Valenzuela made his MLB debut in 1980 at age 19, something unheard of these days, especially for a pitcher. The 1981 season was one of legend. As a left-hander, he had a 2.48 ERA and completed 11 of his 25 starts, eight of which were shutouts. He won both the NL Cy Young Award and Rookie of the Year, culminating a remarkable season with a World Series title.
For those too young to understand what Fernando Valenzuela meant to Mexico, to Los Angeles, to baseball, in his first eight starts of 1981, he was 20 years old and threw a devastating screwball. During that month, he became the biggest sports star in the world, which underscores his significant impact beyond statistics.
Collection
[
|
...
]