​Dodgers manager Dave Roberts delivered a blunt message to the defending World Series champions who continue to battle through a slump. GettyLos Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts delivered a blunt message to his team as the defending World Series champions continue to work through a prolonged slump.The Dodgers have faced mounting questions during their recent slide, and Roberts made it clear what he believes needs to change for Los Angeles to get back on track. The 54-year-old, three-time World Series-winning manager blasted his Los Angeles Dodgers’ lack of urgency Monday after losses in eight of their last nine games jeopardized a top playoff seed.The skid has erased Los Angeles’ cushion for a first-round playoff bye, leaving the manager searching for answers before a pivotal seven-game homestand opening Monday against the Kansas City Royals.Roberts didn’t hold back before first pitch, delivering an unusually blunt assessment of a team that has gone 3-10 over its last 13 games.“Kind of thinking about it on the plane yesterday, we’re a wild-card team right now,” Roberts said. “We gotta get going,” as quoted by the California Post‘s Jack Harris.The Dodgers sit at 70-48 and still hold a comfortable lead in the National League West by 7 1/2 games. But the bigger picture is murkier. Los Angeles now trails both the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers for the top two overall NL seeds, putting a risky wild-card series squarely back on the table for the back-to-back World Series champions.KANSAS CITY ROYALS STARTING LINEUPSP: Noah Cameron (LHP, #65) • 6-8, 4.37 ERA, 116 KAugust 10, 2026 • Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA • 10:10 PM EDT#PlayerPosBHRRBISBAVGOPS1Nick Loftin3BR5351.243.7172Bobby Witt Jr.SSR134231.284.8053Jac Caglianone1BL20494.264.7974Salvador PerezCR16490.216.6355Carter JensenDHL16551.227.7226Starling MarteRFR2142.250.6307Michael Massey2BL9392.262.7208Isaac CollinsLFS6356.239.7059Kyle IsbelCFL3135.233.619Lineups subject to change.Dave Roberts Calls Out Dodgers’ Fastball WoesMost of Roberts’ frustration centered on an offense that ranks fourth in the majors in runs scored and second in OPS for the full season, yet has collapsed to 24th and 21st in those same categories since July 1.“It never feels good to be bullied. And to know that teams go after us with the fastball more than any team in baseball, that’s bothersome. That would bother me,” Roberts said, according to the Post.No club has seen more four-seamers and sinkers than the Dodgers during the slump, and the results have been rough. Los Angeles owns the worst weighted on-base average in the majors against those pitches over that stretch, the Post reported.“You’ve got to look into your zone and get the bat head to it,” Roberts said. “It’s something that, I hope our guys take that personally. We shouldn’t get bullied [with fastballs by opposing pitchers].”Roberts also took ownership of the collapse, saying it falls on him to manage with