Fernando Valenzuela Dies at 63; Dodgers Legend Won 1981 MLB World Series, NL Cy Young

Los Angeles Dodgers legend Fernando Valenzuela, a two-time World Series-winning pitcher and six-time All-Star, has died at the age of 63.

Both Major League Baseball and the Dodgers organization confirmed the news regarding Valenzuela, who also worked 21 seasons as a broadcaster for the team’s Spanish radio and television simulcast.

In addition, commissioner Rob Manfred said in his statement that MLB will “honor Fernando’s memory” during the upcoming World Series at Dodger Stadium. This year’s Fall Classic begins in L.A. on Friday, when the Dodgers will host the New York Yankees for Game 1.

Per NBC 4 Los Angeles on Oct. 1, Valenzuela was hospitalized with an unspecified health issue. The Dodgers confirmed that Valenzuela had stepped away from the team and would not be part of the postseason broadcasts.

The left-hander was born the youngest of 12 children in Etchohuaquila, in the state of Sonora, Mexico. He worked on the family farm growing up before playing professional baseball in Mexico in 1977. Two years later, Valenzuela signed with the Dodgers organization. He made his debut at the tail end of the 1980 season at the age of 19, pitching 17.2 scoreless innings in relief over 10 appearances.

No one could anticipate what happened in 1981, when Fernandomania took over baseball.

At 20 years old, the southpaw befuddled opposing batters, beginning the year with a 7-0 record and 0.29 ERA over seven complete games.

He finished the strike-shortened year as the National League Cy Young winner and Rookie of the Year after posting a 13-7 record, 2.48 ERA, 11 complete games (eight shutouts) and a major league-high 180 strikeouts. He is the first and only player in MLB history to win both awards in the same season.

Valenzuela and the Dodgers also won the World Series for the first time since 1965, taking down the New York Yankees in six games.

During the playoffs, Valenzuela went 3-1 with a 2.21 ERA. He threw 147 pitches in a complete-game, 5-4 win over the Yanks in Game 3. Richard Roeper, the Chicago Sun-Times film and TV reviewer, offered his insight on that one.

Valenzuela made the National League All-Star team in each of his first six seasons and threw a no-hitter in 1990.

He ultimately pitched in 17 MLB seasons (1980-1991, 1993-1997) for the Dodgers, California Angels, Baltimore Orioles, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals.

Six years after his playing career ended, Valenzuela rejoined the Dodgers as a broadcaster. The organization also retired his No. 34 jersey in August 2023.

Simply put, Valenzuela’s impact cannot be understated, especially within the Latino and Mexican-American communities in Los Angeles and beyond.

The Los Angeles Times did its best to encapsulate what Fernandomania meant and symbolized in a documentary 40 years after Valenzuela burst onto the scene.

“Decades after ‘Fernandomania’ drew generations of families to Chavez Ravine in 1981, Valenzuela remained a symbol of hope and of the American dream. His rise in the early 1980s came as Latinos and Mexican-Americans struggled to find a sense of belonging amid continuing debates over the site of Dodger Stadium and immigration reform.”

Sanchez also gave a glimpse into Fernandomania, a response to a pitcher with a legendary windup that featured Valenzuela looking skyward.

“During the peak of the phenomenon, Valenzuela held news conferences before every home start and in clubhouses on the first day in every city the team visited. The atmosphere at Dodger Stadium when Valenzuela pitched was electric, with fans sporting T-shirts with ‘Valenzuela’ stitched, printed or written across the back. Large homemade ‘Viva Fernando’ signs were a mainstay in the bleachers.

“The Los Angeles Herald Examiner had a nickname contest, with ‘El Toro’ emerging as the winner. He was on the cover of the May 18, 1981, edition of Sports Illustrated, with a simple, one-word headline: ‘UNREAL!’ He also appeared on the covers of The Sporting News, Sport Magazine, Baseball Digest and many other publications. Mexican-Americans Lalo and Mark Guerrero, a father-and-son songwriting team, got into the act with tribute songs ‘Fernando, El Toro’ and ‘¡Olé! Fernando.’

“Valenzuela attended a state luncheon at the White House with President Ronald Reagan. Kellogg’s Corn Flakes put him on a box of cereal.”

Ed Guzman of the Los Angeles Times also penned:

“His journey from a small town in Mexico to rousing success in Major League Baseball inspired generations of fans and created a seismic shift in the demographics of the Dodgers fan base.

“His unorthodox pitching motion, distinct physique and seemingly mysterious aura left an indelible mark on people from all walks of life, whether it was Los Angeles’ Latino community grappling with the displacement created when the Dodgers built their stadium, Mexican immigrants and their families or artists inspired by his wizardry on the mound.”

Many on social media offered their remembrances and condolences, honoring the legacy of Valenzuela. MLB Network also offered a tribute to Valenzuela, who will get his rightful honor at the 2024 World Series between the Dodgers and Yanks, 43 years after he helped L.A. beat New York on baseball’s biggest stage.