The Los Angeles Dodgers were at the White House on Thursday to be honored for winning the 2025 World Series, their second championship in a row, ESPN reports. It was the team's second such visit in about 15 months, having also gone in April 2025 after the 2024 title.
Who was there
Two of the team's biggest stars, Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman, attended, as did manager Dave Roberts. Mookie Betts did not. By the account, Betts opted to spend the scheduled off-days with his family rather than make the trip, the same reason some players have given for skipping past ceremonial visits under presidents of both parties. The visit fell on an off-day between series, with the Dodgers between games against Philadelphia and New York.
What was said
President Trump used the occasion to praise the franchise, calling the Dodgers "one of the great brands anywhere in the world" and singling out their Game 7 win over Toronto. He said he was surprised the team had never won back-to-back titles before, and, looking ahead, added, "Maybe I'll see you again next year."
He spent a notable stretch on Ohtani, comparing him to Babe Ruth and calling him arguably the best hitter and pitcher in the game, a comparison that is less hyperbole than it sounds for a player who does both at an elite level.
The lighter beats
The team came bearing gifts, as visiting champions do: two World Series trophies presented for the occasion, a "Trump 47" jersey, and a replica of the championship ring. Trump joked about having to report the ring as a gift, then pocketed it, the kind of moment these visits reliably produce.
Reading it straight
Championship teams visiting the White House is a long-standing tradition that has, in recent years, become a political flashpoint, with athletes sometimes declining to attend as a statement. This account documents no such controversy: the notable absence, Betts, was attributed to family time rather than protest, and the event read as a mostly conventional celebration. We report it that way, a title team honored, most of its stars present, one notable one not, and leave the larger arguments about these visits to those who want to have them. For Los Angeles, the durable fact underneath the ceremony is the one worth keeping: the Dodgers are back-to-back World Series champions, and that is rare air.
