The Los Angeles Dodgers will retire former star pitcher Fernando Valenzuela’s number 34 as part of a themed weekend called “Fernandomania” from August 11-13.
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“To be part of the group that includes so many legends is a great honor. […] I am happy for all the supporters and fans who have followed my career.
They will be very excited to know that my number 34 will be retired, “said the man whose comments were reported by the major league baseball website on Saturday.
Since leaving the California team in 1990, no Dodgers player has worn his number. However, his number was never retired, as it is a team policy that only players who have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame are eligible to receive this honor.
The only exception to this rule was granted to number 19 Jim Gilliam, who the Dodgers retired after his sudden death in 1978.
Montreal Expos fans remember the left-hander as the starting pitcher in Game 5 of the 1981 National League Championship Series at Olympic Stadium.
Valenzuela had pitched eight and two-thirds innings allowing his team to eliminate the Quebec team during its first appearance in the post-season series in its history.
In 17 seasons in major league baseball, the man who is considered the best Mexican player in the history of the circuit won the prestigious Cy Young trophy three times and he pitched a game without points or hits on June 29, 1990.
Valenzuela played for 17 seasons in the major leagues and played for the Dodgers for 11 campaigns (1980 to 1991).
He then worked for the California Angels (1991), the Baltimore Orioles (1993), the Philadelphia Phillies (1994), the San Diego Padres (1995 to 1997) and the St. Louis Cardinals (1997) .