Montreal Expos - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Montreal Expos

Established: 1969 1969 in baseball -Expansion:Four expansion teams joined Major League Baseball for this season: the San Diego Padres, the Kansas City Royals, the Seattle Pilots, and the first MLB team in Canada, the Montreal Expos. To accommodate the additional teams, the two leagues were split into two divisions of East and West... (Expansion team Expansion team An expansion team is a brand new team in a sports league. The term is most commonly used in reference to the North American major professional sports leagues, but is applied to sports leagues worldwide that use a closed franchise system of league membership. The term comes from the expansion of the... )
Relocated: December 3, 2004 2004 in baseball -Headline events of the year:The Boston Red Sox win their first World Series since , ending the Curse of the Bambino.With 262 hits, Ichiro Suzuki of the Mariners breaks George Sisler's record of 257. Suzuki also sets the record for most singles in a season, with 225.*2004 also marked the final... (to Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution.... , as the Washington Nationals Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are a professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals are a member of the Eastern Division of the National League of Major League Baseball . The team moved into the newly built Nationals Park in 2008, after playing their first three seasons in RFK Stadium... )
Major league affiliations: National League National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional... (1969–2004) *East Division National League East The National League East Division is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. The Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies are tied for the most National League East Division titles . All of Atlanta's NL East titles came during a record stretch of 14 consecutive division titles... (1969–2004)
Stadium: Jarry Park Stadium Jarry Park Stadium Jarry Park Stadium is a former baseball stadium in Montreal which served as home to the Montreal Expos, Major League Baseball's first Canadian franchise, from 1969–1976. It served as a temporary home until the domed Olympic Stadium was finished and made available to the Expos... , Montreal (1969 1969 in baseball -Expansion:Four expansion teams joined Major League Baseball for this season: the San Diego Padres, the Kansas City Royals, the Seattle Pilots, and the first MLB team in Canada, the Montreal Expos. To accommodate the additional teams, the two leagues were split into two divisions of East and West... –1976 1976 in baseball -Major League Baseball:World Series: Cincinnati Reds over New York Yankees ; Johnny Bench, MVPAll-Star Game, July 13 at Veterans Stadium: National League, 7-1; George Foster, MVP-Other champions:Caribbean World Series: Naranjeros de Hermosillo... ) Olympic Stadium Olympic Stadium (Montreal) The Olympic Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada built as the main venue for the 1976 Summer Olympics... , Montreal (1977 1977 in baseball -Major League Baseball:World Series: New York Yankees over Los Angeles Dodgers ; Reggie Jackson, MVPAmerican League Championship Series MVP: NoneNational League Championship Series MVP: Dusty Baker... –2004 2004 in baseball -Headline events of the year:The Boston Red Sox win their first World Series since , ending the Curse of the Bambino.With 262 hits, Ichiro Suzuki of the Mariners breaks George Sisler's record of 257. Suzuki also sets the record for most singles in a season, with 225.2004 also marked the final... ) Hiram Bithorn Stadium Hiram Bithorn Stadium Hiram Bithorn Stadium is a baseball park in San Juan, Puerto Rico, operated by the municipal government of the city of San Juan. Its name honors the first Puerto Rican to play in the major leagues, Hiram Bithorn, who first played with the Chicago Cubs in 1942... (San Juan San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of... , Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an... ) (2003 2003 in baseball -Headline event of the year:The Florida Marlins become World Series champions, holding off a dynastic New York Yankees team, 4 games to 2.-Major League Baseball:Regular Season ChampionsWorld Series Champion - Florida Marlins... –2004 2004 in baseball -Headline events of the year:The Boston Red Sox win their first World Series since , ending the Curse of the Bambino.With 262 hits, Ichiro Suzuki of the Mariners breaks George Sisler's record of 257. Suzuki also sets the record for most singles in a season, with 225.*2004 also marked the final... )
Uniform Colors: Blue, White, Red
Logo Design: A stylized "M" for Montreal, containing a red "e" for Expos, and a blue "b" for baseball.
Mascot: Souki (1978), Youppi Youppi Youppi! is the official mascot for the Montreal Canadiens and former longtime mascot of Montreal Expos .-History:... (1979–2004)
Theme Song: ("The Expos are here") by Marc Gélinas
Division Championships:^[] 1981 1981 in baseball -Major League Baseball:World Series: Los Angeles Dodgers over New York Yankees ; Ron Cey, Pedro Guerrero, and Steve Yeager, co-MVPsNOTE: Due to a strike in mid-season, the season was divided into a first half and a second half...
National League Championships: None
World Series Championships: None
[] In 1981 1981 in baseball -Major League Baseball:World Series: Los Angeles Dodgers over New York Yankees ; Ron Cey, Pedro Guerrero, and Steve Yeager, co-MVPsNOTE: Due to a strike in mid-season, the season was divided into a first half and a second half... , a players' strike in the middle of the season forced the season to be split into two halves. Montreal won the division in the second half, despite having the second best record in the division when considering the entire season, two games behind St. Louis St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to... . In 1994 1994 in baseball -Headline events of the year:As a result of a players' strike, the MLB season ends prematurely on August 11, 1994. No postseason is played... , a players' strike wiped out the last eight weeks of the season and all post-season. Montreal was in first place by six games in the National League East Division when play was stopped. No official titles were awarded in 1994.
Geographical Rivals: New York Mets New York Mets The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League... , Philadelphia Phillies Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League... , Toronto Blue Jays Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League .... (interleague play Interleague play Interleague play is the term used to describe regular season Major League Baseball games played between teams in different leagues, introduced in . Before the 1997 season, teams in the American League and National League did not meet during the regular season... )

The Montreal Expos were a Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

team located in Montreal

Montreal

Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

, Quebec from 1969 through 2004, holding the first MLB franchise awarded outside the United States. After the 2004 season, MLB moved the Expos to Washington, D.C. and renamed them the Nationals

Washington Nationals

The Washington Nationals are a professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals are a member of the Eastern Division of the National League of Major League Baseball . The team moved into the newly built Nationals Park in 2008, after playing their first three seasons in RFK Stadium...

.

Named after the Expo 67

Expo 67

The 1967 International and Universal Exposition or Expo 67, as it was commonly known, was the general exhibition, Category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It is considered to be the most successful World's Fair of the 20th century, with the...

World's Fair

World's fair, World fair, Universal Exposition, and World Expo are various large public exhibitions held in different parts of the world. The first Expo was held in The Crystal Palace in Hyde Park, London, United Kingdom, in 1851, under the title "Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All...

, the Expos started play at Jarry Park Stadium

Jarry Park Stadium

Jarry Park Stadium is a former baseball stadium in Montreal which served as home to the Montreal Expos, Major League Baseball's first Canadian franchise, from 1969–1976. It served as a temporary home until the domed Olympic Stadium was finished and made available to the Expos...

under manager Gene Mauch

Gene Mauch

Gene William Mauch was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a second baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers , Pittsburgh Pirates , Chicago Cubs , Boston Braves , St...

. The team's initial majority owner was Charles Bronfman

Charles Bronfman

Charles Rosner Bronfman, is a Canadian businessman and philanthropist. With an estimated net worth of $US 2.0 billion , Bronfman was ranked by Forbes as the 15th wealthiest Canadian and 595th in the world....

, a major shareholder in Seagram

Seagram

The Seagram Company Ltd. was a large corporation headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada that was the largest distiller of alcoholic beverages in the world. Toward the end of its independent existence it also controlled various entertainment and other business ventures...

. Following the 1976 Summer Olympics

1976 Summer Olympics

The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1976. Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games on May 12, 1970, at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam, over the bids of Moscow and...

, starting in 1977 the team's home venue was Montreal's Olympic Stadium

Olympic Stadium (Montreal)

The Olympic Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada built as the main venue for the 1976 Summer Olympics...

. After a decade of losing seasons, the team won a franchise-high 95 games in 1979

1979 Montreal Expos season

- Offseason :* November 28, 1978: Duffy Dyer was signed as a free agent by the Expos.* December 4, 1978: Ken Macha was drafted by the Expos from the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1978 rule 5 draft....

, finishing second in the National League East. The Expos began the 1980s with a core group of young players, including catcher Gary Carter

Gary Carter

Gary Edmund Carter , nicknamed "Kid" and "Kid Carter", is an American former Major League Baseball catcher. During a 19-year baseball career, mostly with the Montreal Expos and the New York Mets, Carter established himself as one of the premier catchers in the National League, winning three Gold...

, outfielders Tim Raines

Tim Raines

Timothy Raines , nicknamed "Rock", is a former American professional baseball player. He played as a left fielder in Major League Baseball for six teams from 1979 to 2002 and was best known for his 13 seasons with the Montreal Expos...

and Andre Dawson

Andre Dawson

Andre Nolan Dawson , nicknamed "The Hawk", is an American former center fielder and right fielder. During a 21-year baseball career, he played for four different teams, spending most of his career with the Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs .An 8-time National League All-Star, he was named the...

, third baseman Tim Wallach

Tim Wallach

Timothy Charles Wallach , nicknamed "Eli" in reference to actor Eli Wallach, is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played from to for the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Dodgers, and California Angels. He won three Gold Glove awards for defensive excellence and 2 Silver Slugger...

, and pitchers Steve Rogers and Bill Gullickson

Bill Gullickson

William Lee Gullickson is a former major league baseball pitcher who played for six different major-league teams, in Canada, the U.S...

. The team won its only division championship in the strike-shortened split season of 1981, ending its season with a 3 games to 2 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers

1981 Los Angeles Dodgers season

The Los Angeles Dodgers season got off to a strong start when rookie pitcher Fernando Valenzuela pitched a shutout on opening day, starting the craze that came to be known as "Fernandomania." Fernando went on to win both the Rookie of the Year and Cy Young Awards.The season was divided into two...

in the National League Championship Series

1981 National League Championship Series

- Game 1 :Tuesday, October 13, 1981 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CaliforniaThe Dodgers took the first game of the series behind the strong pitching of starter Burt Hooton. For the first seven innings the game stayed close, with the only scoring coming in the second inning when the Dodgers got...

.

After a number of up-and-down seasons, the team was sold to a consortium of owners in 1991, with Claude Brochu

Claude Brochu

Claude Brochu, CM , is a Quebec businessman.He was named president of the Montreal Expos baseball club by Charles Bronfman in 1986, replacing John McHale....

as the managing general partner. Buck Rodgers

Buck Rodgers

Robert LeRoy "Buck" Rodgers is a former catcher, manager and coach in Major League Baseball. As a manager, he helmed three major league teams: the Milwaukee Brewers , Montreal Expos and California Angels , compiling a career won-lost mark of 784–773 .-Playing career:Rodgers attended Ohio Wesleyan...

, manager since the 1985 season and, at that time, second only to Gene Mauch

Gene Mauch

in number of Expos games managed, was replaced early in the 1991 season. In May 1992, Felipe Alou, a long time member of the Expos organization since 1976, was promoted to field manager, becoming the first Dominican-born manager in MLB

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

history. Alou would become the leader in Expos games managed while guiding the team to winning records, including 1994, when the Expos, led by a talented group of players including Larry Walker

Larry Walker

Larry Kenneth Robert Walker is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball. From 1989 through 2005, Walker played for the Montreal Expos , Colorado Rockies , and St. Louis Cardinals...

, Moisés Alou

Moisés Alou

Moisés Rojas Alou |Spanish:]] ; born July 3, 1966 in Atlanta, Georgia) is a former American outfielder in Major League Baseball who played for 17 seasons in the National League. In 1,942 career games, Alou had a batting average of .303 with 2,134 hits, 421 doubles, 332 home runs, and 1,287 runs...

, Marquis Grissom

Marquis Grissom

Marquis Deon Grissom is a former Major League Baseball player. He excelled in baseball at Lakeshore High School, under the tutelage of baseball coach Mike Juenger. He currently resides in College Park, Georgia...

and Pedro Martínez

Pedro Martínez

Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...

, had the best record in the major leagues until the strike forced the cancellation of the remainder of the season

1994 Major League Baseball season

The 1994 Major League Baseball season ended with the infamous players strike ending the season on August 11, 1994.-Strike:As a result of a players' strike, the MLB season ended prematurely on August 11, 1994. No postseason was played...

. After the disappointment of 1994, Expos management began shedding its key players, and the team's fan support dwindled. Brochu sold control of the team to Jeffrey Loria

Jeffrey Loria

Jeffrey H. Loria is an art dealer and is the owner of the Miami Marlins. Raised in Manhattan, Loria took an early interest in baseball, attending his first New York Yankees game in the late 1940s. Loria attended New York City's Stuyvesant High School and Yale University, where he initially took...

in 1999, but Loria failed to close on a plan to build a new downtown ballpark, and did not reach an agreement on television and English radio broadcast contracts for the 2000 season, reducing the team's media coverage.

