The Summer Olympics are coming to Los Angeles in 2028, and baseball will be played at Dodger Stadium. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts wants to be involved, telling Dylan Hernández of the California Post that he wants to manage Team USA.
From Hernández:
“I went to school here,” the UCLA graduate said. “I manage the Dodgers.
“It’s a no-brainer.”
There’s a seemingly long time between now and the 2028 Olympics, but also a lot of logistical items to be resolved. But aside from that, there’s also the question
of whether major league players would be allowed to play in the Olympics, which would require a disruption to the MLB schedule that season.
During the World Series last October, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred expressed optimism that a deal could be struck between the league’s owners and the player’s union for MLB players to be used in the Olympics, per Bill Shaikin at the Los Angeles Times:
“I am positive about it. … I think the owners have crossed the line in terms of, we’d like to do it if we can possibly make it work, but there are logistical issues that still need to be worked through.”
The schedule for the 2028 Olympics runs from July 14-30. When baseball will be played hasn’t been finalized, but Dodger Stadium will host the games, as it did in 1984 when the Summer Olympics were last in Los Angeles. Back then, baseball was only a demonstration sport in the Olympics. Baseball was an official medal sport from 1992 to 2008, and again in the 2020 Olympics, which were played in 2021.
Team USA did not qualify for the Olympics in 2024, and were led by college coaches in the 1992 and 1996 games. Since then, the team has been managed in Olympic play by former Dodgers.
In 2000, Tommy Lasorda managed Team USA to a gold medal in Sydney. Davey Johnson, who managed the Dodgers from ., helmed Team USA to a bronze medal in 2008 in Beijing., Longtime Dodgers catcher and Angels manager Mike Scioscia led the team to silver in 2021 in Tokyo, with a team that included former Dodgers Edwin Jackson and Tim Federowicz.
