When Kike Hernandez was knocked out by Toronto Blue Jays reliever Chris Bassitt in the ninth inning of Game 6 World Serieshe watched the Jumbotron at the Rogers Center to see a replay of the at-bat.
That's when he noticed Bassitt had written the number “51” on his cap in honor of Hernandez's Los Angeles Dodgers teammate, infielder Alex Vecia.
“Instead of being mad that I hit, I kind of went back to the bench and thought, 'Did Bassitt play Vecia at some point?' and then after the game I saw that everyone had them,” Hernandez said Saturday before Game 7.
All four Blue Jays relievers who came out of the bullpen in Friday's 3-1 loss to Toronto – Louis Varland, Mason Fluharty, Seranthony Dominguez and Bassitt – wrote “51” on their caps.
Vecia has been one of the Dodgers' most reliable hitters this year, but before the start of the World Series, Los Angeles announced he would be away from the team as he and his wife Kayla were “dealing with a deeply personal matter.”
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The Vesiases documented their pregnancy on social media and announced in April that they were expecting a girl.
Earlier in the series, the Dodgers wrote Vecia's jersey number on their equipment, and Hernandez was visibly touched when asked about Blue Jays relievers who also honor Vecia.
“It's incredible for these guys. They're trying to win the World Series, but they realize there's more to life than baseball and baseball is just a game,” Hernandez said. “For them to do that with the rates—where we are with the rates, hats off to them, and I want them to know that we appreciate them.
“Regardless of what happens tonight, we appreciate what they did.”
Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts said his opponents' gesture meant “everything.”
“The fact that they all say baseball is what we do really speaks to the brotherhood of athletes, Major League Baseball players, but that's not who we are,” Roberts said. “For these guys, Alex's confession and what he and Kay had to go through is… heartbreaking – not even a good enough description.
“But for them to admit it shows how much respect and love they have for each other. It's a huge, huge tribute to Alex.”
Blue Jays manager John Schneider was not involved in the decision to write the message on the relievers' caps, but he was proud that his players did it.
“We have a lot of good people, a lot of good people who are husbands and fathers and people like that who just appreciate what we all do and the challenges that come with it,” Schneider said. “There are also veteran guys there who respect the game and understand how to play it.
“I think it's a cute little trick, no pun intended.”
© 2025 The Canadian Press