In November 2001, MLB's owners voted 28–2 to contract by two teams—according to various sources, the Expos and the Minnesota Twins

Minnesota Twins

The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...

, both of which reportedly voted against contraction. However, the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission, operator of Minnesota's Metrodome

Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome

The Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, commonly called the Metrodome, is a domed sports stadium in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Opened in 1982, it replaced Metropolitan Stadium, which was on the current site of the Mall of America in Bloomington and Memorial Stadium on the University...

, received an injunction requiring the Twins to play in the Metrodome during 2002, so MLB could not eliminate the Expos alone while preserving its 162-game schedule. In December, the Boston Red Sox

Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...

accepted a purchase bid from a group led by John W. Henry

John W. Henry

John William Henry II is a futures and foreign exchange trading advisor who founded John W. Henry & Company . He is the principal owner of the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool F.C., and co-owner of Roush Fenway Racing. In March 2006, Boston Magazine estimated his net worth at $1.1 billion, but noted...

, owner of the Florida Marlins

Florida Marlins

The Miami Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1993 as an expansion franchise called the Florida Marlins, the Marlins are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Marlins played their home games at...

, and so Henry sold the Marlins to Loria, and MLB bought the Expos from Loria. In the collective bargaining agreement signed with the players association in August 2002, contraction was prohibited through to the end of the contract in 2006.

On September 29, 2004, the date of Montreal's last home game of the season, MLB announced that the Montreal franchise would move to Washington, D.C. for the 2005 season. The Expos played their final game on October 3, 2004 at Shea Stadium

Shea Stadium

William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, usually shortened to Shea Stadium or just Shea , was a stadium in the New York City borough of Queens, in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. It was the home baseball park of Major League Baseball's New York Mets from 1964 to 2008...

, losing by a score of 8–1 against the New York Mets

New York Mets

The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...

, the same opponent that the Expos first faced at its start, 35 years earlier. The Washington team was named the Washington Nationals

Washington Nationals

, and retained all the Expos' records, player contracts, and minor league affiliates, as well as their spring training

Spring training

In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...

complex in Viera, Florida

Viera, Florida

Viera is a master planned community located in the central coastal region of Brevard County, Florida. It is part of an unincorporated section adjacent to the Melbourne, Florida area.-Geography:...

Creation of the franchise

In 1960, Montreal lost its International League team, the Montreal Royals

Montreal Royals

The Montreal Royals were a minor league professional baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec, that existed from 1897–1917 and from 1928–60 as a member of the International League and its progenitor, the original Eastern League...

, a Dodgers

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...

affiliate, when the parent team chose to locate its main farm team closer to its new home in L.A. The move to get a new team for Montreal was the result of a seven-year-long effort led by Gerry Snyder, who at the time was the member from the district of Snowdon on Montreal City Council. Snyder was a high-profile figure in Montreal during the 1960s and 1970s. In addition to representing Snowdon on council from 1957 to 1982, Snyder chaired the city's Executive Committee during the 1960s, served as Mayor Jean Drapeau's primary liaison to the English-speaking community, and was instrumental in bringing both the 1976 Summer Olympic Games and the Formula One Grand Prix of Canada to the city.

Snyder presented a bid for a Montreal franchise to Major League Baseball's team owners at their 1967 December meeting in Mexico City. One potential wildcard in Montreal's favour was that the chair of the National League's expansion committee was influential Los Angeles Dodgers

Los Angeles Dodgers

president Walter O'Malley

Walter O'Malley

Walter Francis O'Malley was an American sports executive who owned the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers team in Major League Baseball from to . He served as Brooklyn Dodgers chief legal counsel when Jackie Robinson broke the racial color barrier in...

, under whom the Royals had become affiliated with the Dodgers. On May 27, 1968, O'Malley announced that franchises were being awarded to Montreal and San Diego, to begin play the following year (1969).

After prominent Montreal businessman Jean-Louis Lévesque

Jean-Louis Lévesque

Jean-Louis Lévesque, was a Canadian entrepreneur, thoroughbred racehorse owner, and philanthropist....

withdrew his support, Snyder convinced Charles Bronfman

Charles Bronfman

, a major shareholder in the worldwide Seagram

Seagram

distilling empire, to lend his considerable weight to the project and provide the funding guarantees required. Bronfman purchased the majority of the shares and was Chairman of the Board of Directors. The other investors and founding directors included vice-chairmen Lorne Webster and Paul Beaudry, plus Sydney Maislin, Hugh G. Hallward, Charlemagne Beaudry (Paul's brother), and team President and Executive Director John McHale

John McHale

John Joseph McHale was an American first baseman and executive in Major League Baseball who served as the general manager of three teams: the Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves, and Montreal Expos...

.

With its long history of use in Montreal, "Royals" was one of the candidate nicknames for the new franchise, but the Kansas City team

Kansas City Royals

The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals are a member of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From 1973 to the present, the Royals have played in Kauffman Stadium...

had already adopted this name. Many names were suggested by Montreal residents (including the "Voyageurs" and, in a coincidental twist, the "Nationals", the name now used by the team in its current home in Washington), but the clear winner was "Expos." In addition to the tie-in with Expo 67, the nickname also had the advantage of being the same in either English or French, the city's two dominant languages.

The Expos had to overcome another obstacle before they could take the field: they had to find a home ballpark. Delorimier Stadium

Delorimier Stadium

Delorimier Stadium was a 20,000-seat sports stadium at 2101 Ontario Street East, at the corner of De Lorimier Avenue in the present-day Montreal borough of Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve...

, the former home of the Montreal Royals, was rejected as too small even for temporary use. Team officials initially settled on the Autostade

Autostade

The Autostade was a Canadian football stadium in the Victoriatown neighbourhood of Montreal, Quebec that stood at the north-west corner of the Cité du Havre sector of the Expo 67 site...

, but city officials balked at the cost of adding a dome (thought necessary because of Montreal's often cold temperatures in April and September) and 12,000 seats. By August 1968, the league was threatening to withdraw the franchise. National League president Warren Giles

Warren Giles

Warren Crandall Giles was a National League executive in Major League Baseball.-Baseball:Giles was elected president of the Moline, Illinois baseball club in the Three-I League in 1919 and began a 50-year career in baseball that saw him rise all the way to the presidency of the National League...

and Montreal Mayor Jean Drapeau

Jean Drapeau

Jean Drapeau, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as mayor of Montreal from 1954 to 1957 and 1960 to 1986...

visited Jarry Park

Jarry Park Stadium

, a 3,000-seat community ballpark in the city's northwest corner. Giles liked the park's location, and decided it could be a suitable temporary facility. Within six months, the park was transformed into a 28,500-seat makeshift facility, saving the franchise.

Social impact of the Expos

Montreal's international profile was raised considerably in the 1960s. The 1967 World's Fair, called Expo 67

Expo 67

, was a success, and the city soon won the bid for the 1976 Summer Olympics

1976 Summer Olympics

. The city also opened a new subway system

Rapid transit

A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...

, the Montreal Metro

Montreal Metro

The Montreal Metro is a rubber-tired metro system, and the main form of public transportation underground in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada....

. This string of achievements was capped by the winning of one of the four expansion franchises awarded by Major League Baseball for 1969.

The Montreal Expos were the first franchise awarded to a Canadian city by Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

. It was considered a huge step for the city of Montreal, the province of Quebec, the nation of Canada, and MLB. One of the challenges for French-language broadcasters was inventing a whole new lexicon to describe the game to fans.
The Expos' success inspired Major League Baseball to add a second Canadian team, the Toronto Blue Jays

Toronto Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....

, in 1977.

Early years

The Expos won their first game, on the afternoon of April 8, 1969, against the New York Mets

1969 New York Mets season

The New York Mets season was the eighth season for the Mets franchise, which played its home games at Shea Stadium. Managed by Gil Hodges, the team went 100-62, finishing first in the newly-established National League East by eight games over the Chicago Cubs...

at Shea Stadium

Shea Stadium

, beating the Mets by a score of 11–10. The Expos took the field for the first time with Bob Bailey

Bob Bailey (baseball)

Robert Sherwood Bailey is an American former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates , Los Angeles Dodgers , Montreal Expos , Cincinnati Reds and Boston Red Sox . He batted and threw right-handed...

playing first base, Gary Sutherland

Gary Sutherland

Gary Lynn Sutherland was a Major League Second Baseman and Shortstop for 13 seasons from 1966-1978....

playing second base, Maury Wills

Maury Wills

Maurice Morning "Maury" Wills is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and switch-hitting batter who played most prominently with the Los Angeles Dodgers , and also with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Montreal Expos...

playing shortstop

Shortstop

Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...

, Coco Laboy

Coco Laboy

José Alberto "Coco" Laboy was a Puerto Rican Major League Baseball player. He was signed by the San Francisco Giants as an amateur free agent in 1959 but remained mired in the minor leagues until the 1969 expansion of major league baseball, which added two teams to both leagues. The expansion...

playing third base

Third Base

is a 1978 Japanese film directed by Yōichi Higashi.-External links:...

, Mack Jones

Mack Jones

Mack F. Jones , nicknamed "Mack The Knife", was a Major League Baseball left fielder who played for the Milwaukee & Atlanta Braves , Cincinnati Reds and Montreal Expos . He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.A native of Atlanta, Georgia, Jones was signed by the Milwaukee Braves as a...

playing left field, Don Hahn

Don Hahn (baseball)

Donald Antone Hahn, born November 16, 1948 in San Francisco, California, is a former Major League baseball player, an outfielder known primarily for his fielding ability. Hahn played for the Montreal Expos, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, and San Diego Padres.Hahn...

playing centerfield

Centerfield

Centerfield is an album by musician John Fogerty, released in 1985. It was his most popular post-Creedence album, containing the hit singles "The Old Man Down the Road", "Rock and Roll Girls" and the title track "Centerfield". Fogerty played all the instruments on this album himself, thanks to...

, Rusty Staub

Rusty Staub

Daniel Joseph "Rusty" Staub is an American former Major League Baseball right fielder, designated hitter, and first baseman. He enjoyed a 23-year baseball career with 5 different teams...

playing right field, John Bateman at catcher

Catcher

Catcher is a position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. This is a catcher's primary duty, but he is also called upon to master many other skills in order to...

and Mudcat Grant

Mudcat Grant

James Timothy "Mudcat" Grant is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Cleveland Indians , Minnesota Twins , Los Angeles Dodgers , Montreal Expos , St. Louis Cardinals , Oakland Athletics and Pittsburgh Pirates...

on the mound

Pitcher

In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...

. The first manager was former Philadelphia Phillies

Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...

manager Gene Mauch

Gene Mauch

. Wills had the first hit in Expos history and also scored the first run. The first home run in franchise history came from an unlikely source — relief pitcher Dan McGinn. Bailey had the first RBI, and Don Shaw was credited with the win. Carroll Sembera pitched the final inning against the Mets and recorded the first save.

The first game at Jarry Park was played on April 14 — an 8–7 Expos

1969 Montreal Expos season

The Montreal Expos participated in their first season in Major League Baseball in . Even though the Expos, as typical for first-year expansion teams, finished in the cellar of the National League East Division with a 52-110 record, 48 games behind the eventual World Series Champion New York Mets,...

win over the St. Louis Cardinals

1969 St. Louis Cardinals season

The 1969 St. Louis Cardinals season was the team's 88th season in St. Louis, Missouri and its 78th season in the National League. The Cardinals went 87-75 during the season and finished fourth in the newly-established National League East, 13 games behind the eventual NL pennant and World Series...

, broadcast nationwide on CBC

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...

television and radio. A crowd of 29,184 jammed every corner of Jarry Park to watch the first major league baseball game ever played outside the United States. Jarry was only intended as a three-year temporary facility until what became Olympic Stadium

Olympic Stadium (Montreal)

The Olympic Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada built as the main venue for the 1976 Summer Olympics...

could be completed, and so the stands were left completely exposed to the elements. As a result, the Expos frequently had to postpone games in April and September because there was no protection for the fans. Another problem was its orientation; first basemen were often blinded by the setting sun, forcing stoppages of play.
When it became apparent that Olympic Stadium wouldn't be ready for 1972, the league threatened to yank the franchise. However, the Expos managed to get a reprieve at the 1971 winter meetings. They would get a reprieve at all winter meetings until Olympic Stadium was ready for the 1977 season.

