Will the Dodgers remove Fernando Valenzuela’s iconic number 34?
This was a topic that was put on the Mexican legend of the team on Saturday, when the former pitcher and his club broadcast partner in Spanish, the Ecuadorian Jaume Jarrín, held a press conference for Zoom at Dodger Stadium on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the birth of the Fernandomanía in 1981.
The Dodgers have had a history of withdrawing numbers only from Hall of Fame members who spent most of their careers with the Blue Team, in both Brooklyn and Los Angeles.
The exception has been Jim Gilliam, a former player and then coach of the club’s first base and who during the 1978 postseason– just before the Dodgers’ World Series against the Yankees-died after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage in September of that year. His number 19 was withdrawn immediately after his death.
In the case of Valenzuela, his 34 has been “saved”, although not formally.
“Many years have passed already, without anyone using the number 34,” Valenzuela commented. “It’s a little loud here, isn’t it?”
Indeed, since 1990, the last Valenzuela campaign with the Dodgers, no member of the team has worn that number. In essence, it has been an unofficial retreat.
Before and after Valenzuela’s times in Los Angeles, the Dodgers have had a rich history of opening pitchers. The retired blue serpentine numbers are Sandy Koufax’s 32, Don Drysdale’s 53 and Don Sutton’s 20, all exalted in the Cooperstown Hall of Fame.
In his 11 seasons with the Dodgers, Valenzuela produced a pitching WAR of 33.0, tied as the eighth highest figure in team history. In total, the Sonoran had a mark of 141-116 wearing the Los Angeles uniform, with an effectiveness of 3.31, 1,759 strikeouts and EFE + from 107 to 331 presentations (320 openings).
On the Dodgers’ all-time roster, Valenzuela is sixth in strikeouts, seventh in starting games, ninth in wins and ninth in pitching innings (2,348.2).
In the midst of celebrating Fernandomanía’s 40th anniversary — in addition to celebrating the Dodgers ’first World Serier title in 32 years, the 2020 al-Valenzuela crown didn’t express much“ possessiveness ”around its number and whether to withdraw. Sure I would look at it with good eyes, but it doesn’t seem to give it too much importance.
“I wore it like any other number,” he said. “When I went up to 80, it was in my locker. I had to be with that number, so I don’t know what’s going to happen. Let’s wait.
“If there’s anyone who can use it, there’s no problem. The numbers are there to use.”
For his part, Jarrín — who accompanied Valenzuela as his unofficial performer during that 1981 season and narrated virtually all of his acting with the Dodgers on the radio — if he pays homage to the subject.
“Fernando used that number with a lot, a lot of pride,” Jarrín said. “I think one day we will see the number 34 of Fernando Valenzuela withdrawn.”