For baseball fans, “Fernandomania” marked a flash of pitching brilliance, the emergence of a unique talent in the history of one of the sport’s most storied franchises.
For Mexicans and Mexican Americans, Fernando Valenzuela was something even greater: a beacon of hope, inspiration and pride.
Valenzuela, a Mexican-born phenomenon for the Los Angeles Dodgers, died Tuesday night at a Los Angeles hospital, the team said. He was 63.
For some, his death prompted memories of watching the left-hander pitch at home with their parents, not out of a love of sports but because of a surge of Mexican or Latino pride. They reflect on the doors he opened for future generations
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