Longtime Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, who has guided the team to three World Series titles, collected his 1,000th win as an MLB skipper on Tuesday, June 30.
In West Sacramento, California, the Dodgers beat the Athletics 9-3, making the Okinawa-born manager the 69th dugout boss in MLB history to reach quadruple digits in victories.
Roberts, who has led the Dodgers since 2016, reached the milestone in 1,606 games. He accomplished the feat faster than any other MLB manager.
Hall of Famer Cap Anson, who piloted the National League’s Chicago White Stockings/Colts (later known as the Cubs) from 1879-97, previously held the record. Anson, who died in 1922, reached 1,000 wins in his 1,641st game as a big-league manager in 1893. He also briefly led the Philadelphia Athletics and the New York Giants before and after his long Chicago tenure.
Dave Roberts salutes the crowd after the June 30 game in West Sacramento. (©KYODO)
Dave Roberts Shares Thoughts on Reaching Milestone
Speaking after winning his 1,000th game as Dodgers manager, Roberts talked about the rewarding experience that’s now in its 11th season.
“I know people say the word surreal a lot, but it is surreal,” Roberts said, according to The Athletic. “Because you take a step back and look at the body of work, it’s been a fun ride. It really has. And I do think that I am taking this night and enjoying the moment, because there’s a lot of people that contributed, obviously. So that’s what I’m more grateful for.”
The Dodgers entered 2026 as the two-time reigning World Series champions. And they’ve had 10 consecutive winning seasons with Dave Roberts managing the club, including five 100-win campaigns.
This season, LA has the best record in the National League (59-31 through July 4).
For Roberts, the Dodgers’ long list of accomplishments in recent years and the addition of superstar players like Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto to the roster have combined to produce unforgettable memories. This, of course, includes his 1,000th victory.
“It’s a cool milestone. And I can’t ask the players to enjoy milestones and things and not do that myself,” Roberts was quoted as saying by The Athletic. “It gives me an opportunity to look back on a lot of people that have supported me — players, coaches, front office. I’ve done a lot of growing, and had a lot of great experiences.”
Shohei Ohtani and Dave Roberts give each other high-fives on June 28. (©KYODO)
An Iconic Figure on Both Sides of the Pacific
Leading a star-studded team that has won three World Series titles during his managerial tenure has raised Dave Roberts’ profile in Major League Baseball. And keep in mind that only six managers have won four or more titles.
During the Dodgers’ trip to Japan in March 2025 for the season-opening MLB Tokyo Series against the Cubs plus exhibition games against the Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers, Roberts recalled something his Japanese grandfather told him.
“I remember being in Japan as a young kid and watching the Tokyo Giants play,” Roberts said, according to an MLB.com feature, “and my grandfather telling me that this is The Team. So to now be … managing against those guys, I think it’s great. I think it’s amazing.
“And again, this is bigger than us. It’s about global baseball, so I just think I’m very fortunate to be a part of this, as are the Dodgers.”
A Player’s Perspective on Dave Roberts
It’s no secret why Roberts has had incredible success as a manager, Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman said.
“He cares about people,” Freeman said, according to the Los Angeles Times. “His door’s always open. Being a manager is obviously managing baseball, but it’s more about managing egos. You have 26 players, you have all the coaching staff, support staff — and our clubhouse runs smoothly, and that’s because of Dave Roberts.
“He’s a man that’s been through it all. He was a player, [and] he knows how hard the game is. He’s been in the manager seat for a long time here. He knows the ups and downs of the season. We trust him. He trusts us. And I think that’s the key word in all this, is trust. When you have trust with your manager, and know he’s going to put you in the right spots to succeed, it’s very easy to run through walls for him.”
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From left, the Hokkaido Nipponham Fighters’ Shun Mizutani, Tatsuki Mizuno, Franmil Reyes and Chusei Mannami bash four consecutive homers in the bottom of the first inning on July 2 against the Orix Buffaloes at Es Con Field Hokkaido. (©KYODO)
Fighters Set NPB Record with 4 Straight Homers in 1st Inning
The Hokkaido Nipponham Fighters hit four consecutive home runs in their first four at-bats against the Orix Buffaloes on Thursday, July 2.
At Es Con Field Hokkaido, Shun Mizutani, Tatsuki Mizuno, Franmil Reyes and Chusei Mannami slugged round-trippers off Buffaloes southpaw starter Kazuma Sato in the first inning.
