The Washington Senators set a precedent for reigning championship winning teams by visiting President Calvin Coolidge at the White House in 1925. Just over a century later, the Dodgers will arrive in our nation’s capitol in early April during their first road trip of the season— just like they did in 2025.
This time around, amidst national turmoil surrounding two fatal incidents regarding federal agents in Minnesota, the case for the Dodgers to visit the commander in chief is far from concrete.
Bill
Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times asked manager Dave Roberts and team president Stan Kasten about whether or not the team that continues to revere the legacy of Jackie Robinson would consider visiting the White House. Roberts confirmed that he intends to go while Kasten declined to provide a definitive answer.
Per Roberts: “I was raised — by a man who served our country for 30 years — to respect the highest office in our country. For me, it doesn’t matter who is in the office, I’m going to go to the White House.”
Per Kasten: “I don’t have any news for you on that.”
Shaikin argues that the decision for the Dodgers to accept or decline a visit to the White House will be based on their moral courage, especially as they honor a pioneer of baseball who used his platform to advocate for civil rights and liberties once they return to Los Angeles.
For me, going to the White House would feel more expedient than right. If the Dodgers do go, they ought to skip the tributes to Robinson’s grand courage, since they would not have been able to muster up a fraction of their own.
Links
Edwin Díaz will once again be representing Team Puerto Rico for the 2026 World Baseball Classic. Díaz appeared in four games for Puerto Rico in 2017, allowing two runs and striking out nine over 5 1/3 innings. In 2023, Díaz secured the final out against the Dominican Republic to send his team to the quarterfinals against Team Mexico, but suffered a season-ending injury to his ACL while celebrating.
Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register shares a preview of how the starting rotation will shape up this season. The four-headed monster of All-Stars are cemented at the top with several young options vying to fill in that fifth spot. Plunkett notes that the Dodgers could reignite their interest in Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal should he be made available during the season.
If the Detroit Tigers put Skubal on the market at any point, the Dodgers will be at the front of the line looking to acquire him. They have the prospect capital to make a deal happen and the financial resources to give him the massive contract extension his agent, Scott Boras, will be seeking if Skubal is going to forgo free agency next winter.
Sonja Chen of MLB.com takes a look at how the Dodgers outfield is shaping up. The starters right now are the newly signed Kyle Tucker in right field, Andy Pages in center and Teoscar Hernández returning to left field. Chen breaks down the different depth options at play, while also noting that a reunion with Kiké Hernández is not off the table should the team need additional options outside of Alex Call, the recently re-claimed Michael Siani and rookie Ryan Ward.
It would not be surprising to see the Dodgers bring back fan favorite Kiké Hernández… Los Angeles has openly stated its interest, but because Hernández is recovering from left elbow surgery and expecting to miss time at the beginning of the season, it seems likely that a deal might not materialize until the 60-day IL opens at the start of Spring Training.
