Fernando Valenzuela, beloved Dodgers pitching ace, died from septic shock, medical examiner says

Fernando Valenzuela, the beloved Los Angeles Dodgers pitching ace who helped the team win the 1981 World Series, died of septic shock last month, according to his death certificate.

TMZ Sports obtained the document on Tuesday. Valenzuela died on Oct. 22 at age 63, a few weeks after stepping away from his job on the Dodgers' Spanish-language television broadcast and days before the Dodgers began their run to the team's eighth World Series championship. No cause of death was provided at the time.

The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's office listed septic shock as the immediate cause of death. It is a life-threatening condition that occurs when organs malfunction, leading to dangerously low blood pressure. Each year, at least 350,000 people in the U.S. die of the condition, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.