The Dodgers are finally retiring Fernando Valenzuela’s number 34. This honor is richly deserved and overdue.
For decades, the long-time clubhouse manager Mitch Poole has kept the iconic 34 unavailable to players in honor of Fernando. Through all that, the number was never officially retired because the Dodgers have a policy of only retiring the numbers of Hall of Fame players (save for the unique case of Jim “Junior” Gilliam’s number 19 after his passing in 1978). This past February at FanFest, Dodgers president Stan Kasten made the announcement that the unofficial 34 retirement era was over.