Fernando Valenzuela (baseball player)
| Fernando Valenzuela | |
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| Pitcher | |
| Born: November 1, 1960 Etchohuaquila , Mexico 
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| Strikes: Left | Throws: Left |
| Debut in Major League Baseball | |
| September 15, 1980 with the Los Angeles Dodgers | |
| Last MLB assignment | |
| July 14, 1997 with the St. Louis Cardinals | |
| MLB statistics (until end of career) |
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| Win-loss | 173-153 |
| Earned Run Average | 3.54 |
| Strikeouts | 2,074 |
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Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea (born November 1, 1960 in Etchohuaquila , Sonora ) is a former pitcher from Mexico who played in six different teams during his major league career, the longest with the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1980 to 1990. In 1981 he was Valenzuela became the only player in Major League history to win the Rookie of the Year Award , Cy Young Award , Silver Slugger Award and the 1981 World Series in one season.
Childhood and youth
Valenzuela was born as the youngest of twelve children in Etchohuaquila , a small village in the Municipio Navojoa in Sonora , Mexico.
Career as a player
In 1978, the then 17-year-old Fernando Valenzuela began his professional baseball career with Guanajuato Tuzos in the Mexican Central League with a 5-6 record and an ERA of 2.23. In the following year, the Mexican Central League was transferred to today's Liga Mexicana de Béisbol . Valenzuela pitched in the minor league . At the Leones de Yucatán he reached a 10-12 record this season with an ERA of 2.49 and 141 strikeouts . Valenzuela was watched by some major league teams and was finally bought by the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 6, 1979 for $ 120,000.
Los Angeles Dodgers
After Fernando Valenzuela moved to the Dodgers in 1979, he played in the minor league A team Lodi Dodgers (now Rancho Cucamonga Quakes) in the California League , where he was only used to a limited extent (1-2 with an ERA of 1.13). In 1980 he rose to the San Antonio Missions in Double-A. He led the Texas League with 162 strikeouts.
In September 1980 he was named to the Los Angeles Dodgers squad.
"Fernandomania"
Due to his performances in the 1981 season, Valenzuela was considered a top rookie. He started the 8-0 season with an ERA of just 0.50. He became known for his idiosyncratic, conspicuous throwing technique.
Especially with the Latinos of Los Angeles it became a media success, which coined the term "Fernandomania" ("Fernandomania").
After the players' strike in the same year, in which 713 games were canceled, he finished the season with a 13–7 record and an ERA of 2.48. He led all pitchers in the statistics shutouts (8), innings pitched (192.1) and strikeouts (180). He became the only player to win Rookie of the Year and Cy Young Awards in the same year. In addition, there was a reliable batsman who won the Silver Slugger Award with an average of .250 . In the 1981 World Series, he helped the Dodgers to their first World Series victory since 1965 with a 3–1 record.
Thanks to his offensive skills, Valenzuela played at least twice as an outfielder or first base in particularly long games in which he did not have to throw.
Nickname "El Toro"
After his outstanding debut, Valenzuela, who was known by fans as "El Toro" (in English: the bull), became known as one of the best pitchers in the league. One of his most successful years was the 1986 season, which he finished with 21-11 and an ERA of 3.14. For another Cy Young Award , he narrowly lost the vote against Houston Astros pitcher Mike Scott .
In the 1986 All-Star Game, he scored five strikeouts in a row. In doing so, he set the record set by Carl Hubbell in 1934 .
From 1987 his performances fell from, he finished the season with a 14-14 record and an ERA of 3.98. In 1988 he won only five games and was absent for most of the season. He showed his last great performance in 1990 when he played against the St. Louis Cardinals , in which he threw a 6-0 no-hitter .
At the beginning of his career, Valenzuela had problems communicating with his catchers because he had a poor command of the English language. Catcher Mike Scioscia , who joined the team as a rookie, then learned Spanish and became Valenzuela's personal catcher before he finally became a regular.
Career after the Dodgers
After he could not convince in Spring Training 1991, Valenzuela was fired by the Dodgers. A comeback attempt with the California Angels also failed. Although he signed a contract with the Detroit Tigers in the spring of 1992, but never played for the team, whereupon his contract was bought up by Jalisco , a club in the Mexican League. He played there for some time before making another comeback attempt in 1993 with the Baltimore Orioles .
Another good season followed in 1996 with the San Diego Padres , with a 13-8 and an ERA of 3.62. A year later he resigned playing with the St. Louis Cardinals . He finished his career with a final score of 173-153 and an ERA of 3.54.
He turned down an offer from the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1999 to make another comeback.
On June 29, 2004, he announced his return to the Liga Mexicana del Pacífico at the age of 44. He played in this league until 2005.
Valenzuela as a batsman
Valenzuela was, unusual for a pitcher, known as a good batsman. He had his best season as a batsman in 1990, when he finished it with an average of .304 with five doubles and 11 RBIs at 69 at-bats . Throughout his career, he averaged .200 with ten home runs , 26 doubles and 84 RBI at 936 at-bats . He won the Silver Slugger Award in 1981 and 1983.
Number Retirement
The Mexican Baseball League will commemorate the great legacy of Fernando Valezuela on July 6, 2019 and withdraw the number 34 shirt from across the league.
Web links
- Player information and statistics from Baseball Reference or Fangraphs or The Baseball Cube or Baseball Reference (Minor League) (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Kevin O'Connor: Fernando Valenzuela. St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture. findarticles.com, January 29, 2002, archived from the original on July 17, 2012 ; accessed on November 30, 2010 (English).
- ↑ Fernando Valenzuela - BR Bullpen . Baseball-reference.com. March 16, 2009. Retrieved November 30, 2010.
- ↑ SI.com - Writers - Alex belth: The five true pitching phenoms - Tuesday August 8, 2006 11:33 AM , Sportsillustrated.cnn.com. August 4, 2006. Archived from the original on February 3, 2012. Retrieved on November 30, 2010.
- ↑ a b Fernando Valenzuela Los Angeles Dodgers. (No longer available online.) Los Angeles Dodgers, archived from the original on July 28, 2012 ; accessed on November 30, 2010 (English).
- ↑ milb.com: La LMB retirará el number 34 de Fernando Valenzuela (Spanish)
| personal data | |
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| SURNAME | Valenzuela, Fernando |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Valenzuela Anguamea, Fernando (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | mexican baseball player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 1, 1960 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Etchohuaquila , Sonora , Mexico |