Doc Stull and Homepage host Danielle Orr share their monthly feature on great athletes and sport from the Americas and Caribbean and their connection to popular culture and politics.
35 years ago… before the internet, before social media, there was Fernandomania. Fernando Valenzuela came from a small Mexican town in Sonora and captivated the “City of Angels” and the nation – becoming rookie of the year, pitcher of year and World Series champion in his first full season with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1981. It wasn’t just a sports story – it was a human story of improbable implications and shared meanings between the United States and Mexico – Valenzuela’s “eyes-toward-heaven” windup, unhittable breaking balls and his joy and competitive fire resonated with baseball fans and the public at large during that amazing year of Fernandomania in 1981.