Following that first series in Montreal, the Expos went to Philadelphia to play the Phillies

1969 Philadelphia Phillies season

The Philadelphia Phillies season was a season in American baseball. The team finished fifth in the newly-established National League East with a record of 63-99, 37 games behind the division champion New York Mets.- Offseason :...

. On April 17, Bill Stoneman

Bill Stoneman

William Hambly Stoneman III is a consultant for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Major League Baseball. From 1999 to October 15, 2007, he served as the general manager of the Angels...

pitched the first no-hitter in the club's history, as the Expos won 7–0. Stoneman's feat gave the Expos the record for the earliest no-hitter recorded by any major league baseball franchise — only ten days after their very first game.

Rusty Staub

Rusty Staub

Daniel Joseph "Rusty" Staub is an American former Major League Baseball right fielder, designated hitter, and first baseman. He enjoyed a 23-year baseball career with 5 different teams...

and Mack Jones

Mack Jones

would become the darlings of the Montreal fans during the early years of the team. Staub was affectionately known as "Le Grand Orange" (in tribute to his red hair), and with Jones playing left field for the team, the left field bleachers at Jarry Park came to be known as "Jonesville."

Staub was traded in 1972 to the New York Mets

New York Mets

in exchange for 3 young prospects: first baseman-outfielder Mike Jorgensen

Mike Jorgensen

Michael Jorgensen is a former Major League Baseball player drafted by the New York Mets in the fourth round of the 1966 Major League Baseball Draft...

, infielder Tim Foli

Tim Foli

Timothy John Foli , nicknamed Crazy Horse, is a former shortstop in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Mets, Montreal Expos, San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates, California Angels and New York Yankees from to...

, and outfielder Ken Singleton

Ken Singleton

Kenneth Wayne Singleton is an American former professional baseball player and current television sports commentator. He played as an outfielder and designated hitter in Major League Baseball for the New York Mets, Montreal Expos, and Baltimore Orioles.-Baseball career:Born in Manhattan, New York...

. While the trade landed Montreal three youngsters that would help the still maturing expansion team, many Montrealers were saddened to lose a popular player. Staub was reacquired by Montreal in July 1979. At his first game back in Montreal, against the Pittsburgh Pirates

1979 Pittsburgh Pirates season

The 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates had 98 wins and 64 losses and captured the National League East Division title by two games over the Montreal Expos. The Pirates beat the Cincinnati Reds to win their ninth National League title, and the Baltimore Orioles to win their fifth World Series title - and also...

, Staub received a long and heartfelt standing ovation from the adoring fans, welcoming "Le Grand Orange" back. Staub left the team for good after the 1979 season. His number 10 was eventually the first one retired by the Expos.

The Expos moved into Olympic Stadium in 1977. Due to its roots as a track-and-field Olympic venue, and its multi-purpose design

Multi-purpose stadium

Multi-purpose stadiums are a type of stadium designed in such a way as to be easily used by multiple sports. While any stadium could potentially host more than one sport, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy that stresses multi-functionality over specificity...

to serve as home to both the Canadian Football League

Canadian Football League

The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....

Montreal Alouettes

The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...

and the Expos, the stadium was less than ideal for baseball. As was the case with most multi-purpose stadiums, the different sizes and shapes of baseball and football fields required the lower boxes to be further away from the baseball diamond than with a baseball-specific stadium. In the case of Olympic Stadium (and later, Toronto's Exhibition Stadium

Exhibition Stadium

Canadian National Exhibition Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium, that formerly stood on the Exhibition Place grounds, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada....

and Skydome/Rogers Centre

Rogers Centre

Rogers Centre is a multi-purpose stadium, in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated next to the CN Tower, near the shores of Lake Ontario. Opened in 1989, it is home to the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball and the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League...

), compared with American stadiums, the problem was exacerbated by the greater length and width of Canadian football

Canadian football

Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played exclusively in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area...

fields. The biggest problem was with the planned retractable roof, which was originally supposed to be installed in time for the 1976 Olympics. However, it was not installed until 1987, and did not retract until 1988. Even after completion, it could not be used with winds above 25 miles per hour, and thus could not be closed to allow play to continue during rain accompanied by high winds. By 1992, the Expos and the Régie des Installations Olympiques, the provincial government agency that operates the stadium, decided to leave the roof permanently closed.

The Expos posted 10 straight losing seasons under Mauch (1969–75), Karl Kuehl

Karl Kuehl

Karl Otto Kuehl was an American scout, farm system official, coach and manager in Major League Baseball. He also was the co-author of two books on the mental approach to baseball: The Mental Game of Baseball: A Guide to Peak Performance and A Champion's State of Mind .Kuehl was born in Monterey...

and Charlie Fox

Charlie Fox

Charles Francis Fox was an American manager, general manager, scout, coach—and, briefly, a catcher—in Major League Baseball...

(1976) and Dick Williams

Dick Williams

Richard Hirschfeld "Dick" Williams was an American left fielder, third baseman, manager, coach and front office consultant in Major League Baseball. Known especially as a hard-driving, sharp-tongued manager from 1967–69 and 1971–88, he led teams to three American League pennants, one National...

(1977–78). However, in 1979 under Williams the Expos

1979 Montreal Expos season

- Offseason :* November 28, 1978: Duffy Dyer was signed as a free agent by the Expos.* December 4, 1978: Ken Macha was drafted by the Expos from the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1978 rule 5 draft....

posted a 95–65 record — the first of five consecutive winning seasons, and still the best full-season record in franchise history. They spent 88 days in first place (including 63 in a row) before finishing second in the NL East, two games behind the eventual world champion Pirates.

Promise of the 1980s

The Expos made their only postseason appearance in Montreal franchise history during the split season of 1981. In the 1981 playoffs, the Expos defeated the Philadelphia Phillies

1981 Philadelphia Phillies season

The Philadelphia Phillies' 1981 season was a season in American baseball.- Offseason :* November 25, 1980: Rick Schu was signed as an amateur free agent by the Phillies....

3–2 in the divisional series

1981 National League Division Series

-Philadelphia Phillies vs. Montreal Expos:-Game 1, October 6:Astrodome in Houston, TexasFernando Valenzuela faced Nolan Ryan, a matchup worthy of a pitcher's duel. The game remained scoreless until the bottom of the sixth. Tony Scott singled home Terry Puhl to score the game's first run, but Steve...

, but lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers

1981 Los Angeles Dodgers season

3–2 in the National League Championship Series

1981 National League Championship Series

, on a game postponed from Sunday to Monday afternoon due to rain. The difference in the game was a ninth inning home run by Dodger Rick Monday. The game has since been referred to as Blue Monday.

Montreal was led through the 1980s by a core group of young players, including catcher Gary Carter

Gary Carter

, outfielders Tim Raines

Tim Raines

and Andre Dawson

Andre Dawson

, third baseman Tim Wallach

Tim Wallach

and pitchers Steve Rogers and Bill Gullickson

Bill Gullickson

William Lee Gullickson is a former major league baseball pitcher who played for six different major-league teams, in Canada, the U.S...

. The promising aspects of the Expos gave rise to the name "Team of the 80s".
Attendance at Olympic Stadium went up each year from 1979 to 1983 (excluding the strike year in 1981), and the fans would express their excitement in song — "The Happy Wanderer

The Happy Wanderer

"The Happy Wanderer" is a popular song by Friedrich-Wilhelm Möller written shortly after World War II. It is often mistaken for a German folk song, but it is actually an original composition...

"
being a fan favourite after offensive explosions.

In spite of the team's talent, the Expos were unable to finish above third place from 1982 to 1991. They had up-and-down years, with a winning percentage of .484 in 1984 under managers Bill Virdon

Bill Virdon

William Charles Virdon is a former outfielder, manager and coach in Major League Baseball. A premier defensive outfielder during his playing days as a center fielder for the St...

and Jim Fanning

Jim Fanning

William James Fanning is a former catcher, manager and front office executive in Major League Baseball...

and 1986 under Buck Rodgers

Buck Rodgers

, but above .500 seasons in 1985, 1987, and 1990 under Rodgers.

Gary Carter was traded to the New York Mets

New York Mets

in December 1984 for Hubie Brooks

Hubie Brooks

Hubert Brooks, Jr. is a former Major League Baseball player. During his career, he played as a third baseman, shortstop and right fielder for the New York Mets , Montreal Expos , Los Angeles Dodgers , California Angels and Kansas City Royals .Brooks played varsity baseball...

, Mike Fitzgerald, Herm Winningham

Herm Winningham

Herman Son Winningham is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball.Drafted by the New York Mets in the 1st round of the 1981 amateur draft, Winningham made his major league debut with the Mets on September 1, , and appeared in his final game on October 3, .Winningham was a member of the...

, and Floyd Youmans

Floyd Youmans

Floyd Everett Youmans is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He is likely best remembered as one of the players dealt by the New York Mets to the Montreal Expos for Hall of Fame catcher Gary Carter.-New York Mets:...

.
Andre Dawson left as a free agent after the 1986 season.

Under new ownership

In the 1989 season, with the Expos

1989 Montreal Expos season

-Offseason:* December 8, 1988: Tracy Jones was traded by the Expos to the San Francisco Giants for Mike Aldrete.* December 8, 1988: John Dopson and Luis Rivera were traded by the Expos to the Boston Red Sox for Spike Owen and Dan Gakeler.-Regular season:...

vying for a post-season berth, the team traded Gene Harris

Gene Harris (baseball)

Tyrone Eugene "Gene" Harris is a former Major League Baseball player who pitched in the major leagues from -....

, Brian Holman

Brian Holman

Brian Scott Holman is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He is now the Managing Director and Principal for Ronald Blue & Co.'s branch office in Kansas City, Kansas....

, and Randy Johnson

Randy Johnson

Randall David Johnson , nicknamed "The Big Unit", is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. During a 22-year career, he pitched for six different teams....

to Seattle

Seattle Mariners

The Seattle Mariners are a professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Enfranchised in , the Mariners are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Safeco Field has been the Mariners' home ballpark since July...

for Mark Langston

Mark Langston

Mark Edward Langston is an American former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He pitched for the Seattle Mariners , Montreal Expos , California and Anaheim Angels , San Diego Padres , and Cleveland Indians...

.
Langston completed the season for the Expos with a 2.39 ERA (tied for the league lead in ERA+ with a 148 rating) and a league-leading 8.9 strikeouts per nine innings.
Though the Expos led the National League East from the end of June to the start of August, and were two games behind first on September 6, they fell back to finish in fourth with a .500 record.
Langston, Hubie Brooks

Hubie Brooks

, Pascual Pérez

Pascual Pérez (baseball)

Pascual Gross Perez was a right-handed baseball pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Atlanta Braves, Montreal Expos, and New York Yankees....

, and Bryn Smith

Bryn Smith

Bryn Nelson Smith is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1981-1993....

left after the season as free agents. Following a winter of rumours, at the start of the 1990 spring training season

1990 Major League Baseball season

-Awards and honors:*Most Valuable Player**Rickey Henderson, Oakland Athletics **Barry Bonds, Pittsburgh Pirates *Cy Young Award**Bob Welch, Oakland Athletics **Doug Drabek, Pittsburgh Pirates *Rookie of the Year...

, owner Charles Bronfman

Charles Bronfman

formally announced his intentions to sell the Expos, saying "After 21 years in baseball it's emotionally very draining. ... After a while, you're just burned out."
In November, at the press conference where the sale of the franchise to a local consortium was announced, Bronfman said that 1989 "... was the year we should have won. ... It was a very bitter disappointment."
Claude Brochu

Claude Brochu

Claude Brochu, CM , is a Quebec businessman.He was named president of the Montreal Expos baseball club by Charles Bronfman in 1986, replacing John McHale....

, the team's President and Chief Operating Officer since September 1986, became the managing general partner of the Expos, representing a consortium of 14 owners, which also included BCE

Bell Canada

Bell Canada is a major Canadian telecommunications company. Including its subsidiaries such as Bell Aliant, Northwestel, Télébec, and NorthernTel, it is the incumbent local exchange carrier for telephone and DSL Internet services in most of Canada east of Manitoba and in the northern territories,...

, Canadian Pacific, the City of Montreal

Montreal

Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

, Nesbitt Burns

BMO Nesbitt Burns

BMO Nesbitt Burns is a Canadian investment firm. Since its formation in 1912, BMO Nesbitt Burns and its predecessor companies have offered aid to investors in meeting their financial goals. In August 1987 the Bank of Montreal took advantage of new banking regulations to acquire Nesbitt Thomson,...

