Thursday evening, Dodger Stadium was transformed from a traditional ballpark into a festive atmosphere to celebrate Clayton Kershaw’s popular Ping Pong 4 Purpose (PP4P) event, held on behalf of the Kershaw’s Challenge organization.

The organization’s focus is to transform at-risk children and neighborhoods, and many showed up to support the cause despite triple-digit temperatures on the Dodger’s off-night between games. There were celebrities and players alike taking the stroll down the Blue Carpet.

The event was co-hosted by comedian Cedric the Entertainer and actor Max Greenfield. They were joined on the Blue Carpet by other notable names such as actors Mario Lopez, Holly Robinson-Peete, and Joel McHale. Actors Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul of Breaking Bad fame spent the majority of their time making the crowd laugh. Actor Danny Trejo and wrestler The Miz each entertained the media with their antics as they made their way down the carpet.

Many Dodgers players were present, and some took time to stroll through the throng and pose for photos including Dodgers reliever Alex Vesia, starting pitcher Michael Grove, outfielder James Outman, and catcher Austin Barnes. Former Dodgers great and current SportsNet LA broadcaster Orel Hershiser cheerfully made his way amongst the pack, and even DJ Severe took a break from his musical duties to walk the Blue Carpet and answer questions.

To the delight of the crowd, founders of PP4P Clayton and Ellen Kershaw took a turn chatting with media and AM570’s David Vassegh. All-Star first baseman Freddie Freeman and All-Star infielder/outfielder Mookie Betts, who were paired together and would eventually win the tournament, also made an appearance under the lights. Outfielder Jason Heyward was one of the last players to make his way across the staging area before the event got underway.

When asked about Kershaw’s community outreach, Freeman had positive things to say about his teammate:

“The last couple of years, seeing what the Kershaws do. A lot you see on cameras, there’s so much more that he does behind the scenes that is not on cameras. It’s just really, really inspiring.”

Ultimately, the final round of the tournament was played by none other than two teams made up of Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman against Clayton Kershaw and Austin Barnes. As the evening came to a close, Freeman and Betts would be crowned the champions and Clayton and Ellen Kershaw would have another successful event in the books – the Dodgers proving once again that they are a class act both on and off the field.

Let’s go Dodgers!

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