The Los Angeles Dodgers Recreate 1981 With “Fernandomania” to Honor One of Their Greats.

This past weekend The Los Angeles Dodgers honored one of their most influential players in team history.

Fernando “El Toro” Valenzuela pitched for the Dodgers from 1980-1990. Valenzuela was born in Etchohuaquila, Mexico and the Dodgers acquired him in 1979. The lefty superstar took the league by storm at the age of 20. In his first full season in the big leagues, Valenzuela captured the hearts of Los Angeles. As a rookie, he won the Cy Young award which is given to the best pitcher from the season, rookie of the year, and led the Dodgers to a World Series championship over the New York Yankees in six games. Valenzuela would go on to have a great career 17-year career with six different ball clubs in the MLB. He became a six-time all-star and won a Gold Glove, a two-time silver slugger.

Dodgers brought back the 1981 phenomenon known as “Fernandomania” to honor one of their greats. It was a weekend all about Valenzuela and celebrating the legend in different ways.

The festivities kicked off on Friday night with the retirement of his “34” jersey and a drone show. Saturday night, the first 40,000 fans were given a collectors edition bobblehead of  Valenzuela. Sunday night the team gifted fans with a 1981 World Series replica ring.

The Dodgers are not the first organization to honor Valenzuela. He was inducted into the Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame in 2014.

Los Angeles hosted N.L West rival Colorado Rockies for a 3 game series while this event took place. The Dodgers would dominate Colorado defeating them in a three games securing the sweep. L.A outscored their opponent 18-5. Fellow Mexican pitcher Julio Urías would secure the sweep with an elite performance. The lefty pitched seven innings, struck out 12 and allowed three runs.