A public funeral mass is planned for Wednesday in honor of the late Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela.
The service is scheduled for 10 a.m. at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles, with entrance processions beginning at 9:45 a.m.
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles says Mass is open on a first-come, first-served basis due to limited space in the cathedral, located at 555 W. Temple Street. In addition, a public viewing area will be created on the Cathedral Plaza. Availability there will also be limited due to the capacity it can hold.
People can watch from home on the cathedral’s website or via their YouTube channel.
Because there is no public parking within the cathedral’s parking garage, church officials urged those hoping to attend to take public transportation or use ride-hailing services.
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Valenzuela died on October 22 at the age of 63just days before his beloved Boys in Blue secured the franchise’s eighth World Series championship against the Yankees in five games.
He was beloved for both his time on the field and behind the microphone for the Dodgers franchise. After spending the first ten seasons of his MLB career with the Boys in Blue, the man known to many as “El Toro” would eventually spend more than two decades playing games with the team’s Spanish broadcast, gaining new gained fans over generations of Angelenos.
He stepped away from the state prior to the 2024 postseason for unknown health reasons that led to his hospitalization. A cause of death has still not been revealed.
Valenzuela was born in Etchohauquila, Sonora, Mexico, the youngest of 12 children. He made his big league debut for the Dodgers in 1980, and took the league and Los Angeles by storm in the summer of 1981, starting “Fernandomania” that captivated the city’s Latino population.
He was named an Opening Day starter in 1981 and embarked on an incredible season that saw him take home both the National League Rookie of the Year and the Cy Young Award. He would go on to be named to six All-Star Games, win a World Series with the Dodgers in 1981 and win one Gold Glove Award and two Silver Slugger Awards.
Valenzuela’s career as a Dodger player came to an end in 1990, but not before he left town with one last taste of “Fernandomania,” throwing his only career no-hitter. Are number was retired by the Dodgers in 2023and during their ill-fated run to the title this season, the team wore a badge with his number 34 in his memory.
News of his death with was met with an outpouring of support from both former teammates and Los Angeles city officials, and in the days following the World Series parade, held on Valenzuela’s birthday, a massive mural honoring the southpaw was unveiled in Boyle Heights.
