The Dodgers expressed respect to Fernando Valenzuela, a former left-handed pitcher with 173 career victories, on social media on the 22nd and announced his passing. “The Dodgers are devastated by the loss of legendary pitcher Fernando Valenzuela,” the organization stated. His age was 63.
According to reports, Valenzuela went to the hospital at the close of this season and missed the Dodgers’ Spanish-language broadcasts. “Fernando Valenzuela quit the broadcast studio for the rest of the year to concentrate on his health,” the team later said on its official social media pages. In 2025, he hopes to be back in the broadcast studio.
Mexican-born Valenzuela is a great left-handed pitcher who earned the 1981 Cy Young and Rookie of the Year awards. He began the 3rd game at home that year following 2 consecutive defeats by the Yankees, who also helped the team win the World Series. The club won 4 consecutive games after he pitched an entire game with 4 runs permitted, giving them their initial series victory. Due to his 21 victories in 1986—more than any other team—he developed a religious following known as “Fernandomania.” He has been an analyst on the team’s Spanish-language programs since 2003.
The renowned pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, who was a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers along with various major league clubs, passed away on the 22nd at the age of sixty-three. This was announced by the Dodgers.
Mexican-born Valenzuela spent 17 MLB seasons playing for 6 different organizations. His period with the Dodgers, where he won the 1981 World Series against the New York Yankees, is what made him most famous. During that season, his success caused “Fernandomania,” which attracted a lot of Mexican supporters to the Dodgers. In his condolences, Dodgers President Stan Kasten referred to Luis Valenzuela as “the strongest member of the Dodgers’ history.”
The Dodgers’ Spanish-language broadcasts featured Valenzuela as an analyst until recently. The exact reason for death was not made public, however just last week the team declared that Valenzuela would miss the rest of the season because of health issues. After making his Major League Baseball debut with the Dodgers in 1980 at the young age of 19, Valenzuela went on to become the initial player in history to earn both the Cy Young Award and the Rookie of the Year Award simultaneously in 1981. He performed for the Baltimore Orioles, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres, St. Louis Cardinals, and California Angels before departing the Dodgers in 1990. He rejoined the Dodgers as a broadcaster 6 years after retiring in 1997.
The Dodgers removed his uniform no “34” a year ago. In the World Baseball Classic, he also coached the Mexican national team. His passing was announced shortly after the Dodgers’ initial match on the 25th, in the team’s first World Series since 1981 versus the Yankees.
