, 2012, Greinke complemented Dodgers President and CEO Stan Kasten for drafting then 18-year-old Corey Seager out of Northwest Cabarrus High School (Concord, NC).

Seriously? A guy who had just signed a six-year / $147 million contract actually knew (and approved of) the Dodgers first-round draft pick from six months earlier and that it may have even had a small part in who he chose to sign with? That’s not just being cerebral, that’s being flat out scary smart and appears to have been spot on.

But more recently and of far greater importance is the fact that now former manager Don Mattingly may have had at least some influence on Greinke’s decision to exercise the opt-out clause in his contract, thereby walking away from a guaranteed $71 million still on the table. Although the eccentric 32-year-old right-hander always took the high road and never publicly criticized his manager, Greinke occasionally intimated that he wasn’t always pleased with some of the line-ups that his former manager put out or some of his in-game decisions – especially when it came to how he used his oft-criticized Dodgers bullpen.

Even though he never came right out and said it, reporters occasionally sensed that Greinke wasn’t always happy with some of Mattingly’s managerial decisions.
(Video capture courtesy of Michael Duarte – nbclosangeles.com)

Again, and please make no mistake about this, Greinke never came right out and criticized Mattingly, he just occasionally left reporters with this feeling – especially after a particularly tough and perhaps even preventable loss.

With Mattingly no longer a factor and with the overwhelming support being expressed over the hiring of Dave Roberts as the new Dodgers manager – including that from several of his teammates – is it possible that Zack Greinke may now be more inclined to re-sign with the Dodgers than he was with Don Mattingly at the helm?

Stay tuned…