The Los Angeles Dodgers’ elimination from the 2026 postseason ended a run of six consecutive World Series championships involving a player named Will Smith, according to the supplied report. It will be the first championship since 2019 without a Will Smith on the winning team’s roster.
The streak began in 2020, when Dodgers catcher Will Smith won a title with Los Angeles. The following year, Atlanta Braves reliever Will Smith became the second player with that name to win a championship during the run.
The reliever’s next title came after Atlanta traded him to the Houston Astros at the 2022 trade deadline. Houston won the World Series that season, making it three straight championships for teams with a Will Smith.
Houston declined the pitcher’s club option after the season, and he became a free agent. He joined the Texas Rangers before the 2023 season. When Texas defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks in the World Series, the reliever had won championships with three different clubs.
After the 2023 championship, the pitcher signed with the Kansas City Royals. Kansas City was eliminated by the New York Yankees in the American League Division Series, so he did not add another title that year.
The Dodgers’ catcher then carried the streak forward. Los Angeles won the World Series in both 2024 and 2025, giving the catcher back-to-back championships. The supplied report says the reliever has not pitched in the major leagues since 2024.
With the Dodgers out after being swept by the Milwaukee Brewers, neither player named Will Smith can extend the streak with a 2026 championship, the report says. It ends a sequence involving two different athletes who shared a name but played separate roles: one a Dodgers catcher, the other a reliever whose title-winning teams included Atlanta, Houston and Texas.
The report closes with a joking possibility that actor Will Smith might join the eventual champion’s active roster before the World Series. It presents that scenario as far-fetched, not as a real roster development.