After giving up Mannami’s homer, Sato (0-1) departed the game without recording an out.
Mannami smacked Sato’s 2-2 slider over the left-field fence. In doing so, he and his teammates broke the NPB record of three consecutive homers by a team starting with their first at-bat in a game.
Moments earlier, Reyes was fired up to emulate Mizuno’s accomplishment.
“The moment Tatsuki hit his, I was only aiming for a home run,” Reyes said, according to Nikkan Sports.
Mannami was delighted to contribute to the Fighters’ record-breaking feat.
“I can’t really believe it,” Mannami was quoted as saying by Kyodo News. The team’s new cleanup hitter, “I get to play in really good situations.”
Komusubi Wakatakakage attends a news conference on June 29 in Nagoya. The Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament starts on July 12. (©KYODO)
Sumo
Wakatakakage Returns to Sekiwake for Nagoya Basho
Veteran wrestler Wakatakakage is eyeing promotion to ozeki as early as September.
But first things first. Wakatakakage earned promotion to sekiwake, sumo‘s third-highest rank, for the upcoming Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament (July 12-26). It will be his first tournament as a sekiwake since September 2025.
The Japan Sumo Association released the banzuke (rankings chart) for the Nagoya Basho on Monday, June 29.
Wakatakakage, 31, is coming off a title-winning performance in the Summer Basho in Tokyo. He defeated Kirishima in a playoff to claim his second Emperor’s Cup on May 24.
In the May tourney, he had a 12-3 record. During the previous 15-day event, he had an 8-6-1 record in the Spring Basho in March, missing the final day due to an elbow injury. A total of 33 wins in three consecutive tourneys is the benchmark for ozeki promotion.
“I’ve made it my goal for a long time,” Wakatakakage said of becoming an ozeki, according to Kyodo News. “Chances like this don’t come around often, so I want to make sure I grab this one.”
Newly promoted komusubi Yoshinofuji holds the banzuke (rankings chart) for the Nagoya Basho on June 29 in Nagoya (©SANKEI)
Yoshinofuji Aims for a Successful Nagoya Basho
In related news, Yoshinofuji, formerly known as Kusano, appears on the banzuke for the first time as a komusubi.
Competing as a second-ranked maegashira, the 25-year-old grappler went 11-4 at the Summer Basho and received the Fighting Spirit Prize.
Now, as he gets ready for his first tournament in sumo’s san’yaku ranks (the three ranks below yokozuna), Yoshinofuji is determined to have a successful Nagoya Basho.
He’s targeting a winning record as his first goal, Nikkan Sports reported. Beyond that, he’s hoping to finish with a double-digit victory total.
“I want to do my best to win the championship, which I fell short of achieving in the previous tournament,” Yoshinofuji said, according to the sports newspaper.
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Shintaro Mochizuki hits a return to Rafael Jodar in a Wimbledon men’s singles third-round match on July 3 in London. (©KYODO)
Tennis
Mochizuki Advances to 4th Round at Wimbledon
Kawasaki native Shintaro Mochizuki ousted 26th-ranked Spaniard Rafael Jodar in a Wimbledon men’s singles third-round match on Friday, July 3, earning a 1-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, 6-4 upset victory.
As a result, world No 151 Mochizuki reached the fourth round at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in his career.
Mochizuki, 23, will face a formidable challenge in his next match: a duel on Sunday with world No 1 Jannik Sinner, the defending Wimbledon champion who has captured four Grand Slam singles titles.
Before shifting his focus to Sinner, Mochizuki reflected on his showdown with Jodar.
“The match was crazy,” Mochizuki told a news conference. “I think Rafa started playing really well, especially on the returns. [He] wasn’t serving bad at all. But he was just ripping all the returns. I didn’t have anything to adjust until the middle of the second set.”
Shintaro Mochizuki in action during his third-round match. (©KYODO)
Mochizuki Displays Fighting Spirit
One of the keys to victory for Mochizuki in the third round was his 71% win percentage on his first serve.
On his tactics against the Spaniard, Mochizuki shared the following, the ATP Tour website reported: “Somehow I tried to go for second serve a little bit more, and I think it got better. I started holding better and better. I was returning well from the beginning, so I just kept fighting, fighting.”
