My short interaction with Brian Kenny seemed to have reminded him. He just never generated enough support, Spencer says. 20), manager Walter Alston (No. His best seasons were 1981, his rookie year, and 1986, when he led the National League with 21 wins and had a league-leading 20 complete games. For my generation, Im talking Generation X, the children of Mexican immigrants that grew up in Southern California in the 1980s, hes not a myth, he was a hero. Top 10 MLB Players From Mexico - HowTheyPlay Valenzuela played 11 of his 17 years in the major leagues with Los Angeles. Fernando pitched well beyond his years, from Day 1, Scioscia says. Fernandomania - Society for American Baseball Research He placed in the top 5 in Cy Young voting 4 times in. Hall of Fame Inductee Fernando Valenzuela and his daughter attend the 12th Annual California Hall of Fame Ceremony at The California Museum on December 4, 2018 in Sacramento, California. Valenzuela's secret weapon was a screwball, a pitch he learned from Dodgers pitcher Bobby Castillo 18 months earlier. I was there when that girl ran on the field and kissed him. The ratings for the Dodgers Spanish language broadcasts more than doubled when he pitched. Fernando Valenzuela, 80.6% (65.8%): Created tons of Dodgers fans, and with so many big names elected last year, was the first choice among players on a lot of ballots. Then again, the Dodgers are the same organization whose miscalculations resulted in a seven-year television blackout. Note: With the Mexico Series taking place this weekend (April 29 and 30) between the Padres and Giants, we wanted to highlight some of the great Mexican players and stories from baseball's past. Nowadays, Fernando is seen almost as a myth, because his playing career ended in the '90s before a lot of the current generation fans were even born, says Gustavo Arellano, a columnist covering Southern California for the Los Angeles Times.