Fernando Valenzuela

Fernando Valenzuela came out of a tiny town in Sonora, Mexico, and absolutely took Major League Baseball by storm in a way that still feels almost unreal. "Fernandomania" in 1981 was genuine, electric, and earned — this guy won Rookie of the Year and the Cy Young Award in the same season, which is the kind of thing that sounds made up. What I love about him is how he pitched: that distinctive windup where he'd look up at the sky before delivering, like he was asking the universe for a little help. He was a big, sturdy left-hander who made hitters look foolish with a nasty screwball, and he did it all while barely speaking English and carrying the hopes of an entire Mexican fanbase on his shoulders. He passed away in October 2024, and the sport genuinely lost one of its great stories. El Toro was the real deal.

Name (English)

Fernando Valenzuela

Name (Japanese)

フェルナンド・バレンズエラ

Reading

ふぇるなんど・ばれんずえら

Born

November 1, 1960 – October 22, 2024

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Scorpio / Rat

Origin

Etchohuaquila, Sonora, Mexico

Height

180 cm

Occupation

baseball player / sports commentator

Awards & achievements

• 1981 Major League Baseball All-Star
• 1981 Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award
• 1981 Cy Young Award
• 1981 Silver Slugger Award
• 1986 Rawlings Gold Glove Award
• 2014 Ohtli Award
• 2014 Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame

Motto

Private

• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%95%E3%82%A7%E3%83%AB%E3%83%8A%E3%83%B3%E3%83%89%E3%83%BB%E3%83%90%E3%83%AC%E3%83%B3%E3%82%BA%E3%82%A8%E3%83%A9

Tags

• Sonora
• baseball player
• sports commentator

Last updated

2026-06-02

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.