Before playing in the Wimbledon third round, Mochizuki triumphed over Max Basing and Ethan Quinn in succession.
Since the Open Era began in 1968, only four Japanese men have advanced to the fourth round of a Grand Slam singles tourney, according to the ATP Tour. The others: Kei Nishikori (22 times), Yoshihito Nishioka (twice) and Shuzo Matsuoka (once).
Naomi Osaka competes against Daria Kasatkina in a Wimbledon women’s singles third-round match on July 3. (©KYODO)
Osaka to Face World No 1 Sabalenka
Naomi Osaka has reached the fourth round of women’s singles play at Wimbledon for the first time.
The four-time Grand Slam champion defeated Daria Kasatkina 6-1, 6-3 in the third round at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London on Friday, July 3.
Osaka, who is seeded 14th for this grass-court tournament, is pleased with her Wimbledon performance in the early rounds.
“I definitely felt really good today,” Osaka said, according to BBC Sport, after beating Kasatkina. “I’ve played a lot of matches on grass for the past two weeks, so I felt really confident.”
Osaka also recorded straight-set victories over a pair of unseeded foes, Elsa Jacquemot and Anastasia Gasanova, before facing Kasatkina in the third round.
Up next: Osaka meets Belarusian world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the round of 16 on Sunday, July 5.
Sabalenka has won four of five head-to-head matches against Osaka.
She expects a tough duel against Osaka, whom she called “another aggressive player,” BBC Sport reported.
“I’m ready to fight and do whatever it takes to get through,” added Sabalenka, whose most recent test against Osaka came in the fourth round of the Madrid Open in late April. In that match, Sabalenka rallied for a 6-7 (1-7), 6-3, 6-2 victory.
Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura shoots a 3-pointer against the Oklahoma City Thunder in an NBA Western Conference semifinals game on May 11 in Los Angeles. (©NBAE/GETTY IMAGES/via KYODO)
Basketball
Hachimura Drawing Interest From Warriors, T-Wolves: Reports
NBA free-agent forward Rui Hachimura could join one of the Los Angeles Lakers’ Western Conference rivals this summer.
It’s unclear as of press time if the Lakers will seek to re-sign Hachimura, who averaged 17.5 points and shot a sizzling 56.9% from 3-point range in 10 playoff games in 2026.
Instead of remaining with LA, will he be wearing a Golden State Warriors or Minnesota Timberwolves jersey in the 2026-27 season?
During the offseason, NBA teams can sign free-agent players starting on July 6.
Jake Fischer, who writes for Marc Stein’s Substack publication (The Stein Line), one of the most widely read and highly respected independent basketball news outlets, provided a glimpse of the offseason signing chatter regarding Hachimura.
“As the free agent market moves along, sources say Minnesota and Golden State have both pitched the NBA’s top-remaining forward, Rui Hachimura,” Fischer tweeted on July 3.
In recent days, the Brooklyn Nets and the 2026 NBA Finals runner-up San Antonio Spurs have also been mentioned as possibilities for Hachimura, per The Stein Line.
Hachimura, 28, joined the Lakers in 2022. He was acquired in a trade with the Washington Wizards, who selected him with the No 7 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.
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Briefly…
Robert K Fitts, author of numerous books about Japanese baseball and its rich history, appears on two longform conversations on the “My Baseball History” podcast. Part 1 was released on May 13, and Part 2 was posted online on June 10.
A look ahead: Japan faces Brazil in a high-profile FIVB Women’s Volleyball Nations League match on Wednesday, July 8 in Osaka. Japan is 6-2 in the first round of the tournament, while Brazil has a 7-1 record (tied with the United States for the most wins).
Hajime Moriyasu attends a news conference on July 2. (©SANKEI)
Quote of the Week
“We need to improve the quality of our attack when transitioning from defense. Against Brazil, there were many times where we would win the ball back only to have it taken from us again. That has been an ongoing challenge. And while our quality has definitely improved, it must be raised even higher to compete against the world’s powerhouses.”
―Manager Hajiime Moriyasu, on Japan’s 2-1 loss to Brazil in the 2026 FIFA World Cup round of 16 on June 29, The Asahi Shimbun reported.
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Author: Ed Odeven
Follow Ed’s [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and he can be found on X (formerly Twitter) ďĽ ed_odeven.
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