Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Alex Vesia made his long-awaited return to baseball, honoring his late daughter and wife while on the mound.
During the seventh inning of the Dodgers game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday, March 27, Vesia took the field with a dark pink glove, which includes his late daughter’s name, Sterling Sol Vesia, etched on the side. The glove also has her birth date written on the inside.
On the ring finger of the glove, Vesia put the letter “K” in honor of his wife, Kayla, a tradition he has continued since the two started dating.
Vesia pitched a scoreless inning in his season debut and was visibly fired up while leaving the field at the end of the frame. Fans at Dodger Stadium recognized the heartfelt moment, giving Vesia a standing ovation as he walked back to the dugout. He waved to the crowd to acknowledge the gesture, then pointed to his wife in the stands.
Before the game, Vesia received his World Series ring from last season, when the Dodgers earned the championship over the Toronto Blue Jays.
Vesia tragically missed the team’s World Series run after announcing that his newborn daughter had died.
On October 23, just one day before the World Series was set to begin, the Dodgers announced on Instagram that Vesia was stepping away from the team to handle a “deeply personal family matter.”
Two weeks later, Vesia’s wife, Kayla, shared the heartbreaking news that the couple had lost their baby.
“Sterling Sol Vesia🪽. Our little angel we love you forever & you’re with us always,” Kayla wrote on Instagram on November 7. “Our beautiful daughter went to heaven Sunday October 26th. There are no words to describe the pain we’re going through but we hold her in our hearts and cherish every second we had with her.”
Friday’s game was Vesia’s first time pitching since the family’s loss.
In January, Vesia announced plans to customize one of his gloves to honor his late daughter, as well as continuing his tradition of writing the letter “K” on the ring finger to honor his wife.
“Ever since we started dating, he puts [the letter] ‘K’ on his ring finger,” Kayla said in a January TikTok video. “He has ‘FUFB’ always on his glove and now, he will start adding Sterling’s name. Sometimes he pulls inspo from different pictures of gloves that already exist and most of the time we mess around and see what we like.”
In a Thursday, March 26 Instagram post — on Opening Day of the MLB season — Vesia promised to make his daughter proud during the season.
“Same goals … different perspectives … new motivations,” Vesia captioned photos of himself on the field at Dodger Stadium. “Thankful for everyone who has stuck by me. Dodger Nation gonna bring the energy.”
He concluded the post, “I’m going to make you proud SSV ❤️.”