, and Univa (Provigo)

Provigo

Provigo is a grocery retailer based in Quebec, Canada, consisting of over 300 stores and franchises throughout the province. A majority of the stores are located in the Montreal area. It is owned by Loblaw Companies Limited. Provigo is similar to Ontario's Your Independent Grocer/Zehrs banners, as...

.
The official transfer of ownership occurred on June 14, 1991.

With a new ownership group in place, the Expos traded Tim Raines to the Chicago White Sox

Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...

in a five-player deal that brought Iván Calderón

Ivan Calderón (baseball player)

Iván Calderón Pérez , born in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, was a Puerto Rican Major League Baseball player from 1984 to 1993, and was named an All-Star in 1991. He was murdered in a bar in Loiza, Puerto Rico. Shot seven times in the back and head, he died instantly...

to Montreal. Starting the 1991 season with a 20–29 record,
General manager David Dombrowski (who had inherited manager Buck Rodgers upon assuming the GM position in 1988)
fired Rodgers and replaced him with Tom Runnells

Tom Runnells

Thomas William Runnells is the Bench Coach of the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball, and a former infielder, coach and manager in American Major League Baseball.-Biography:...

, who completed the season with a record of 51–61 for an overall winning percentage of .441.
Runnells switched third baseman Tim Wallach

Tim Wallach

to first base, a move unpopular with the Montreal fans. The season's most notable highlight was the perfect game

Perfect game

A perfect game is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a pitcher pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. Thus, the pitcher cannot allow any hits, walks, hit batsmen, or any opposing player to reach base safely for any...

thrown by Expos pitcher Dennis Martinez

Dennis Martínez

José Dennis Martínez Emilia , nicknamed "El Presidente" , is a former Major League Baseball pitcher...

against the Los Angeles Dodgers

1991 Los Angeles Dodgers season

The 1991 season featured an exciting National League Western Division race between the Dodgers and the Atlanta Braves. The Braves edged out the Dodgers to win the division by one game...

on July 28, 1991. On September 8, a 56-ton concrete slab fell from the Olympic Stadium roof to an exterior walkway, forcing the Expos to play their final 13 games on the road.

Dombrowski left Montreal in September to become the General Manager for the Florida Marlins

Florida Marlins

expansion franchise,
and Dan Duquette

Dan Duquette

Daniel F. Duquette is the Executive Vice-President of Baseball Operations for the Baltimore Orioles. He was the General Manager of the Montreal Expos from September through January and for the Boston Red Sox from through March...

became the Expos general manager. Also during the offseason, the Expos made an effort to improve the baseball atmosphere at Olympic Stadium. Home plate was moved closer to the stands, and new seats were added closer to the field. Distant seating sections beyond the outfield fence were closed, replaced by bleachers directly behind the fence. The changes reduced the stadium's capacity from 58,000 to around 46,000.

At spring training in 1992, Runnells held a meeting while dressed in combat fatigues, giving the team's pre-season training the appearance of a boot camp. The team failed to respond to Runnells's attempt at humor, and Runnells was fired on May 22, with a 17–20 record.
Felipe Alou, a long time member of the Expos organization since 1976, was promoted from bench coach to field manager, becoming the first Dominican-born manager in MLB history. Alou promptly returned Wallach to the third base position. Alou led the team to a 70–55 record, for an overall winning percentage of .537. Under Alou, Montreal had winning records from 1992 to 1996, with the exception of 1995, and the team finished second in the National League

National League

The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...

East in 1992 and 1993.

Dan Duquette left the Montreal Expos in January 1994 for his dream job, general manager of the Boston Red Sox

Boston Red Sox

. Kevin Malone

Kevin Malone (baseball)

Kevin Patrick Malone is a former baseball General Manager for the Montreal Expos and Los Angeles Dodgers.-Early life:Malone attended the University of Louisville, where he played baseball...

, the Expos director of scouting, took over as Montreal's GM.

Hope and disappointment in 1994

The year 1994 proved to be heartbreaking for the Expos. The team's key contributors included outfielders Larry Walker

Larry Walker

Larry Kenneth Robert Walker is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball. From 1989 through 2005, Walker played for the Montreal Expos , Colorado Rockies , and St. Louis Cardinals...

, Moisés Alou

Moisés Alou

, Marquis Grissom

Marquis Grissom

, and Rondell White

Rondell White

Rondell Bernard White is an outfielder and designated hitter in Major League Baseball. His career batting average currently stands at .284 and his career slugging percentage is .462....

; infielders Wil Cordero

Wil Cordero

Wilfredo Cordero Nieva is a former first baseman/outfielder in Major League Baseball. He was best known as a member of the Montreal Expos . Cordero made his Major League Baseball debut in 1992 and last played in...

and Sean Berry

Sean Berry

Sean Berry , is a former Major League Baseball player who served primarily as a third baseman from -...

; starting pitchers Ken Hill

Ken Hill (baseball)

Kenneth Wade Hill is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. During a 14-year career, he pitched from 1988-2001 for seven different teams. He pitched in the 1995 World Series as a member of the Cleveland Indians. He also appeared in the 1994 All-Star Game in Pittsburgh's Three Rivers...

, Pedro Martinez

Pedro Martínez

Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...

, and Jeff Fassero

Jeff Fassero

Jeffrey Joseph Fassero is a former Major League Baseball pitcher.-Montreal Expos:Fassero was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 22nd round of the amateur draft, but he bounced around in the minors for several years until he joined the Montreal Expos in...

; and the relief corps of Jeff Shaw

Jeff Shaw

Jeffrey Lee Shaw is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who had a 12-year career from 1990 to 2001...

, Gil Heredia

Gil Heredia

Gilbert Heredia is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from 1991–1996 and 1998-2001.-External links:...

, Tim Scott, Mel Rojas

Mel Rojas

Melquiades Rojas Medrano was a pitcher with a 10 year career from 1990 to 1999. He played for the Montreal Expos, Chicago Cubs, New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers of the National League and the Detroit Tigers of the American League.His best season was in 1992, when he posted a 7-1 record in 68...

and John Wetteland

John Wetteland

John Karl Wetteland is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who specialized as a closer. During a 12-year career , he pitched for four different teams: the Los Angeles Dodgers, Montreal Expos, New York Yankees, and Texas Rangers.-Playing career:Wetteland was signed by the Dodgers as their second...

.

The Expos had the best record in Major League Baseball, 74–40, when the start of a players' strike on August 12, 1994 brought the season

1994 Major League Baseball season

to a premature close. The strike dragged on through the fall, forcing the cancellation of the playoffs and World Series

1994 World Series

The 1994 World Series was canceled on September 14 of that year due to an ongoing strike by the Major League Baseball Players Association, which had begun on August 12...

. The team was six games ahead of the second place Atlanta Braves

1994 Atlanta Braves season

-Offseason:*October 15, 1993: Jerry Willard was released by the Atlanta Braves.*October 25, 1993: Marvin Freeman was released by the Atlanta Braves.*November 18, 1993: Jarvis Brown was selected off waivers by the Atlanta Braves from the San Diego Padres....

and on pace to win 105 games. The strike damaged the Expos' campaign for a new stadium, and the local ownership group chose not to invest additional funds to retain the team's best players.

Final decade

During the 1994–1995 offseason, Claude Brochu

Claude Brochu

Claude Brochu, CM , is a Quebec businessman.He was named president of the Montreal Expos baseball club by Charles Bronfman in 1986, replacing John McHale....

instructed general manager Kevin Malone to conduct a fire sale and cut ties with the team's major stars. Larry Walker left as a free agent, and as the Expos had not offered him salary arbitration, they did not receive any compensation for Walker's departure. John Wetteland was traded to the New York Yankees

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

, Ken Hill to the St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

, and Marquis Grissom to the Atlanta Braves

Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

. The Expos' attendance flatlined after the fire sale and never recovered; their average attendance would never top 20,000 again during their last 10 seasons in Montreal.

Kevin Malone resigned as general manager in October 1995, saying "I'm in the building business, not in the dismantling business."
Moisés Alou

Moisés Alou

and Mel Rojas

Mel Rojas

left as free agents after the 1996 season,
and Pedro Martínez

Pedro Martínez

Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...

was traded after the 1997 season, shortly after winning the Cy Young Award

Cy Young Award

The Cy Young Award is an honor given annually in baseball to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball , one each for the American League and National League . The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young, who died in 1955...

.

The Expos had losing seasons until 2002, except for 1996, when the team finished second with a .543 winning percentage. In 2002 and 2003, the team finished with identical .512 records. After losing superstar Vladimir Guerrero

Vladimir Guerrero

Vladimir Alvino Guerrero is a free agent Major League Baseball right fielder and designated hitter.In , he was voted the American League MVP...

to free agency, the Expos finished 2004, the team's final year in Montreal, with a 67–95 record.

In 1998, the Régie des installations Olympiques replaced Olympic Stadium's orange retractable roof with a permanent blue roof.
The retractable roof was removed after the Expos homestand ending on May 10,
and on May 21, the Expos played their first outdoor home game since September 8, 1991.
During this time when Olympic Stadium was once again an open-air park, Rondell White

Rondell White

Rondell Bernard White is an outfielder and designated hitter in Major League Baseball. His career batting average currently stands at .284 and his career slugging percentage is .462....

became the only person to hit a ball out of Olympic Stadium, driving a foul ball out of the third-base side of the stadium in a game against the New York Yankees

1998 New York Yankees season

The New York Yankees' 1998 season was the 96th season for the Yankees. The team finished with a franchise record regular-season standing of 114-48, 22 games ahead of the second-place Boston Red Sox in the American League East...

Purchase by Jeffrey Loria

On December 9, 1999, American art dealer Jeffrey Loria

Jeffrey Loria

became the Expos' chairman, CEO, and managing general partner, purchasing Claude Brochu's ownership stake, and naming his stepson, David Samson, executive vice-president.
Loria made his initial splash by signing Graeme Lloyd

Graeme Lloyd

Graeme John Lloyd is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who had a ten year career from 1993 to 2003.-Playing career:...

for $3,000,000, and acquiring Hideki Irabu

Hideki Irabu

was a professional baseball player of Okinawan and American mixed ancestry. He played professionally in both Japan and the United States.-Early life:...

's $4,125,000 contract and Lee Stevens

Lee Stevens

DeWain Lee Stevens is a former first baseman and designated hitter drafted by the California Angels out of Lawrence High School in the first round of the 1986 amateur draft in Major League Baseball who played from to and from to for the California Angels, Texas Rangers, Montreal Expos, and...

's $3,500,000 contract in trades. The total sum of these contracts was nearly 50% of the 1999 payroll.

Loria subsequently lost a considerable amount of goodwill by failing to sign television and English radio broadcast contracts for the 2000 season, as the team tried to increase their revenue from the broadcast rights.

During the 2000 season, Loria requested additional public funding for the planned new ballpark in downtown Montreal

Downtown Montreal

Downtown Montreal is the central business district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is nearly enitirely located at the southern most slope of Mount Royal and is approximately bounded by Sherbrooke Street to the north, Papineau Avenue to the east, Guy Street or until Shaughnessy Village to the west,...

, Labatt Park. However, the municipal and provincial governments vetoed public funding; Quebec Premier

Premier of Quebec

The Premier of Quebec is the first minister of the Canadian province of Quebec. The Premier is the province's head of government and his title is Premier and President of the Executive Council....

Lucien Bouchard

Lucien Bouchard, is a Canadian lawyer, diplomat, politician and former Minister of the Environment of the Canadian Federal Government. He was the Leader of Opposition in the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 1996, and the 27th Premier of Quebec from January 29, 1996 to March 8, 2001...

said that he couldn't in good conscience allow public funding for a new stadium when the province was being forced to close hospitals. In addition, Olympic Stadium still had not been paid for (the debt was not fully retired until 2006). As a result, the plans for the proposed downtown ballpark were cancelled.

Attendance in the 2001 season dropped to fewer than 10,000 per game (lower than some minor-league teams), raising questions about the franchise's viability in Montreal. Felipe Alou was fired at the end of May,
ending his Montreal managerial career with a total of 691 wins, the most of any manager in the franchise's history. On November 6, 2001, MLB's owners voted 28–2 to contract MLB by two teams — according to various sources, the Expos and the Minnesota Twins

Minnesota Twins

, both of which reportedly voted against contraction.

