Members of the Los Angeles Dodgers bullpen wrote “51” on their hats on Monday ahead of World Series Game 3, paying tribute to left-handed reliever Alex Vesia, who’s away from the team due to a “deeply personal family matter.”
The Dodgers announced the day before the World Series that Vesia would be away from the team as he and his wife, Kayla, dealt with a personal matter. The Dodgers didn’t place Vesia on the Family Medical Emergency List, meaning he would not be eligible to return for the entirety of the World Series.
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While Vesia is away from the team, the Dodgers have kept him in their prayers. On Monday, they kept him in their thoughts and honored him on their hats.
Clayton Kershaw, the future Hall of Famer who isn’t usually in the bullpen, revealed why the team decided to honor Vesia with this tribute.
“It’s just something that we talked about,” Kershaw said. “I’m new to the bullpen, but Ves, he means a lot to all of us. And he was a huge part of this team, huge part of that bullpen. So, we just wanted to do something to honor him.”
Other relievers spoke about the decision, too, and what Vesia means to the team.
“With him not being here, I think it was just a matter of showing that we’re united with him and Kayla at this time,” Jack Dreyer said. “It’s just the little thing that we could do to show him that we care and we’re thinking about him. We could really use him here, but at the end of the day, we’re a family. So we’re going to help support him however we can.”
“The Vesia situation is playing on our hearts recently,” added Evan Phillips, who’s out after undergoing Tommy John surgery. “We certainly miss him on the field, but we know that we have his back and the support’s there for them while they’re going through this hard time.”
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The Dodgers bullpen ended up covering 13.1 innings in World Series Game 3, allowing just one run and playing a pivotal role in LA’s 18-inning win.
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