Dave Roberts’ father was 68 years old

Waymon Roberts, Dodger manager Dave Roberts’ father, has passed away at 68 years old.

The Dodgers expressed their thoughts and prayers with Dave and his family, asking that Dave’s privacy is respected at this time.

Tonight’s Dodgers Spring Training games will be managed by bench coach Bob Geren and Triple-A Oklahoma City manager Bill Haselman, as Dave mourns the loss with his family.

Waymon was a United States Marine who met Dave’s mother, Eiko, while stationed in Japan. Dave was born in Okinawa, Japan.

Waymon and Eiko were present when Dave was first introduced as the Dodgers’ new manager, and they were also there last season to watch the Dodgers in Dave’s first season as the team’s manager. As SportsNetLA reporter Alanna Rizzo notes, Waymon always made a positive impact.

The outpouring of support was immediate and abundant following the tragic news.

Yahoo Sports national baseball writer Tim Brown wrote a story a year ago on Waymon, the Roberts family and the values Dave learned from his father, which you can read here.

Here’s a quote from Waymon from that piece:

“We have no choice about where we were going,” Waymon would tell his family, which by then included a daughter, Melissa. “But we have a choice of who we are going to be when we get there.”