Purchase by Major League Baseball

On December 20, 2001, the Boston Red Sox

Boston Red Sox

were sold to a partnership led by John W. Henry

John W. Henry

, the owner of the Florida Marlins

Florida Marlins

. The purchase was approved by the MLB owners in January.
To clear the way for Henry's group to formally take control of the Red Sox, Henry sold the Marlins to Loria for $158.5 million. The deal, which included a $38.5 million no-interest loan from MLB, was approved by the other owners on February 1, 2002. The Major League Baseball owners voted 30–0 to form a Delaware partnership

Delaware corporation

The Delaware General Corporation Law is the statute governing corporate law in the state of Delaware. Delaware is well known as a corporate haven. Over 50% of U.S...

, Expos Baseball, LP, to buy the Expos for US$120 million from Loria. After both deals closed, Loria moved the entire Expos front office and on-field staff, including manager Jeff Torborg, to Miami — leaving the Expos without personnel, scouting reports, and office equipment, including the team's computers. Without a viable owner willing to operate the team in Montreal, it was widely thought that the sale of the Expos to MLB was the first step in the process of either moving the team or folding it altogether.

However, the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission, operator of the Metrodome

Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome

, won an injunction requiring the Twins to play there in 2002. Without a second team to join them in oblivion, the loss of the Expos would have left MLB with an odd number of teams, thus requiring one team to be idle every day. With this constraint, it would have been logistically impossible to preserve a 162-game schedule within MLB's six-month season. As MLB could not find a suitable new home for the Expos at that late date, and was not willing to alter the schedule, it was forced to keep the Expos in Montreal for the short term. MLB named former Anaheim Angels

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California, United States. The Angels are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The "Angels" name originates from the city in which the team started, Los Angeles...

president Tony Tavares team president, Mets assistant general manager Omar Minaya

Omar Minaya

Omar Teodoro Antonio Minaya y Sánchez is a former baseball executive who served as General Manager for the Montreal Expos and New York Mets.-Early life:...

vice-president and general manager, and MLB's chief disciplinarian Frank Robinson

Frank Robinson

Frank Robinson , is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. He played from 1956–1976, most notably for the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles. He is the only player to win league MVP honors in both the National and American Leagues...

manager. MLB also leased a new FieldTurf

FieldTurf

FieldTurf is a brand of artificial turf playing surface. It is manufactured and installed by the FieldTurf Tarkett division of Tarkett Inc., based in Calhoun, Georgia, USA. In the late 1990s, the artificial surface changed the industry with a design intended to replicate real grass...

surface for one year to replace Olympic Stadium's aging AstroTurf

AstroTurf

AstroTurf is a brand of artificial turf. Although the term is a registered trademark, it is sometimes used as a generic description of any kind of artificial turf. The original AstroTurf product was a short pile synthetic turf while the current products incorporate modern features such as...

, with an option for a second year – a sign that it did not intend to keep the Expos in Montreal. In August, the contraction issue was postponed further, as MLB signed a collective bargaining agreement with the players association that prohibited contraction through the end of the agreement in 2006.

With the Expos four games above .500 in late June and no clearly defined guidance from MLB on the team's future other than a hard limit on payroll, in an attempt to capitalize on one last chance to bring a championship to Montreal, Minaya acquired pitcher Bartolo Colón

Bartolo Colón

Bartolo Colón is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He played in Major League Baseball from 1997 to 2009 and again in 2011...

from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for future All-Stars Brandon Phillips

Brandon Phillips

Brandon Emil Phillips is a second baseman for Major League Baseball's Cincinnati Reds. The Raleigh, North Carolina native was selected in the second round of the 1999 draft by the former Montreal Expos after signing a letter of intent to play both baseball and football at the University of Georgia...

and Grady Sizemore

Grady Sizemore

Gradius "Grady" Sizemore III is an American professional baseball outfielder with the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball.-Early life:...

as well as 2008's AL Cy Young award winner Cliff Lee

Cliff Lee

Clifton Phifer "Cliff" Lee is a Major League Baseball left-handed starting pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies. Lee has also played for the Cleveland Indians, the Seattle Mariners, and the Texas Rangers....

. The gambit did not result in a post-season berth for the Expos, and Colón was traded to the Chicago White Sox

Chicago White Sox

during the off-season.

Although their attendance increased from 7,935 per game in 2001
to 10,031 in 2002,
MLB decided that the Expos would play 22 of their home games at Hiram Bithorn Stadium

Hiram Bithorn Stadium

Hiram Bithorn Stadium is a baseball park in San Juan, Puerto Rico, operated by the municipal government of the city of San Juan. Its name honors the first Puerto Rican to play in the major leagues, Hiram Bithorn, who first played with the Chicago Cubs in 1942...

in San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...

in 2003. Although the approximately 19,000-seat stadium was considerably smaller than Montreal's Olympic Stadium

Olympic Stadium (Montreal)

The Olympic Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada built as the main venue for the 1976 Summer Olympics...

, attendance in San Juan averaged 14,222, compared with 12,081 in Montreal.
The Puerto Rican baseball fans embraced "Los Expos" (particularly Puerto Rican players José Vidro

José Vidro

José Angel Vidro is a former Major League Baseball second baseman. Though he never officially retired, Vidro has not played since .-Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals:...

, Javier Vázquez

Javier Vázquez

Javier Carlos Vázquez is a Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. Previously, he pitched for the Florida Marlins , Atlanta Braves , Chicago White Sox , Arizona Diamondbacks , New York Yankees and Montreal Expos . Vázquez was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico...

and Wil Cordero

Wil Cordero

, and other Latin players like Vladimir Guerrero

Vladimir Guerrero

Vladimir Alvino Guerrero is a free agent Major League Baseball right fielder and designated hitter.In , he was voted the American League MVP...

and Liván Hernández

Liván Hernández

Eisler Liván Hernández Carrera is a Cuban professional baseball pitcher. He is the half-brother of pitcher Orlando "El Duque" Hernández.-Playing career:...

) as their home team (as well as the Latin players from other teams), all the while hoping the team would make a permanent move to Puerto Rico. Thanks in part to the San Juan games, the Expos were able to draw over a million fans at home in 2003 for the first time since 1997. The Expos' season in Puerto Rico was chronicled in the MLB-produced DVD Boricua Beisbol — Passion of Puerto Rico.

Led by Vladimir Guerrero

Vladimir Guerrero

Vladimir Alvino Guerrero is a free agent Major League Baseball right fielder and designated hitter.In , he was voted the American League MVP...

, the 2003 Expos

2003 Montreal Expos season

-Regular season:*June 24, 2003 - Brad Wilkerson hit for the cycle in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.*August 26, 2003 - The Expos rallied from being down 8-0 and 10-3 to claim a 14-10 win against the Philadelphia Phillies and be within two games of the National League Wild Card...

were part of a spirited seven-team Wild Card hunt. On August 28, they found themselves in a five-way tie for the lead with Philadelphia

2003 Philadelphia Phillies season

The Philadelphia Phillies season was the 121st season in the history of the franchise. The Phillies finished in third-place in the National League East, 15 games behind the Atlanta Braves, and five games behind the 2003 World Series champion Florida Marlins, who were the NL's wild-card winner...

, Florida

2003 Florida Marlins season

The 2003 Florida Marlins season was a season in American baseball. The Marlins were the National League Wild Card Winners, the National League Champions, and the World Series Champions.-Offseason:...

, St. Louis

2003 St. Louis Cardinals season

The St. Louis Cardinals 2003 season was the team's 122nd season in St. Louis, Missouri and the 112th season in the National League. The Cardinals went 85-77 during the season and finished 3rd in the National League Central division...

, and Houston

2003 Houston Astros season

The Houston Astros' 2003 season was a season in American baseball. It involved the Houston Astros attempting to win the National League Central.-Regular season:...

. However, MLB, led by Bud Selig

Bud Selig

Allan Huber "Bud" Selig is the ninth and current Commissioner of Major League Baseball, having served in that capacity since 1992 as the acting commissioner, and as the official commissioner since 1998...

, in what ESPN's Peter Gammons

Peter Gammons

Peter Gammons is an American sportswriter, media personality, and a recipient of the J. G. Taylor Spink Award for outstanding baseball writing, given by the BBWAA.-Education:...

called "a conflict of interest," decided that it could not afford an extra $50,000 to call up players from its minor leagues to take advantage of MLB's expanded roster limit during September. The budget was some $35 million. This doomed any hopes of reviving the franchise. Minaya later said, "Baseball handed down a decree.” They would not be allowed to call up players from the minors on September 1, as it was deemed too expensive. They would have to make do with what they had. "It was a message to the players," Minaya said. "It was a momentum killer." He also stated: "They're a tough group of guys. You cannot ever forget 2003; they were as good as the Marlins, who won the World Series. But nobody knows this because nobody saw Montreal in 2003. What killed us was not getting the call-ups." This restriction was later cited by shortstop Orlando Cabrera

Orlando Cabrera

Orlando Luis Cabrera, nicknamed "O-Cab" and "The OC", is a Colombian-American baseball infielder.He won a World Series championship in 2004 with the Boston Red Sox. He has played for the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Chicago White Sox, Oakland Athletics, Minnesota Twins,...

as the reason he wanted to leave the team (he would be traded away in July, 2004).

The Expos had a 12–15 record from August 29 to the end of the season,
finishing eight games out of the wild card race.

Final season

The Players' Union

Major League Baseball Players Association

The Major League Baseball Players Association is the union of professional major-league baseball players.-History of MLBPA:The MLBPA was not the first attempt to unionize baseball players...

initially rejected continuing the San Juan arrangement for the 2004 season, but later relented. Meanwhile, MLB actively looked for a relocation site. Some of the choices included Washington, D.C.; San Juan; Monterrey, Mexico; Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

; New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

; Northern Virginia

Northern Virginia

Northern Virginia consists of several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia, in a widespread region generally radiating southerly and westward from Washington, D.C...

; Charlotte, North Carolina

Charlotte, North Carolina

Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...

; and Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....

. During the decision-making process, Selig added Las Vegas

Las Vegas, Nevada

Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...

, Nevada, to the list of potential Expos homes.

On September 29, 2004, MLB officially announced that the Expos franchise would move to Washington, D.C. for 2005. Later that night, the Expos played their last game in Montreal, a 9–1 loss to the Florida Marlins

2004 Florida Marlins season

The Florida Marlins' 2004 season started off with the team trying to improve on their season from 2003. Their manager was Jack McKeon. They played most of their home games at Pro Player Stadium.They played two against the Montreal Expos at Chicago's U.S. Cellular Field due to Hurricane Ivan...

before a season-high crowd of 31,395 fans. Although the team had worried about fan reaction, there were only a couple of incidents with objects thrown on the field.
To commemorate their unfinished 1994 season, the Expos unfurled a banner reading "1994 Meilleure Équipe du Baseball / Best Team in Baseball." The fans gave standing ovations to team stars Tony Batista

Tony Batista

Leocadio Francisco "Tony" Batista is a former Major League Baseball infielder who is currently a free agent. He played in the major leagues from to and to , and with the Softbank Hawks of the Japanese Pacific League in .-Career:...

, Brad Wilkerson

Brad Wilkerson

Stephen Bradley "Brad" Wilkerson is a former American college and professional baseball player who was an outfielder and first baseman in Major League Baseball for eight seasons in the 2000s. Wilkerson played college baseball for the University of Florida, and was selected by the Montreal Expos...

, and Liván Hernández

Liván Hernández

Eisler Liván Hernández Carrera is a Cuban professional baseball pitcher. He is the half-brother of pitcher Orlando "El Duque" Hernández.-Playing career:...

, and applauded loudly up until the final out. After the game, thanks were given to the crowd by Claude Raymond in French, Jamey Carroll

Jamey Carroll

Jamey Blake Carroll is an American professional baseball infielder for the Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball.Carroll was born in Evansville, Indiana. In 1992, he graduated from Castle High School in Newburgh, Indiana. He later attended and graduated from the University of Evansville...

in English, and Hernandez in Spanish.

The end of the legal fight to keep the Expos in Montreal came on November 15, when arbitrators struck down a lawsuit by the former team owners against MLB and former majority owner Jeffrey Loria

Jeffrey Loria

. The MLB franchise owners approved the move to Washington in a 28–1 vote on December 3. Baltimore Orioles

Baltimore Orioles

The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...

owner Peter Angelos

Peter Angelos

Peter G. Angelos , is an American trial lawyer.Angelos is also the majority owner of the Baltimore Orioles, a baseball team in the American League East Division.-Career:...

cast the sole "nay" vote, resenting the franchise's relocation and intrusion into the Baltimore/D.C. market.

The Expos played their final game on October 3, 2004 at Shea Stadium

Shea Stadium

, losing by a score of 8–1 to the New York Mets

2004 New York Mets season

The New York Mets' 2004 season was the 43rd regular season for the Mets. They went 71-91 and finished 4th in the NL East. They were managed by Art Howe...

