Icon Fernando Valenzuela transcended baseball
-
José de Jesus Ortiz, Founder & Editor in Chief
- October 23, 2024
Fernando Valenzuela dies at 63
Fernando Valenzuela, the Mexican left-hander who brought his people out of the shadows to celebrate his greatness with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1981, has died.
Valenzuela was more than just a baseball legend. He was one of baseball’s biggest cultural icons of the 20th century, inspiring Fernandomania on both sides of the border.
“Fernando Valenzuela was one of the most impactful players of his generation,” Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “With his distinctive pitching style, the Dodger left-hander’s rookie season generated so much excitement in the U.S. and his native Mexico that it became commonly referred to as ‘Fernandomania.’
“His 1981 season ranks among the most decorated pitching years of all-time as Fernando was the National League Rookie of the Year, the NL Cy Young Award winner, a Silver Slugger, and a World Series Champion.”
Valenzuela was born in the small village of Etchohuaquila in Navojoa, Sonora, Mexico, on Nov. 1, 1960. He signed with the Dodgers in 1979 and reached the majors late in the 1980 season at 19 years old for a short spell. Valenzuela was given the Opening Day start in 1981 after Jerry Reuss suffered an ankle injury.
The portly lefty with a radiant smile threw a shutout on Opening Day, beginning one of the most magical runs in MLB history. Valenzuela began the 1981 season with an 8-0 record.
Fernandomania
Along the way, he became a box office sensation while creating a phenomenon known as Fernandomania. Mexican and Mexican American fans packed Dodger Stadium for his starts, proudly waving their Mexican flags unlike anything ever seen in MLB.
“Fernandomania was almost spiritual,” the late Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully once said.
His success inspired a generation of Mexican American ballplayers, including All-Stars Nomar Garciaparra, Adrian Gonzalez and Russ Ortiz.
More from Our Esquina
Rene Cardenas deserves Ford C. Frick Award
Delgado: Baseball thrives in Mexico
Mexico earns its applause with historic WBC run
More importantly, perhaps, Valenzuela’s brilliance showed America that Mexicans could participate and excel in America’s pastime. He wasn’t the first or last Mexican All-Star in MLB, but he’s the greatest and most culturally significant.
Because of Fernando Valenzuela, Americans realized that we were an important part of American society. His fans showed Americans that we were all over the United States. It was one thing for Mexican fans to pack the Astrodome to watch Valenzuela against the Houston Astros. Mexicans, after all, are a major part of the Southwest.
Bringing Mexicans out of the shadows
But with each of Valenzuela’s starts on the road, Americans learned that there were large communities of Mexicans and Mexican Americans in cities like Cincinnati and St. Louis, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. Latinos are a major part of New York, but few realized how many Mexicans were in the Big Apple until Valenzuela started at Shea Stadium against the Mets.
In Los Angeles, Valenzuela changed the fan base drastically. Now, at least 50 percent of the fans at Dodger Stadium are Latinos, mostly of Mexican descent.
“He created more baseball fans, and Dodger fans, than any other player,” Hall of Fame broadcaster Jaime Jarrín said after the Dodgers announced that they would retire Valenzuela’s No. 34 in 2023. “Thanks to this kid, people fell in love with baseball. Especially within the Mexican community.”
Valenzuela was 13-7 with a 2.48 ERA in the strike-shortened 1981 season. He won the NL Rookie of the Year and NL Cy Young Award that season, which he capped by helping the Dodgers beat the Yankees in the World Series.
Rookie of the Year, Cy Young Award winner,
Valenzuela also helped the Dodgers win the 1988 World Series. He played the first 11 of his 17 big-league seasons with the Dodgers, going 141-116 with a 3.31 ERA in Los Angeles. Valenzuela finished his career as the all-time leader in victories (173) and strikeouts (2,074) among natives of Mexico in the majors.
He died at 63 years old just less than two weeks shy of his 64th birthday. Valenzuela lived long enough to have seen his beloved Dodgers win the NL pennant to set up the 12th World Series matchup between the Dodgers and Yankees and the first since he and the Dodgers beat the Yankees for the 1981 title.
The six-time All-Star retired after the 1997 season. He joined the Dodgers’ Spanish broadcast team in 2002. After 22 seasons in the broadcast booth, he cited health issues after taking a leave from his broadcast duties before the playoffs.
By then, many fans had started to worry about Valenzuela’s health because he appeared thin and frail after a career in which he was known for his pudgy build.
Many children in the 1980s tried to repeat Valenzuela’s distinct pitching motion in which he famously looked skyward before delivering the pitch. Jaime Jaquez Sr., the father of Miami Heat star Jaime Jaquez Jr., used to look up to the sky during his pitches while trying to replicate Valenzuela from the right side.
Dodgers retired Fernando Valenzuela’s No. 34
A year ago, the Dodgers made an exception by retiring Valenzuela’s No. 34 even though he was not a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He was only the second player to receive the honor despite not being a Hall of Famer.
Valenzuela joined the Dodger Stadium Ring of Honor with Pee Wee Reese’s No. 1, Tommy Lasorda’s No. 2, Duke Snider’s No. 4, Gil Hodges No. 14. Gilliam’s No. 19, Don Sutton’s No. 20, Walter Alston’s No. 24, Sandy Koufax’s No. 32, Roy Campanella’s No. 39, Robinson’s No. 42, and Don Drysdale’s No. 53. Hall of Fame broadcasters Scully and Jarrín are also in the Ring of Honor.
“To be a part of the group that includes so many legends is a great honor,” Valenzuela said last year. “But also for the fans — the support they’ve given me as a player and working for the Dodgers, this is also for them. I’m happy for all the fans and all the people who have followed my career.”
Fans on both sides of the Mexico-U.S. border are now in mourning far beyond Los Angeles and Sonora. His legacy will be on full display on Friday night, however, when the Dodgers open the World Series with plenty of fans in the stands wearing No. 34 Dodger jerseys.
“A shining light that illuminated baseball has gone out when Fernando Valenzuela passed away,” Jarrin wrote in an Instagram post. “He should be remembered as a phenomenon that captivated the entire baseball world with his magic, youth and personality.
“I have lost a dear friend. A man of integrity; an exemplary father and husband who, without knowing it elevated me to an international pedestal. Thank you Fernando. Rest in Peace, dear Tirito.”
José de Jesus Ortiz
Founder & Editor in Chief
Award-winning writer José de Jesus Ortiz, a former lead sports columnist at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, has covered Major League Baseball since 1997 in Los Angeles, St. Petersburg, New York and Houston. He was the first Latino to serve as president of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.
Stay in the Loop
Get the Our Esquina Email Newsletter
By submitting your email, you are agreeing to receive additional communications and exclusive content from Our Esquina. You can unsubscribe at any time.