Welp, it's officially official: the Los Angeles Dodgers have won their eighth Commissioner's Trophy and are the '24 MLB World Series Champions.
Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Blake Treinen, Dave Roberts, and company all get the parade they were robbed of in 2021, as COVID limited the season and the celebration around their big win, and the new guys, from Shohei Ohtani, to Yoshi Yamamoto, and even Game 5 pitcher Jack Flaherty all get to experience returning to Blue Heaven as champions.
But if you notice the words “Los Angeles” followed by “eight” and then “24” and immediately think of the late, great Kobe Bryant, well, you aren't alone, as plenty of fans took to social media with bittersweet messages about how exciting it is to see the Dodgers pulls out their fourth win in five games.
Los Angeles Dodgers fans remember Kobe Bryant after World Series W
While looking through fans celebrating the Dodgers' big win, Bryant's name came up more and more often, with O'shea Jackson Jr., the son of Game 2 pre-game performer Ice Cube, shouting out the “Black Mamba” as his favorite baseball team won their eighth title in their “Kobe Year.”
“8th chip in ‘24 We miss you Kobe,” Jackson wrote. “This is for you Fernando!!!!”
Others used Dodgers memes to express their mixture of joy and melancholy, noting that they would sleep soundly after the win.
Though he didn't play particularly well after suffering a shoulder injury in Game 2, Shohei Ohtani's joy after the Dodgers' win reminded some fans of the unseen clip from six years ago that the organization played to help bring the Japanese slugger to town.
And other fans? Well, they celebrated more than just Bryant, as there are plenty of fallen LA legends who deserved their flowers as the Dodgers won their eighth World Series in '24.
When it comes to professional sports in Los Angeles, you won't find two pillars of the community as beloved as the Dodgers and the “Black Mamba,” to the point where the two come together fairly regularly to bring fans collaborations. Though he may be gone, it's safe to assume there will be more than a few Bryant jerseys, both 8, 24 and his Dodgers collab, in attendance at LA's parade on Friday, as his roots run incredibly deep in his adoptive hometown.