World Series viewers may well have taken notice of the Los Angeles Dodgers wearing the No. 51 on the sides of their caps for missing teammate Alex Vesia.
Vesia, a crucial piece of the Dodgers’ defending champion bullpen, was taken off the active roster between the National League Championship Series and World Series. The Dodgers have merely said that he and his wife Kayla are dealing with a “family matter,” per Sonja Chen of MLB.com, but the lefty is not expected to return for the final two games of the Fall Classic.
This is not the place to speculate what the Vesia family may be dealing with, but it’s clear the Dodgers are holding them in high regard. They’re carrying their teammate with them, while doing the best they can to secure back-to-back championships.
Retiring legend Clayton Kershaw is among those trying to make up for the loss of Vesia, as he delivered a big out from the bullpen in the 12th inning of Monday night’s wild 6-5 Dodgers win in Game 3. And the future Hall of Famer explained the simple logic behind the gesture he and his teammates have made to show their support to Vesia and his family.
“I’m new to the bullpen,” said Kershaw, per Chen. “But Ves means a lot to all of us. He is a huge part of this team, a huge part of that bullpen. We just wanted to do something to honor him.”
Kershaw could be entering his final professional game on Friday, as the Dodgers are on the brink of extinction. They’ve dropped the last two games of this series, as the Toronto Blue Jays have outworked them in all three phases of the game.
Now, with the series shifting back to Toronto, the Dodgers likely wish they had Vesia more than ever. The bullpen has blown up in some tight spots, allowing close games to be come blowouts, and those are situations in which Vesia typically thrives.
But regardless of whether Game 6 is a win or a loss, LA’s choice of apparel on the field will show that the Dodgers’ pitchers have big hearts, and Vesia surely appreciates the gesture.
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