To speak of Fernando Valenzuela is to speak of greatness, and we cannot forget the 1981 World Series, where his legend was formed when the Los Angeles Dodgers faced off against the New York Yankees in the Fall Classic. That season, 43 years ago, Valenzuela took to the mound to pitch on April 9, 1981 to open the season. He pitched a complete game (as was common at the time, as there were no pitching restrictions), shutout the Houston Astros, and began his quest to win that year’s Cy Young Award. Valenzuela started the season with an impressive 8-0 record, including five clean sheets and an incredible 0.50 ERA. During his dominance on the mound, Valenzuela made an unusual gesture: right at the top of each pitch, he would glance skyward, a habit that quickly caught everyone’s attention. This habit, which he developed spontaneously, became a hallmark of him until he joined the Dodgers.

Fernando Valenzuela 1960 – 2024 T-Shirt

Fernando Valenzuela has become an icon, especially among Los Angeles’s Latino community, who have filled stadiums to watch him pitch. His popularity exploded nationwide and demand for his rookie baseball cards skyrocketed. This craze around Valenzuela is called “Fernandomania”. During his warmups at Dodger Stadium, the sound system will play the 1976 hit song “Fernando” by the Swedish group ABBA. Valenzuela became the first player to win both the Rookie of the Year and the Cy Young Award in the same season, leading the National League in strikeouts. That same season, the Dodgers won the World Series by defeating the New York Yankees.