For the first time in 36 years, the Dodgers have set a date for their World Series victory parade. That day is Friday.
The morning parade begins at 11 a.m. at City Hall and ends on 5th Street near Figueroa Street. Dodgers members will be transported in double-decker buses. A celebration will follow at Dodger Stadium starting at 12:15 p.m., and tickets are required for this event. For fans in attendance, parking lot gates will open at 8:30 a.m. and stadium entry gates will open at 9 a.m. You can also purchase food and goods. In-stadium entertainment, including coverage of the parade on a video scoreboard, will occur prior to the teams’ arrival.
All Dodger Stadium guidelines and rules apply to this event, including the caution not to bring signs, bags or other items not allowed by team policy.
Televised coverage of all Friday’s events begins at 9:30 a.m. on SportsNet LA and various local channels. The radio broadcast will be broadcast on AM 570.
The last time the Dodgers held a parade in Los Angeles was in 1988. The Dodgers won the World Series in 2020, but the parade was not possible due to public health protections surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.
On Wednesday, the Dodgers defeated the New York Yankees 7-6 to win their second championship in five seasons. This time, they’ll be able to enjoy the parade without the frustration of spending a month in a postseason bubble and not being able to share the celebration with their fans.
They will also be happy to shake off criticism that the 2020 championship was somehow less legitimate because the pandemic-shortened season lasted 60 games instead of 162.
“I think it bothers everyone,” infielder Gavin Lux said Tuesday. “We were all in the same situation and we still won that year. We were all in the same boat, doing the same thing. Personally, I don’t think that’s the right story. I think everyone feels a little uncomfortable when they don’t get the recognition they deserve.
“If anything, I think it was a tough year to win. But I’d love to watch Season 1 in full, just to throw the whole story out the window.”
In 1988, the Dodgers paraded north along Broadway to a rally at City Hall. The city expected such an influx of fans, and “staff have painted large white numbers on trees on the City Hall lawn so that if a fan falls to the ground, staff will be immediately dispatched to the appropriate location.” ”The Times reported.
The Dodgers placed the trophy on the table next to them and gave a speech from the podium as all their fans watched.
Coach Tommy Lasorda, wearing a coat and tie, yelled to the crowd: “When we walked into the clubhouse every game, our theme was, ‘How wonderful it is to taste the fruits of victory!'”
Lasorda asked Kirk Gibson, who hit the immortal home run in 1988, to join him on the podium.
Lasorda yelled: “Give it to me! What is the theme at the end of each game? Say it again! Say it again!”
Gibson, wearing a white Dodgers T-shirt, relented. He got up from his seat, walked unsteadily to the microphone, and yelled: The fruit of victory! ”
And Lasorda danced.
