The Dodgers and entire baseball world continue to mourn the passing of beloved Dodger great and Spanish radio broadcaster Fernando Valenzuela, who passed away on Tuesday evening.
The heartbreaking news came shortly after 8 PM PDT on Tuesday via social media, generating a flood of heartfelt replies and personal stories about the popular Navojoa, Mexico native who would have turned 64 on November 1.
As Dodger fans well know, the crafty left-hander, who is credited with bringing the screwball to Major League Baseball, was a huge favorite of Dodgers Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully, who famously said:
“Fernando Valenzuela has pitched a no-hitter at 10:17 in the evening of June the 29th, 1990. If you have a sombrero, throw it to the sky!”
Those who were blessed to have spent any time with the man affectionately and simply known as Fernando know that he was one of the kindest and most gracious human beings on the planet with a witty sense of humor. He also always had time for everyone, regardless of the circumstances.
As fans also know, the Dodgers retired Fernando’s famous number 34 this past season which, at the time, seemed a bit unusual, as it was a longstanding tradition of the franchise to only retire the numbers of Dodgers who had been enshrined in the sacred Halls of Cooperstown. This suggests that team officials were aware Fernando’s heath issues but respectfully kept them private.
The former Dodger great accomplished this during his remarkable 17-year MLB career:
As a tribute to the former Dodger great, the team liilluminated Dodger Stadium in blue on Tuesday night.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family, friends, former teammates, and collegues of Fernando Valenzuela.
Rest in Peace, number 34.
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