The World Series champion Dodgers are back in Los Angeles — thanks in part to the New England Patriots.
The NFL team apparently provided an assist to the MLB team, carrying them and the Commissioner's Trophy they just won by beating the New York Yankees in Game 5 of the Fall Classic Wednesday night.
Cameras were rolling at Los Angeles International Airport as the team stepped off the plane, known as AirKraft, with the trophy in hand. Another plane, though one without a pro sports team's branding, was part of the trip back to L.A., as well. Watch their arrival in the video atop this story.
NBC10 Boston has reached out to the Patriots for more on how their plane ended up shuttling the World Series champs. NBC Los Angeles has reached out to the Dodgers.
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Fans have speculated that it's a strong bit of trolling on the Dodgers' and Patriots' parts, as the Yankees are New England's biggest baseball rival.
There are actually two Patriots planes, both 767s, and they're available for chartering through a partnership the team has with private flight provider Omni Air International. The Patriots-branded planes are also used for humanitarian missions, like flying 1.7 million N95 masks from China to Boston early in the coronavirus pandemic.
With the Patriots 2-6 on the year so far, this is looking like the only chance AirKraft has to haul a championship trophy this year.