, the same franchise that the team had first faced, 35 years earlier.

After the move

The Washington Nationals organization sold the rights to Youppi

Youppi

Youppi! is the official mascot for the Montreal Canadiens and former longtime mascot of Montreal Expos .-History:...

, the Expos mascot, to the Montreal Canadiens

Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...

hockey team.

1960s

April 14, 1969 – Mack Jones
Mack Jones
Mack F. Jones , nicknamed "Mack The Knife", was a Major League Baseball left fielder who played for the Milwaukee & Atlanta Braves , Cincinnati Reds and Montreal Expos . He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.A native of Atlanta, Georgia, Jones was signed by the Milwaukee Braves as a...

hit a three-run home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...

and two-run triple
Triple (baseball)
In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

that highlighted an 8–7 win over the St. Louis Cardinals
1969 St. Louis Cardinals season
The 1969 St. Louis Cardinals season was the team's 88th season in St. Louis, Missouri and its 78th season in the National League. The Cardinals went 87-75 during the season and finished fourth in the newly-established National League East, 13 games behind the eventual NL pennant and World Series...

in the Expos' first home victory as a franchise at Jarry Park
Jarry Park Stadium
Jarry Park Stadium is a former baseball stadium in Montreal which served as home to the Montreal Expos, Major League Baseball's first Canadian franchise, from 1969–1976. It served as a temporary home until the domed Olympic Stadium was finished and made available to the Expos...

. Jones' blast was also the first MLB home run hit outside the United States.
April 17, 1969 – In just the franchise's ninth game in existence, Bill Stoneman
Bill Stoneman
William Hambly Stoneman III is a consultant for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Major League Baseball. From 1999 to October 15, 2007, he served as the general manager of the Angels...

pitched a 7–0 no-hitter
No-hitter
A no-hitter is a baseball game in which one team has no hits. In Major League Baseball, the team must be without hits during the entire game, and the game must be at least nine innings. A pitcher who prevents the opposing team from achieving a hit is said to have "thrown a no-hitter"...

while striking out eight batters against the Philadelphia Phillies
1969 Philadelphia Phillies season
The Philadelphia Phillies season was a season in American baseball. The team finished fifth in the newly-established National League East with a record of 63-99, 37 games behind the division champion New York Mets.- Offseason :...

at Connie Mack Stadium
Connie Mack Stadium
Shibe Park, known later as Connie Mack Stadium, was a major league baseball park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. When it opened April 12, 1909, it became baseball's first steel-and-concrete stadium. In different eras it was home to "The $100,000 Infield", "The Whiz Kids" and "The 1964 Phold"...

. Johnny Briggs
Johnny Briggs (baseball)
John Edward Briggs is a former left fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Philadelphia Phillies , Milwaukee Brewers and Minnesota Twins...

made the final out for the Phillies. Rusty Staub
Rusty Staub
Daniel Joseph "Rusty" Staub is an American former Major League Baseball right fielder, designated hitter, and first baseman. He enjoyed a 23-year baseball career with 5 different teams...

, "Le Grand Orange," was the hitting hero for the Expos, going 4-for-5 with three doubles and a homer.
August 24, 1969 – In a 6–4 loss to the San Francisco Giants, Willie McCovey hit a 2 run HR off Bill Stoneman in the 4th inning that cleared the scoreboard in right field at Jarry Park and landed in the swimming pool outside of the stadium. Juan Marichal pitched a complete game and Bobby Bonds also homered as the Expos fell to 39–89.

1970s

October 2, 1972 – Bill Stoneman pitched his second career no-hitter (the final score of this one was also 7–0) in the first game of a doubleheader
Doubleheader (baseball)
A doubleheader is a set of two baseball games played between the same two teams on the same day in front of the same crowd. In addition, the term is often used unofficially to refer to a pair of games played by a team in a single day, but in front of different crowds and not in immediate...

against the New York Mets
1972 New York Mets season
The New York Mets season was the 11th regular season for the Mets, who played home games at Shea Stadium. Led by manager Yogi Berra, the team had a 83-73 record yielding a third place finish in the National League's Eastern Division.- Death of Gil Hodges :...

, at Jarry Park. The no-hitter was the first ever pitched outside the United States. Future broadcaster Tim McCarver
Tim McCarver
James Timothy "Tim" McCarver is an American former Major League Baseball catcher, and a current sportscaster in residence for Fox Sports.-Playing career:...

was Stoneman's catcher.
September 26, 1976 – In the final home game at Jarry Park, the Expos dropped a rain-shortened contest to the Philadelphia Phillies 2–1. Ironically, rain outs were one of the reasons the domed Olympic Stadium was an attraction for the club, although the roof would not be installed for a couple of seasons.
April 15, 1977 – The Expos set a team attendance record for a regular season game, as 57,592 fans attended the first game at Olympic Stadium. They were defeated 7–2 by the Phillies
1977 Philadelphia Phillies season
The 1977 Philadelphia Phillies season was the 95th season in the history of the franchise. The Phillies won their second consecutive National League East division title with a record of 101-61, five games over the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Phillies lost the NLCS to the Los Angeles Dodgers, three...

. Greg Luzinski of the Phillies and Ellis Valentine
Ellis Valentine
Ellis Clarence Valentine is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball. He was drafted by the Montreal Expos in 1972; playing for the Expos, he was elected a National League All-Star in 1977 and received a Gold Glove Award in 1978...

of the Expos hit homers in the second inning, the first home runs at the Expos' new home.
July 30, 1978 – The Expos set a team record (which was never broken) for hits in a game when they picked up 28, as they beat the Atlanta Braves
1978 Atlanta Braves season
- Offseason :* December 8, 1977: Willie Montañez was traded by the Braves to the New York Mets as part of a four-team trade. Adrian Devine, Tommy Boggs, and Eddie Miller were traded by the Texas Rangers to the Braves. The Rangers sent Bert Blyleven to the Pittsburgh Pirates, and the Mets sent John...

by a score of 19–0. Andre Dawson
Andre Dawson
Andre Nolan Dawson , nicknamed "The Hawk", is an American former center fielder and right fielder. During a 21-year baseball career, he played for four different teams, spending most of his career with the Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs .An 8-time National League All-Star, he was named the...

, Larry Parrish
Larry Parrish
Larry Alton Parrish is a former Major League Baseball third baseman and right-handed batter who played with the Montreal Expos , Texas Rangers and Boston Red Sox...

and Gary Carter
Gary Carter
Gary Edmund Carter , nicknamed "Kid" and "Kid Carter", is an American former Major League Baseball catcher. During a 19-year baseball career, mostly with the Montreal Expos and the New York Mets, Carter established himself as one of the premier catchers in the National League, winning three Gold...

led the way with four hits each.
September 17–18, 1979 – For this two game home series on a Monday & Tuesday night the Expos drew 54,609 & 56,976 fans respectively vs the Pittsburgh Pirates. This was during the NL East pennant chase. The Pirates won 2–1 & 5–3.

1980s

May 10, 1981 – Charlie Lea
Charlie Lea
Charles William Lea was a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. From through , Lea played for the Montreal Expos and Minnesota Twins...

pitched a no-hitter against the San Francisco Giants
1981 San Francisco Giants season
The 1981 season was the 99th season in Giants history. Giants manager Frank Robinson became the first black manager in the history of the National League...

, defeating them 4–0 at Olympic Stadium. The last out was recorded by Andre Dawson
Andre Dawson
Andre Nolan Dawson , nicknamed "The Hawk", is an American former center fielder and right fielder. During a 21-year baseball career, he played for four different teams, spending most of his career with the Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs .An 8-time National League All-Star, he was named the...

, in center field.
October 11, 1981 – Steve Rogers defeated Steve Carlton
Steve Carlton
Steven Norman Carlton , nicknamed "Lefty", is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He pitched from 1965-1988 for six different teams in his career, but it is his time with the Philadelphia Phillies where he received his greatest acclaim as a professional and won four Cy Young Awards...

, of the Philadelphia Phillies, 3–0 in a pitchers' duel to win the National League Division Series
1981 National League Division Series
-Philadelphia Phillies vs. Montreal Expos:-Game 1, October 6:Astrodome in Houston, TexasFernando Valenzuela faced Nolan Ryan, a matchup worthy of a pitcher's duel. The game remained scoreless until the bottom of the sixth. Tony Scott singled home Terry Puhl to score the game's first run, but Steve...

. It was the only postseason series victory in Expos history. Rogers drove in two of the three Expos runs as well, singling home Larry Parrish
Larry Parrish
Larry Alton Parrish is a former Major League Baseball third baseman and right-handed batter who played with the Montreal Expos , Texas Rangers and Boston Red Sox...

and Chris Speier
Chris Speier
Christopher Edward Speier is a former Major League Baseball player and current bench coach for the Cincinnati Reds. He was drafted second overall in the January secondary 1970 Major League Baseball Draft.-Playing career:...

in the fifth inning. The Expos advanced to play the Los Angeles Dodgers
1981 Los Angeles Dodgers season
The Los Angeles Dodgers season got off to a strong start when rookie pitcher Fernando Valenzuela pitched a shutout on opening day, starting the craze that came to be known as "Fernandomania." Fernando went on to win both the Rookie of the Year and Cy Young Awards.The season was divided into two...

, who defeated the Astros
1981 Houston Astros season
The Houston Astros' 1981 season was a season in American baseball. It involved the Houston Astros attempting to win the National League West.- Offseason :* December 4, 1980: Don Sutton was signed as a free agent by the Astros....

. Rogers had previously defeated Carlton in Game One of the series as well.
October 19, 1981 – Blue Monday. In the decisive Game 5 of their only National League Championship Series, the Expos
1981 Montreal Expos season
The Montreal Expos made it to the postseason for the only time in franchise history. The season was separated into two halves due to the 1981 Major League Baseball strike.- Offseason :...

were defeated at home 2–1 by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Tim Raines
Tim Raines
Timothy Raines , nicknamed "Rock", is a former American professional baseball player. He played as a left fielder in Major League Baseball for six teams from 1979 to 2002 and was best known for his 13 seasons with the Montreal Expos...

opened the bottom of the first with a double against Cy Young Award
Cy Young Award
The Cy Young Award is an honor given annually in baseball to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball , one each for the American League and National League . The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young, who died in 1955...

-winning rookie sensation Fernando Valenzuela
Fernando Valenzuela
Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea is a Mexican former left-handed pitcher, most notably with the Los Angeles Dodgers.In 1981, the 20-year-old Valenzuela took Los Angeles by storm, winning his first 8 decisions and leading the Dodgers to the World Championship...

and scored on an Andre Dawson
Andre Dawson
Andre Nolan Dawson , nicknamed "The Hawk", is an American former center fielder and right fielder. During a 21-year baseball career, he played for four different teams, spending most of his career with the Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs .An 8-time National League All-Star, he was named the...

double play ball. Valenzuela held the Expos scoreless the rest of the way, however, and the Dodgers tied the game at 1 in the top of the fifth with two hits, a wild pitch and an RBI ground-out off Expo starter Ray Burris
Ray Burris
Bertram Ray Burris was a pitcher with a 15 year career from 1973 to 1987. He played for the Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, Montreal Expos and St. Louis Cardinals all of the National League and the New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, and Milwaukee Brewers all of the American League...

. The teams remained tied until the top of the ninth, when Expo manager Jim Fanning
Jim Fanning
William James Fanning is a former catcher, manager and front office executive in Major League Baseball...

made a risky decision to relieve Burris with Game 3 winner Steve Rogers. Struggling closer Jeff Reardon
Jeff Reardon
Jeffrey James Reardon , nicknamed "The Terminator" for his intimidating presence on the mound and 98 mph fastball, is a former professional baseball relief pitcher from 1979-1994 who played for the New York Mets, Montreal Expos, Minnesota Twins, and Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati...

was throwing alongside Rogers in the bullpen at the time, but Fanning elected to summon his ace. Rogers retired Steve Garvey
Steve Garvey
Steven Patrick Garvey , nicknamed "Mr. Clean" because of the squeaky clean image he held throughout his career in baseball, is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and current Southern California businessman...

and Ron Cey
Ron Cey
Ronald Charles Cey |Washington]]) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers , Chicago Cubs and Oakland Athletics . Cey batted and threw right-handed...

in order, but outfielder Rick Monday
Rick Monday
Robert James "Rick" Monday, Jr. is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball and is currently a broadcast announcer. From 1966 through 1984, Monday, a center fielder for most of his career, played for the Kansas City/Oakland Athletics , Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers...

homered to put Los Angeles ahead 2–1, crushing the Expos' hopes of advancing to the World Series
1981 World Series
The 1981 World Series matched the New York Yankees against the Los Angeles Dodgers, marking their third meeting in the Series in five years as well as a record eleventh Series meeting overall and last Series meeting to date...

