Jorge Castillo, ESPN Staff Writer October 2, 2024, 1:36pm ET
Close ESPN baseball reporter. He covered the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2016 and the Washington Nationals from 2016 to 2018 for the Washington Post, and then covered the Los Angeles Dodgers and MLB for the Los Angeles Times from 2018 to 2024.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have announced that Fernando Valenzuela, who has become a franchise icon since taking the baseball world by storm with his legendary rookie season in 1981, will remain in Spanish for the remainder of the postseason “to focus on his health.” He announced that he would be leaving his job at a radio broadcasting station. . ”
The club added that Valenzuela is “aiming to return for the 2025 season.”
Valenzuela, 63, has been a member of the Dodgers’ broadcast team since 2003, six years after his playing days ended and 14 years after he last pitched for the Dodgers.
The Mexican left-hander made his major league debut as a 19-year-old relief pitcher in 1980, then burst onto the scene in the historic strike-shortened 1981 season. Valenzuela started the year as the Dodgers’ emergency opening starter and finished the year as the National League Cy Young Award winner, National League Rookie of the Year and eventual World Series champion.
Valenzuela finished the 1981 season with a 13-7 record, 2.48 ERA, 11 complete games, and 8 shutouts. He led the National League with 192 1/3 innings pitched and led the majors with 180 strikeouts. Valenzuela’s voluptuous figure, unique windup culminated by a skyward gaze, and dominance combined with her Mexican roots caused a sensation in Southern California, igniting “Fernandomania” across the region. .
The 1981 campaign marked the beginning of his sixth consecutive All-Star season and the beginning of his career. He finished third in Cy Young Award voting in 1982, fifth in 1985, and second in 1986, but a shoulder injury would derail the rest of his career.
Valenzuela was abruptly released by the Dodgers in March 1991, just days before the start of the season. He pitched for five teams in seven years before retiring.
The Dodgers will retire No. 34 during a pregame ceremony at Dodger Stadium in August 2023, breaking with the tradition of only retiring the jersey numbers of Hall of Fame players. This jersey number has been unofficially retired and has not been worn by another player since Valenzuela’s departure. It’s about the team from 32 years ago.
