Valenzuela, Mexican pitching phenom of Fernandomania fame, dies at 63
Fernando Valenzuela, the cultural hero and baseball legend whose journey from a dusty pitcher’s mound in rural Mexico to center stage at Dodger Stadium launched a movement for baseball fans around the globe, died on Tuesday. He was 63. Decades after “Fernandomania” drew generations of families...
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One of a kind is a description that can be pretty casually tossed out, but Fernando Valenzuela was definitely one of a kind.
I am an old case. Valenzuela was actually younger than me. People tell me confidential information all the time, because they know I cannot remember it. But, I’m pretty sure I recall (most of) this story pretty well.
Anyway, years ago I was listening to this interview with a woman whose first name was Sutton. Don’t recall the reason for her fame as a celebrity, but she was asked how she got her name. She said her dad was a huge Dodgers fan and the day she was born Don Sutton was pitching for the Dodgers. The interviewer said that’s a very interesting story and she said, “That’s nothing, it would have been real interesting if I was born the next day.” When she was asked why she replied, “Because Fernando Valenzuela started that day, and my dad was a huge fan of his.”
