CAMELBACK RANCH, AZ — Now, we know why Freddie Freeman isn’t playing for Team Canada at the WBC. At DodgerFest last month, he assured fans that he was declining to particpate in the WBC this time around for “personal reasons”. Those personal reasons appear to be the family expecting a fourth child in the near future.
Today, Freddie’s wife Chelsea took to social media and shared a family photo of the Freemans with their three boys, only with a twist. Their oldest son Charlie is holding a sonogram of baby number four.
Dodger fans can be forgiven for not recalling the story of their twins, Brandon and Max, who were born in 2021, when Freddie still played with the Braves. Freddie and Chelsea Freeman have publicly shared that their path to surrogacy came after a long fertility struggle, with Freddie explaining to ESPN at the time, “We tried for a couple of years, and it didn’t happen. We were talking with doctors, and they suggested surrogacy.” He also said they moved forward with that option because they wanted to grow their family, and the Freemans have consistently treated it as a personal medical and family decision while keeping some details private out of respect for their surrogate. (espn.com)
Once again, it appears that that is the path they have chosen for the newest addition to the Freeman family. In Chelsea’s post, she reiterates her gratitude to the unnamed surrogate, but they hastens to add “we’re choosing to honor her privacy as we walk this next chapter.”
No word on whether the baby is male or female, and as of yet, we have no details on the expected due date. All things in due time, I suppose. But one might surmise that the date is coming quickly. Otherwise Freddie would have joined Team Canada.
Of course, this is welcome good news for the Freeman family, who went through the scariest of times as parents not so long ago. The stretch came in July 2024, when Freddie and Chelsea’s youngest son, Max, suddenly became seriously ill and was hospitalized after what they first thought was a different issue. Max was later diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare neurological condition that can cause weakness and paralysis, and the Freemans shared that he went into full-body paralysis and needed breathing support during the worst of it. Freddie stepped away from the Dodgers to be with his family, and after treatment at Children’s Hospital of Orange County, Max improved, came home, and began a long recovery that the family has continued to talk about with a lot of gratitude for the doctors, nurses, and support they received. (espn.com)
Whenever the new baby comes, and whatever its gender, we want to wish the Freemans a hearty congratulations as they welcome another child into their midst.
Get those diaper runs to Costco out of the way now, Freddie. Trust me, you’ll thank me later.
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