A victory parade celebrating the Dodgers’ World Series title will be held Friday morning in downtown Los Angeles, along with a “special ticketed celebration” at Dodger Stadium.
The parade, featuring team members riding atop double-decker buses,
will begin at 11 a.m. at Gloria Molina Grand Park across from City Hall. Mayor Karen Bass will speak to officially begin the 45-minute procession, which will move south on Spring Street, then west on First Street, south on Grand Avenue, and west on Fifth Street, ending in the area of Fifth and Flower Streets.
Fans planning to attend the parade were being “emphatically
encouraged” to take public transportation, due to “significant streets
closures and limited public parking.”
During a news conference Thursday morning, Bass and local leaders
outlined a coordinated effort to ensure Friday’s parade uplifts the
“championship team, dedicated fans, and its proud city.”
“I again want to urge Angelenos to celebrate responsibly,” Bass
said. “Violence of any kind will not be tolerated.” Bass urged businesses downtown to institute a work-from-home policy on Friday to minimize traffic congestion.
According to the team, parking gates at the stadium will open at 8:30
a.m. and the stadium entry gates will open at 9 a.m. Food and merchandise will be available for purchase. In-stadium entertainment will be offered before the team’s arrival, including coverage of the parade on DodgerVision scoreboards.
“All Dodger Stadium guidelines and rules will apply to this event,
including the reminder not to bring in signs, bags, or any other items that
aren’t permitted under our policies,” according to a statement from the team.
The parade and the stadium event will be televised live on Spectrum SportsNet LA, and local TV stations. Television
coverage is expected to begin at 9:30 a.m.
An announcement about the process for obtaining tickets to the stadium
The event will be held Thursday morning, a Dodger spokesman told City News Service.
The parade will be held on the 64th anniversary of the birth of
legendary Dodger pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, who died Oct. 22.
“It’s going to be emotional,” Dodger manager Dave Roberts said.
“Fernando was a friend of mine. I know he’s smiling right now and very proud of this organization. So he’s going to be missed. I’m sure it’s something that he would want to have been a part of, but it’s going to be emotional for all of us.”
The Dodgers won their second World Series championship in five years
Wednesday night, overcoming a five-run deficit to defeat the New York Yankees, 7-6, at Yankee Stadium and win the best-of-seven series four games to one.
Freddie Freeman was unanimously selected as the Series’ MVP for
driving in 12 runs, tying the record set by Bobby Richardson in the Yankees’ seven-game loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1960, and becoming the first player to hit home runs in each of the first four games of a Series.
The five-run deficit the Dodgers overcame was the largest in a World
Series-clinching victory, breaking the previous record of four by the Pirates in their 9-7 victory over the Washington Senators in Game 7 of the Series in 1925, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, Major League Baseball’s official Statistician.
