Dodgers Icon Fernando Valenzuela Steps Away From Broadcast Booth Amid Health Issues

The longtime pitcher has been a fixture on Los Angeles's airwaves for decades.

Apr 1, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers former pitcher Fernando Valenzuela attends the game against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela is stepping away from the team's broadcasting booth for the remainder of the 2024 season to focus on his health, the team announced in a statement Wednesday morning.

"Fernando Valenzuela has stepped away from the Dodger broadcast booth for the remainder of this year to focus on his health," the Dodgers said. "He and his family truly appreciate the love and support of fans as he aims to return for the 2025 season, and they have asked for privacy during this time."

Valenzuela, 63, is reportedly in the hospital at this time for unspecified reasons.

pic.twitter.com/x0B0nQzFx1

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) October 2, 2024

The ex-pitcher—a native of Etchohuaquila, Mexico—has been a fixture on the Dodgers' Spanish-language television and radio broadcasts since the mid-2000s.

With the Dodgers, Valenzuela made six All-Star teams from 1980 to 1990. He won both the National League Cy Young and Rookie of the Year awards in 1981, and helped galvanize Los Angeles' Mexican fanbase in a phenomenon known as "Fernandomania."

More of the Latest Around MLB

feed