Dodgers celebrate World Series with parade and Dodger Stadium party

After 36 long years, the Los Angeles Dodgers finally hosted another parade through the streets of downtown Los Angeles on Friday afternoon to celebrate their 2024 World Series Championship.

The players and their families rode along double-decker buses throughout the streets of downtown Los Angeles, starting at City Hall, and ending at the corner of 5th street and Flower, near the Los Angeles Central Library.

Following the nearly one-hour parade route, which saw hundreds of thousands of Dodgers fans line the streets of Los Angeles for a glimpse of their World Series Champions, the team headed back to Chavez Ravine for a celebration in front of the fans.

The celebration at Dodger Stadium featured a mariachi band, a performance by Ice Cube, several celebrity sightings, and speeches by most of the players. Here are the top five best moments from the parade and celebration.

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Fans lined the World Series victory parade route to cheer Freddie Freeman, Shoheo Ohtani, Mookie Betts and other Dodgers, but there was a beloved former player whose presence was felt in their hearts.

On what would have been the legendary Fernando Valenzuela's 64th birthday, fans at the parade held signs and wore No. 34 jerseys in honor of the man who sparked a nationwide phenomenon with a rookie season for the ages. Inside Dodger Stadium, fans gathered for a midday celebration sang "Happy Birthday."

"It's going to be emotional," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of the parade and a fan event planned for Dodger Stadium. "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."

One fan at Gloria Molina Grand Park along the parade route was holding a "Happy birthday, Fernando Valenzuela" sign. He said he's most excited to see Roberts because of the way the manager kept Valenzuela's memory alive during the final weeks of the season.

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Dodgers fans with blankets, chairs, propane heaters and even a portable toilet arrived well before dawn Friday to stake out a spot for the World Series victory parade in downtown Los Angeles.

The parade is set to kick off at City Hall at 11 a.m., but many fans in Dodgers blue jackets, caps and other gear were already seated -- some were sleeping -- along the route. At Gloria Molina Grand Park, fans waited in the shadow of a blue-lit City Hall for the parade they were denied following the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

"COVID was in 2020, so we wish we had a parade then," said one of the first fans in line. "Luckily, we get to experience this one now. So, it's very exciting. Emotions are going crazy."

One fan holding a "Happy birthday, Fernando Valenzuela" sign said he's most excited to see manager Dave Roberts.

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A brilliant blue sea of cheering Dodgers fans gathered in downtown Los Angeles Friday to celebrate a season for the ages with a long-awaited victory parade featuring the most coveted prize in baseball glistening in the Southern California sun.

The parade and a Dodger Stadium event in honor of the Dodgers' eighth World Series title mark a closing chapter to a storybook season full of high expectations after the addition of two-time MVP Shohei Ohtani to already potent roster. With a blend of talent and tenacity, the Dodgers survived a few postseason scares before capitalizing on a baffling series of miscues by New York Wednesday in Game 5 to wrap up the championship.

The scene in downtown Los Angeles and at Dodger Stadium was much different than the last time the Dodgers ascended to the pinnacle of Major League Baseball during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Without a parade to celebrate that accomplishment, it felt like something was missing for players and fans.

"COVID was in 2020, so we wish we had a parade then," said one of the first fans in line before dawn Friday. "Luckily, we get to experience this one now. So, it's very exciting. Emotions are going crazy."

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Any journey, whether it be in life, love, or in this case, sports, is often tumultuous. The end of that journey would not have the same significance if it was simple, or easy. The voyage must contain trials and tribulations, meant to beat you down and break you along the way. 

Those journeys are filled with a series of moments, preserved and innately felt like a dream catcher next to your bed. So when those moments inevitably arise, do you give up and quit? Or do you keep fighting?

There were plenty of those moments on Wednesday night in Game 5 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium. Moments that are meant to test and tease you. Moments in which you will either rise up with resiliency, or surrender to it entirely. 

When the Los Angeles Dodgers went down by five runs after the third inning, that was one of those moments. They had already used three of their seven available pitchers, and facing the reigning Cy Young Award winner in New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, the situation seemed dire. 

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