. Two-out walks from Gary Carter
Gary Carter
Gary Edmund Carter , nicknamed "Kid" and "Kid Carter", is an American former Major League Baseball catcher. During a 19-year baseball career, mostly with the Montreal Expos and the New York Mets, Carter established himself as one of the premier catchers in the National League, winning three Gold...

and Larry Parrish
Larry Parrish
Larry Alton Parrish is a former Major League Baseball third baseman and right-handed batter who played with the Montreal Expos , Texas Rangers and Boston Red Sox...

were all the Expos could muster in the bottom of the ninth, as Bob Welch
Bob Welch (baseball player)
Robert Lynn "Bob" Welch is a former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Oakland Athletics . He played in college for Eastern Michigan. Welch was best known for his blazing fastball, and he is the last pitcher to win 27 games in a single season...

preserved the one-run Dodger victory. The Expos lost the NLCS 3 games to 2. They never returned to the postseason.
July 13, 1982 – The All-Star Game
1982 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 1982 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 53rd midseason exhibition between the all-stars of the American League and the National League , the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was played on July 13, 1982 at Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, home of the...

moved across the border, when it was played at Montreal's Olympic Stadium. It was the first Midsummer Classic ever to be held outside of the United States. The National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...

won 4–1 before a crowd of 59,057. Steve Rogers was the winning pitcher and Dennis Eckersley
Dennis Eckersley
Dennis Lee Eckersley , nicknamed "Eck", is a former American Major League Baseball pitcher. Eckersley had success as a starter, but gained his greatest fame as a closer, becoming the first of only two pitchers in Major League history to have both a 20-win season and a 50-save season in a career .He...

took the loss. Dave Concepción
Dave Concepción
David Ismael Concepción Benitez , better known as Dave Concepción, is a former shortstop in Major League Baseball. He was born in Ocumare de la Costa, Aragua State, Venezuela...

was named MVP. Five players represented the Expos on the National League squad: Gary Carter, Andre Dawson
Andre Dawson
Andre Nolan Dawson , nicknamed "The Hawk", is an American former center fielder and right fielder. During a 21-year baseball career, he played for four different teams, spending most of his career with the Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs .An 8-time National League All-Star, he was named the...

, Tim Raines, Al Oliver
Al Oliver
Albert Oliver, Jr. is a former Major League Baseball player. Over the course of his 18-year career, he played for the Pittsburgh Pirates , Texas Rangers , Montreal Expos , San Francisco Giants , Philadelphia Phillies , Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays...

and Rogers.
April 13, 1984 – In his only season with the Expos, Pete Rose
Pete Rose
Peter Edward Rose , nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", is a former Major League Baseball player and manager. Rose played from 1963 to 1986, and managed from 1984 to 1989....

collected his 4,000th hit at Olympic Stadium. The hit placed him alongside Ty Cobb
Ty Cobb
Tyrus Raymond "Ty" Cobb , nicknamed "The Georgia Peach," was an American Major League Baseball outfielder. He was born in Narrows, Georgia...

, the only other player with at least 4,000 hits.
May 2, 1987 – Tim Raines powers the Expos past the New York Mets
1987 New York Mets season
The New York Mets' 1987 season was the 26th regular season for the Mets. They went 92-70 and finished 2nd in the NL East. They were managed by Davey Johnson. They played home games at Shea Stadium.-Offseason:...

, going 4 for 5, hitting the first competitive pitch he faced in 1987 for a triple, and hitting a game-winning grand slam in the 10th inning. A free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....

since November 1986, Raines had just signed with the Expos on the previous day, having missed spring training and the first month of the season as no team made a serious bid to sign him.
August 23, 1989 – The Expos
1989 Montreal Expos season
-Offseason:* December 8, 1988: Tracy Jones was traded by the Expos to the San Francisco Giants for Mike Aldrete.* December 8, 1988: John Dopson and Luis Rivera were traded by the Expos to the Boston Red Sox for Spike Owen and Dan Gakeler.-Regular season:...

and Dodgers
1989 Los Angeles Dodgers season
The 1989 team came down to earth after the success of the 1988 season, finishing further down in the standings falling to fourth place in the Western Division of the National League.-Offseason:...

engaged in a 22-inning marathon, the longest game in Expos history. It eventually ended when Rick Dempsey
Rick Dempsey
John Rikard Dempsey is an American former professional baseball player. He played for 24 seasons as a catcher in Major League Baseball from to , most notably for the Baltimore Orioles...

homered for the Dodgers in the top half of the 22nd inning off Dennis Martinez
Dennis Martínez
José Dennis Martínez Emilia , nicknamed "El Presidente" , is a former Major League Baseball pitcher...

, who was making a very rare relief appearance. Rex Hudler
Rex Hudler
Rex Allen Hudler is a former Major League Baseball utility player. He played a total of thirteen seasons after being a first round draft pick of the New York Yankees in 1978.-Playing career:...

got caught while attempting to steal second base in the bottom half of the 22nd, ending the game. The game could have ended earlier when a sacrifice fly led to an Expos run, but the Dodgers appealed that the runner left the base too soon. The appeal was recognized by the third base umpire and the third out was recorded. This game also marked the first time a mascot was ejected by an umpire. Youppi!, dressed in a nightgown and nightcap on top of the Dodgers dugout roof, took a running leap, landed hard and noisily, and then snuck into a front-row seat. Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda
Tommy Lasorda
Thomas Charles Lasorda is a former Major League baseball player and manager. marked his sixth decade in one capacity or another with the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers organization, the longest non-continuous tenure anyone has had with the team, edging Dodger broadcaster Vin Scully...

demanded that Youppi! be run from the game. Youppi! would later return, but he stayed on the home team's dugout roof. In the end, the game took over six hours to finish and ended close to 2:00 am

1990s

July 26, 1991 – Mark Gardner pitched 9 innings of no-hit baseball against the Los Angeles Dodgers
1991 Los Angeles Dodgers season
The 1991 season featured an exciting National League Western Division race between the Dodgers and the Atlanta Braves. The Braves edged out the Dodgers to win the division by one game...

at Dodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium, also sometimes called Chavez Ravine, is a stadium in Los Angeles. Located adjacent to Downtown Los Angeles, Dodger Stadium has been the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers team since 1962...

. It was scoreless going into the tenth when utility man Lenny Harris
Lenny Harris
Leonard Anthony Harris is a former Major League Baseball utility infielder who is currently the hitting instructor for the Great Lakes Loons. He is best known for holding the record for the most pinch hits in a major league career...

singled for the Dodgers, breaking up the no-hitter.
July 28, 1991 – In a 2–0 victory, Dennis Martínez
Dennis Martínez
José Dennis Martínez Emilia , nicknamed "El Presidente" , is a former Major League Baseball pitcher...

pitched a perfect game
Perfect game
A perfect game is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a pitcher pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. Thus, the pitcher cannot allow any hits, walks, hit batsmen, or any opposing player to reach base safely for any...

against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. The final out was recorded by Marquis Grissom
Marquis Grissom
Marquis Deon Grissom is a former Major League Baseball player. He excelled in baseball at Lakeshore High School, under the tutelage of baseball coach Mike Juenger. He currently resides in College Park, Georgia...

in centre field, on a lazy fly ball from the bat of Chris Gwynn
Chris Gwynn
Christopher Karlton "Chris" Gwynn is a former Major League Baseball outfielder.-Career:...

.
September 8, 1991 – Dennis Martinez defeated the Cincinnati Reds 4–2 to lift the Expos to 58–77 on the season before 12,272 fans. A large section of concrete fell off the stadium after this game & before the next home stand was to begin. The balance of the home games were played on the road that year and that, combined with a poor record, and the sale of the team to new owners, contributed to some of the attendance problems leading up to the team's resurgence in 1993 & 1994.
September 17, 1993 – One of the most exciting pennant races in team history began, as the Expos (85 wins, 62 losses) played their final series of the season against their division rivals, the Philadelphia Phillies
1993 Philadelphia Phillies season
The 1993 Philadelphia Phillies season saw the Phillies capture the National League East championship. The Phillies defeated the Atlanta Braves in the 1993 National League Championship Series in six games, before losing the World Series to the Toronto Blue Jays.-Regular season:After finishing in...

(89 wins, 58 losses). The Expos rallied to take an 8–7 victory in front of 45,757 fans at Olympic Stadium. The clutch hitting hero was a hearing disabled rookie named Curtis Pride
Curtis Pride
Curtis John Pride is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and is currently the head baseball coach at Gallaudet University. Pride stands at 6'0" tall and weighs 210 pounds. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.-Youth:Deaf at birth from rubella, Pride developed oral skills early in his...

, who, in his first major league at-bat, doubled home two runners and scored on the following play. After the game, Pride said he couldn't hear the ovation but could feel the vibration of the 45,757 Expos fans. Marquis Grissom won the game by doubling off of Mitch Williams, stealing third, and then scoring on a shallow sacrifice pop fly to center. The Expos
1993 Montreal Expos season
The Montreal Expos season saw the Expos finish in second place in the National League East division, with a record of 94 wins and 68 losses.-Offseason:* October 6, 1992: Jerry Willard was released by the Expos....

would finish the season 94–68, but three games out of first place.
June 3, 1995 – Pedro Martínez
Pedro Martínez
Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...

pitched nine perfect innings against the San Diego Padres
1995 San Diego Padres season
-Offseason:* November 3, 1994: Rico Rossy was signed as a free agent by the Padres.* November 28, 1994: Wally Whitehurst was released by the Padres....

before giving up a hit in the tenth to Bip Roberts
Bip Roberts
Leon Joseph "Bip" Roberts is a former Major League Baseball second baseman and outfielder who played from 1986 to 1998 for the San Diego Padres, Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers, and Oakland Athletics.-Career:He was a speedy second baseman, largely associated...

, over the head of Tony Tarasco
Tony Tarasco
Anthony Giacinto Tarasco is a former Major League Baseball outfielder for the Atlanta Braves, Montreal Expos, Baltimore Orioles, Cincinnati Reds, New York Yankees, and New York Mets from 1993 to 2002....

in right field. He became the second pitcher in history (the other was Harvey Haddix
Harvey Haddix
Harvey Haddix, Jr. was a Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher who played with the St. Louis Cardinals , Philadelphia Phillies , Cincinnati Redlegs , Pittsburgh Pirates and Baltimore Orioles . Haddix was born in Medway, Ohio, located just outside of Springfield...

) to have a perfect game broken up in extra innings. However, the Expos managed to win the game, 1–0.
May 7, 1997 – The Expos
1997 Montreal Expos season
The Montreal Expos played the Toronto Blue Jays in Interleague Play for the first time.-Offseason:* October 28, 1996: Jon Habyan was released by the Montreal Expos....

set a team record (which was never broken) for runs scored in one inning, as they scored 13 runs off Julian Tavarez
Julián Tavárez
Julián Tavárez Carmen is a former Major League Baseball pitcher.-Minor leagues :...

, Jim Poole
Jim Poole
James Richard "Jim" Poole is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played as a relief pitcher from through ....

, and Joe Roa
Joe Roa
Joseph Rodger Roa , nicknamed "The Roa Constrictor", is former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. Roa is a graduate of Hazel Park High School and was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 18th round of the 1989 amateur draft...

of the San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....

at 3Com Park
Monster Park
Candlestick Park is an outdoor sports and entertainment stadium located in San Francisco, California, in the Bayview Heights area. The stadium was originally built as the home of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants, who played there from 1960 until moving into Pacific Bell Park in 2000...

. The Expos went on to defeat the Giants
1997 San Francisco Giants season
-Offseason:*November 13, 1996: Matt Williams was traded by the San Francisco Giants with a player to be named later to the Cleveland Indians for a player to be named later, Jeff Kent, Julian Tavarez, and Jose Vizcaino. The Cleveland Indians sent Joe Roa to the San Francisco Giants to complete the...

19–3. The only non-pitcher on the Expos not to register a hit was Sherman Obando
Sherman Obando
Sherman Omar Obando Gainor is a former major league baseball player who played for the Baltimore Orioles and Montreal Expos. His main position was outfield, but often played as a first baseman or designated hitter...

