Dave Roberts, born David Ray Roberts (May 31, 1972 in Okinawa, Japan), is a Major League Baseball center fielder who plays for the San Diego Padres. Previously, he played with the Cleveland Indians (1999-2001), Los Angeles Dodgers (2002-04) and Boston Red Sox (2004). Roberts bats and throws left-handed. He is the son of a retired Marine (Waymon Roberts) and a Japanese mother (Eiko) and was raised in San Diego, California.
In a six-year career, Roberts is a .259 hitter with 11 home runs, 99 RBI, and 135 stolen bases in 422 games.
Roberts has a good knowledge of the strike zone. He has no power, but is a spray hitter who uses raw speed to get on base and stretch singles to doubles. He is a terror once he gets on base, commonly manufacturing runs by stealing second base, moving to third on a grounder, and coming home on a sacrifice fly. Only two players have stolen more bases than him over the last three seasons. Roberts' weaknesses include being overly aggressiveness, such as unwisely attempting to extend a hit or steal third base and running into outs, and being extremely injury-prone. Roberts has exceptional range in the outfield, but his below-average arm eventually allows opponents to take extra bases on him.
Before the 2005 season, Roberts was dealt to San Diego for veteran Jay Payton, who will take over Roberts's role as the Red Sox fourth outfielder. Meanwhile, the speedy Roberts looks perfect to roam the spacious outfield at Petco Park.
Milestone
- Roberts made a significant number of contributions to the Red Sox first World Series win in 86 years. The most notable was his stolen base against the Yankees in the ALCS Game 4. Facing elimination in the bottom of the ninth inning down 4 runs to 3, Kevin Millar drew a walk from Mariano Rivera. Roberts, who had not played in 10 days, came in to pinch run. Rivera threw over to first base three times (the last almost picked off Roberts), and on the next pitch, Roberts managed to steal second base. Bill Mueller followed with a single, Roberts scored, and the Sox went on to win in 12 innings and begin their run of eight straight wins culminating in the World Championship title.
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