The night before the Los Angeles Dodgers began their 2025 World Series matchup against the Toronto Blue Jays, the team announced Alex Vesia had taken time to be with his wife, Kayla, as they “navigate a deeply personal family matter.”
Vesia then was not included on the Dodgers’ postseason roster for the World Series, nor was he put on MLB’s Family Medical Emergency List or bereavement and thus remained ineligible to appear. President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman explained that stemmed from the Dodgers not wanting to put any sort of pressure on Vesia to return.
“This is so much bigger than baseball. For us, it was doing whatever small part we could to just a hundred percent be supportive,” Friedman said.
Details for Vesia’s absence were not provided, but he confirmed the worst fears by sharing it was due to the loss of the couple’s daughter, Sterling Sol Vesia, on Oct. 26.
The Vesias thanked the Dodgers organization and fans, Blue Jays, and others who have offered condolences and support during their incredibly difficult time.
Dodgers and Blue Jays relief pitchers showed their support for Vesia by wearing his No. 51 jersey on their caps.
“I would like to let them speak about that when they want to, but just keeping them in our thoughts and our prayers,” Will Klein said after the Dodgers won Game 7. “There’s bigger things than baseball, and he’s in all of our hearts.”
Dodgers exercise Alex Vesia’s option
Certainly secondary to the hardship Vesia and his family are navigating, MLB offseason business is nevertheless moving along. That amounted to the Dodgers exercising their $3.65 million team option on the left-hander to keep him under contract for the 2026 season.
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