By Beth Harris
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Fernando Valenzuela, the Mexican-born Los Angeles Dodgers phenom who inspired “Fernandomania” while winning the NL Cy Young Award and Rookie of the Year in 1981, has died. He was 63 years old.
The team said he died Tuesday evening at a Los Angeles hospital, but did not provide the cause or other details.
His death comes as the Dodgers prepare to open the World Series Friday night at home against the New York Yankees. Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said Valenzuela would be honored during the series at Dodger Stadium.
Valenzuela left his post as color commentator on Spanish television for the Dodgers in September, without explanation. He was reportedly hospitalized earlier this month. His job kept him as a regular at Dodger Stadium, where he held court in the press box dining room before games and remained popular with fans who sought him out for photos and autographs.
“God bless Fernando Valenzuela!” » actor and Dodgers fan Danny Trejo posted on X.
Valenzuela was one of the most dominant players of his era and a very popular figure in the 1980s, although he was never elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. However, he is part of Cooperstown, which features several artifacts, including a signed ball from his 1990 no-hitter.
“He is one of the most influential Dodgers of all time and belongs on the Mount Rushmore of franchise heroes,” Stan Kasten, team president and CEO, said in a statement. “He galvanized fans with the 1981 Fernandomania season and has remained close to our hearts ever since, not only as a player but also as a broadcaster. He left us too soon.
Valenzuela’s rise from humble beginnings as the youngest of 12 children in Mexico and his exploits on the mound have made him extremely popular and influential in the Los Angeles Latino community while helping to attract new fans in Major League Baseball. Their affection for him continued for years after his retirement.
“63 years old is way too young…. Part of my childhood is gone,” actor and Access Hollywood co-host Mario Lopez posted on is because of Fernando. … Not only a great player, but a great man for the community. What a legend.
In 1981, Valenzuela became the Dodgers’ opening day starter as a rookie after Jerry Reuss was injured 24 hours before his scheduled start. He blanked the Houston Astros 2-0 and started the season 8-0 with five shutouts and a 0.50 ERA. He became the first player to win the Cy Young and Rookie of the Year awards in the same season.
His performances created the delirium known as “Fernandomania” among Dodgers fans. ABBA’s hit “Fernando” played as he warmed up on the mound.
He had a 13-7 record and a 2.48 ERA in his first season, which was shortened by a player strike.
Valenzuela was an All-Star selection every year from 1981 to 1986, when he recorded 97 wins, 84 complete games, 1,258 strikeouts and a 2.97 ERA. He was 5-1 with a 2.00 ERA in eight postseason starts. He has won two Silver Slugger Awards and a Gold Glove.
Valenzuela’s no-hitter on June 29, 1990, a 6-0 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals at Dodger Stadium, was an emotional highlight in his career. He struck out seven and walked three.
“If you have a sombrero, throw it to the sky!” » Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully exclaimed during his play call.
Nicknamed “El Toro” by fans, Valenzuela had an unorthodox and memorable throwing motion that included looking skyward at the top of each windup. His repertoire included a screwball – making him one of the few pitchers of his era to throw this pitch regularly. This was taught to him by teammate Bobby Castillo after the Dodgers felt that Valenzuela, who was not known to be a hard thrower, needed another pitch.
Early in his Dodgers career, Valenzuela spoke little English and had difficulty communicating with his catchers. Rookie Mike Scioscia learned Spanish and became Valenzuela’s personal catcher before becoming the team’s full-time catcher.
Valenzuela was a better-than-average hitter, with 10 career home runs.
Ultimately, his pitching was compromised by lingering shoulder problems that kept him out of the 1988 postseason, when the Dodgers won the World Series.
The team released Valenzuela just before the 1991 season. He also pitched for the former California Angels, Baltimore Orioles, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals.
He retired in 1997, going 141-116 with a 3.31 ERA in 11 seasons with the Dodgers. Overall, he was 173-153 with a 3.54 ERA in 17 seasons.
Valenzuela’s rise from his small hometown of Etchohuaquila, in the Mexican state of Sonora, to stardom in the United States was improbable. He was the youngest child in a large family who followed his older brothers playing baseball.
He signed his first professional contract at the age of 16 and quickly began to dominate older players in the Mexican Central League.
In 1978, legendary Dodgers scout Mike Brito was in Mexico assisting at shortstop when Valenzuela entered the game as a reliever. He immediately caught Brito’s attention and at age 18, Valenzuela signed with the Dodgers in 1979. He was sent to the California League that same year.
In 1980, Valenzuela was called up by the Dodgers in September and quickly made his big league debut as a reliever.
He remains the only pitcher in MLB history to win the Cy Young and Rookie of the Year awards in the same season. The left-hander was the National League’s starting pitcher in the 1981 All-Star Game, the same year the Dodgers won the World Series.
He is the major leagues’ all-time leader in wins (173) and strikeouts (2,074) by a player of Mexican descent.
During his career, he appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated and visited the White House.
In 2003, Valenzuela returned to the Dodgers as a Spanish-language radio color commentator for NL games. Twelve years later, he moved to color commentator on the team’s Spanish-language television feed.
“He has consistently supported the growth of the game through the World Baseball Classic and at MLB events in his home country,” Manfred said in a statement. “As a member of the Dodgers broadcast team for more than 20 years, Fernando helped reach a new generation of fans and cultivate their love of the game. Fernando will always be a beloved figure in Dodgers history. Dodger and a special source of pride for the millions of Latino fans he inspired.
He was inducted into the Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame in 2014. Five years later, the Mexican League retired Valenzuela’s No. 34 jersey. The Dodgers followed suit in 2023 after keeping his number out of circulation since he last pitched for the team in 1991. The team has a rule that requires a player to be enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame before the Dodgers are retiring his number, but they made an exception for Valenzuela.
The Dodgers named Valenzuela one of the “Legends of Dodger Baseball” in 2019 and inducted him into the team’s Ring of Honor in 2023.
He became an American citizen in 2015.
Valenzuela served on Mexico’s coaching staff during the World Baseball Classic in 2006, 2009, 2013 and 2017. He was co-owner of Mexican League team Tigres de Quintana Roo, with his son Fernando Jr . as team president and his son Ricky. as general manager. Fernando Jr. played in the San Diego Padres and Chicago White Sox organizations as a first baseman.
In addition to his sons, he is survived by his wife, Linda, who was a Mexican schoolteacher whom he married in 1981, his daughters Linda and Maria as well as seven grandchildren.
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