Chris Taylor and his wife, Mary, hosted their second annual Polar Plunge event at Manhattan Beach Pier on Sunday, and more than 400 attendees came in support.
Proceeds from the event went to the Friendship Foundation, a local charity that helps individuals with cognitive and developmental disabilities, as well as the LAFD Foundation.
Alongside all of the fans that came to participate, several of Taylor’s Dodgers teammates came out to soak in the freezing cold waters of Manhattan Beach, and Taylor reflected on how much it meant to him to see his teammates showing their support, per Sonja Chen of MLB.com.
“That speaks to the closeness of our guys,” Chris Taylor said. “We have a very close-knit group, and we support one another. It means a lot to me to have them all out here.”
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Sports have the power to bring people together and draw people far apart. They also have the power to change lives and save people from detrimental habits.
During Dodgerfest, Freddie Freeman shared an anecdote about what spending quality time with loved ones during Game 1 of the 2024 World Series did for a man struggling with alcoholism, per Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times.
“A guy was telling me at a luncheon” during last week’s Dodgers community tour “that he gave up drinking that night because he just wanted to be present with his kids,” Freeman, 35, said at Saturday’s fanfest event at Dodger Stadium. “They were in the right-field stands, and he didn’t drink that whole game, and he hasn’t drank since because of how present he was with his kids. Those are the stories that give me chills. Those are the kinds of things sports can do.”
Hyeseong Kim has yet to don a Dodger uniform, but the love he has received from Dodger fans has been overwhelming.
Kim spoke with Kirsten Watson of SportsNet LA, where he shared how kind and welcoming fans have been to him since he arrived in the United States.
Via his interpreter: “I just got done signing autographs, and every single fan that has come up to me has said, ‘Welcome,’ or ‘Welcome to L.A.’ or ‘Welcome to the Dodgers.’ The welcoming feeling I’m getting is just unbelievable.”
Hyeseong Kim on joining the #Dodgers: “It was my favorite team growing up, and obviously, it’s the best team in the world, so it’s been really exciting.” pic.twitter.com/0PSNkfUL66
— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) February 1, 2025