[Baltimore Sun] Former Orioles pitcher and Dodgers ace Fernando Valenzuela dies at 63
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LOS ANGELES — Fernando Valenzuela, the Mexican-born phenom for the Los Angeles Dodgers who inspired “Fernandomania” while winning the NL Cy Young Award and Rookie of the Year in 1981, has died. He was 63.
The team said he died Tuesday night 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 on Friday night at home against the New York Yankees.
Valenzuela, who was best known for his time with Los Angeles, also spent one season of his MLB career with the Orioles. The left-handed pitcher with a unique delivery, during which he looked up to the sky, pitched 178 2/3 innings for Baltimore in 1993, going 8-10 and posting a 4.94 ERA. He started 31 games that year, and the Orioles won 85 games to finish third in the American League East. Following the 1993 season, Valenzuela joined the Philadelphia Phillies in 1994.
His time with the Orioles came after the prime of his career. From 1982 to 1997, Valenzuela pitched at least 200 innings every season and never posted an ERA over 3.98. While he didn’t pitch 200 innings in 1981, Valenzuela was elite that season as a 20-year-old sophomore. He finished the year with a 2.48 ERA in 25 starts, throwing 11 complete games and striking out 180 batters.
The longtime MLB pitcher dealt with health issues in recent months. Valenzuela had left his color commentator job on the Dodgers’ Spanish-language television broadcast in September without explanation. He was reported to have been 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.
Valenzuela was one of the most dominant players of his era and a wildly 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 no-hitter in 1990.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB
Orioles manager Johnny Oates takes the ball from starting pitcher Fernando Valenzuela in 1993. (Dave Hammond/AP)
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