, who went 0-for-1. A young Vladimir Guerrero
Vladimir Guerrero
Vladimir Alvino Guerrero is a free agent Major League Baseball right fielder and designated hitter.In , he was voted the American League MVP...

hit his first career double and was struck by a pitch for the second time in his career. A crowd of 9,958 was on hand to witness it in San Francisco.
September 27, 1998 – Mark McGwire
Mark McGwire
Mark David McGwire , nicknamed "Big Mac", is an American former professional baseball player who played his major league career with the Oakland Athletics and the St. Louis Cardinals. He is currently the hitting coach for the St...

faced off against the Montreal Expos
1998 Montreal Expos season
-Offseason:*On November 18, 1997, the Expos sent Pedro Martínez to the Boston Red Sox for a player to be named later and Carl Pavano. The Boston Red Sox sent Tony Armas, Jr on December 18, 1997 to complete the trade....

in the final game of the season. McGwire finished the season with 70 home runs, hitting his last five in a three-game series against Montreal. In the third inning, McGwire hit a home run off of Mike Thurman
Mike Thurman
Michael Richard Thurman is a former professional baseball player who pitched in Major League Baseball for the Montreal Expos from 1997–2001 and for the New York Yankees in 2002...

, and in the seventh inning he got number 70 off Carl Pavano
Carl Pavano
Carl Anthony Pavano is an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher currently with the Minnesota Twins.-Early career:...

.
July 18, 1999 – David Cone
David Cone
David Brian Cone is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. During a 17-year baseball career, he pitched from 1986-2003 for six different teams. Cone pitched the sixteenth perfect game in baseball history. He also set the MLB record for most years between 20-win seasons. He was a member of five...

, of the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

, pitched a perfect game against the Expos
1999 Montreal Expos season
-Offseason:Future Heisman Trophy winner Ricky Williams was taken by the Montreal Expos in the 1998 Rule V Draft. The Expos sold his rights to the Texas Rangers.-Opening Day starters:* Shane Andrews* Miguel Batista* Orlando Cabrera* Brad Fullmer...

, winning 6–0. It was the first no-hitter thrown in regular season interleague play
Interleague play
Interleague play is the term used to describe regular season Major League Baseball games played between teams in different leagues, introduced in . Before the 1997 season, teams in the American League and National League did not meet during the regular season...

.
August 6, 1999 – Tony Gwynn
Tony Gwynn
Anthony Keith "Tony" Gwynn, Sr. , nicknamed Mr. Padre and Captain Video, is a former Major League Baseball right fielder. He is statistically one of the best and most consistent hitters in baseball history. He played his entire 20-year baseball career for the San Diego Padres...

, of the San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego, California. They play in the National League Western Division. Founded in 1969, the Padres have won the National League Pennant twice, in 1984 and 1998, losing in the World Series both times...

, recorded the 3000th hit of his career at Olympic Stadium.

2000s

August 26, 2003 – The Expos
2003 Montreal Expos season
-Regular season:*June 24, 2003 - Brad Wilkerson hit for the cycle in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.*August 26, 2003 - The Expos rallied from being down 8-0 and 10-3 to claim a 14-10 win against the Philadelphia Phillies and be within two games of the National League Wild Card...

rallied twice to claim a 14–10 win against the Philadelphia Phillies
2003 Philadelphia Phillies season
The Philadelphia Phillies season was the 121st season in the history of the franchise. The Phillies finished in third-place in the National League East, 15 games behind the Atlanta Braves, and five games behind the 2003 World Series champion Florida Marlins, who were the NL's wild-card winner...

and put themselves within two games of the National League Wild Card playoff spot. It was the second-biggest comeback in Expos history.
September 29, 2004 – Hours after the announcement of the impending move to Washington, D.C., the Expos played their final game in Montreal, a 9–1 loss to the Florida Marlins
2004 Florida Marlins season
The Florida Marlins' 2004 season started off with the team trying to improve on their season from 2003. Their manager was Jack McKeon. They played most of their home games at Pro Player Stadium.They played two against the Montreal Expos at Chicago's U.S. Cellular Field due to Hurricane Ivan...

before 31,395 fans at Olympic Stadium.
October 2, 2004 – The Expos earned their last win in franchise history, defeating the New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...

6–3. Brad Wilkerson
Brad Wilkerson
Stephen Bradley "Brad" Wilkerson is a former American college and professional baseball player who was an outfielder and first baseman in Major League Baseball for eight seasons in the 2000s. Wilkerson played college baseball for the University of Florida, and was selected by the Montreal Expos...

hit the last home run in Expos history in the ninth inning, his 32nd of the year.
October 3, 2004 – The New York Mets
2004 New York Mets season
The New York Mets' 2004 season was the 43rd regular season for the Mets. They went 71-91 and finished 4th in the NL East. They were managed by Art Howe...

defeated Montreal
2004 Montreal Expos season
In 2004, the Montreal Expos played their 36th and final season in Montreal. The team finished in fifth and last place in the National League East at 67-95, 29 games behind the Atlanta Braves...

8–1 at Shea Stadium
Shea Stadium
William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, usually shortened to Shea Stadium or just Shea , was a stadium in the New York City borough of Queens, in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. It was the home baseball park of Major League Baseball's New York Mets from 1964 to 2008...

, in the final game of the franchise's existence as the Montreal Expos. Jamey Carroll
Jamey Carroll
Jamey Blake Carroll is an American professional baseball infielder for the Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball.Carroll was born in Evansville, Indiana. In 1992, he graduated from Castle High School in Newburgh, Indiana. He later attended and graduated from the University of Evansville...

scored the last Expos run and Endy Chávez
Endy Chávez
Endy de Jesus Chávez is a Major League Baseball outfielder.Chávez bats and throws left-handed and is considered to have good fielding skills, speed, and the ability to hit to all parts of the field...

became the final Expo batter in history when he grounded out in the top of the ninth to end the game. (Coincidentally, Shea Stadium was where the Expos had played their first-ever game, in 1969.)

Longest home runs

Willie Stargell

Wilver Dornell "Willie" Stargell , nicknamed "Pops" in the later years of his career, was a Major League Baseball left fielder and first baseman. He played his entire 21-year baseball career with the Pittsburgh Pirates...

hit the longest home run at Olympic Stadium on May 20, 1978, driving the ball into the second deck in right field for an estimated distance of 535 feet. A yellow seat now marks the location where the ball landed. Stargell also hit a notable home run at the Expos' original Montreal home, Jarry Park, which landed in a swimming pool beyond the right field fence.

On April 4, 1988, the Expos' Opening Day, Darryl Strawberry

Darryl Strawberry

Darryl Eugene Strawberry is a former American Major League Baseball outfielder who is well-known both for his play on the field and for his controversial behavior off it...

hit a ball off a speaker which hangs off a concrete ring at Olympic Stadium, estimated to have traveled 525 feet.

"Oh Henry" Rodriguez

Henry Rodriguez

Henry Anderson Rodríguez Lorenzo is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who played for the Montreal Expos, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, and Florida Marlins from 1992 to 2002.Rodríguez was a member of the 1996 National League All-Star team as a member of the Expos,...

hit a ball on June 15, 1997, that bounced off the concrete ring in right field, caromed up to hit the roof, and came down, hitting a speaker. The distance traveled by this ball is also estimated at 525 feet.

The longest home run hit to left field was Vladimir Guerrero

Vladimir Guerrero

Vladimir Alvino Guerrero is a free agent Major League Baseball right fielder and designated hitter.In , he was voted the American League MVP...

's blast on July 28, 2003, that hit an advertising sign directly below the left field upper deck. The ad was later replaced with a sign reading "VLAD 502".

No-hitters

The first no-hitter in Expos history was pitched by Bill Stoneman

Bill Stoneman

William Hambly Stoneman III is a consultant for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Major League Baseball. From 1999 to October 15, 2007, he served as the general manager of the Angels...

during its ninth game, on April 17, 1969, winning 7–0 against the Philadelphia Phillies

1969 Philadelphia Phillies season

and striking out eight batters. The team's second no-hitter was another 7–0 victory thrown by Stoneman in the first game of an October 2, 1972, doubleheader at Jarry Park

Jarry Park

Jarry Park is an urban park in the Villeray neighbourhood of Montreal. From 1969 to 1976, the former Jarry Park Stadium was the home of the Montreal Expos, Canada's first Major League Baseball team. It also hosted a mass by Pope John Paul II...

, against the New York Mets

1969 New York Mets season

.

The Expos' third no-hitter came from Charlie Lea

Charlie Lea

Charles William Lea was a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. From through , Lea played for the Montreal Expos and Minnesota Twins...

on May 10, 1981, against the San Francisco Giants

1981 San Francisco Giants season

The 1981 season was the 99th season in Giants history. Giants manager Frank Robinson became the first black manager in the history of the National League...

. The fourth and final no-hitter in the history of the Montreal franchise was a perfect game by Dennis Martínez

Dennis Martínez

José Dennis Martínez Emilia , nicknamed "El Presidente" , is a former Major League Baseball pitcher...

on July 28, 1991, against the Los Angeles Dodgers

1991 Los Angeles Dodgers season

The 1991 season featured an exciting National League Western Division race between the Dodgers and the Atlanta Braves. The Braves edged out the Dodgers to win the division by one game...

at Dodger Stadium

Dodger Stadium

Dodger Stadium, also sometimes called Chavez Ravine, is a stadium in Los Angeles. Located adjacent to Downtown Los Angeles, Dodger Stadium has been the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers team since 1962...

. Expos broadcaster Dave Van Horne

Dave Van Horne

Dave Van Horne, a native of Easton, Pennsylvania, is a Major League Baseball announcer. He is the lead radio play-by-play announcer for the Miami Marlins on the Marlins Radio Network...

, called the final out on the telecast: "In the air...center field...El Presidente, El Perfecto!" Martinez's perfect game was the thirteenth in Major League Baseball history.

Two other no-hit games were pitched in shortened games. David Palmer

David Palmer (baseball)

David William Palmer, Jr. , is a former professional baseball player who played pitcher in the Major Leagues from 1978-1989. Palmer would play for the Montreal Expos, Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies, and Detroit Tigers.-Early life:Palmer was a star pitcher for the Glens Falls High School...

won 4–0 on April 21, 1984 in 5 innings during the second game of a doubleheader vs. the St. Louis Cardinals

1984 St. Louis Cardinals season

The St. Louis Cardinals 1984 season was the team's 103rd season in St. Louis, Missouri and the 93rd season in the National League. The Cardinals went 84-78 during the season and finished 3rd in the National League East, 12½ games behind their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs...

. Pascual Pérez

Pascual Pérez (baseball)

Pascual Gross Perez was a right-handed baseball pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Atlanta Braves, Montreal Expos, and New York Yankees....

beat the Philadelphia Phillies

1988 Philadelphia Phillies season

The Philadelphia Phillies season was a season in Major League Baseball. The Phillies finished sixth in the National League East with a record of 65 wins and 96 losses.-Offseason:...

1–0 in a 5-inning game on Sept. 24, 1988.

Baseball Hall of Famers

8 Gary Carter
Gary Carter
Gary Edmund Carter , nicknamed "Kid" and "Kid Carter", is an American former Major League Baseball catcher. During a 19-year baseball career, mostly with the Montreal Expos and the New York Mets, Carter established himself as one of the premier catchers in the National League, winning three Gold...

, C, 1974–84 & 1992. Gary Carter is the first member of the Baseball Hall of Fame who is depicted with an Expos cap on his Hall of Fame plaque.
10 Andre Dawson
Andre Dawson
Andre Nolan Dawson , nicknamed "The Hawk", is an American former center fielder and right fielder. During a 21-year baseball career, he played for four different teams, spending most of his career with the Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs .An 8-time National League All-Star, he was named the...

, RF/CF, 1976–86. Dawson was the second member of the Hall of Fame with an Expos cap on his plaque when he was inducted on July 25, 2010.
24 Tony Perez
Tony Pérez
Atanasio Pérez Rigal , more commonly known as Tony Pérez, is a former Major League Baseball player. He was also known by the nickname "Big Dog," "Big Doggie," and "Doggie."...

, 1B, 1977–79
20 Frank Robinson
Frank Robinson
Frank Robinson , is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. He played from 1956–1976, most notably for the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles. He is the only player to win league MVP honors in both the National and American Leagues...

, Manager, 2002–04. Frank Robinson was elected by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) in 1982. On October 4, 1974, Robinson became Major League Baseball's first African-American manager when he assumed the reins of the Cleveland Indians, and he was the first African-American to manage in both the American and National Leagues.
Dick Williams
Dick Williams
Richard Hirschfeld "Dick" Williams was an American left fielder, third baseman, manager, coach and front office consultant in Major League Baseball. Known especially as a hard-driving, sharp-tongued manager from 1967–69 and 1971–88, he led teams to three American League pennants, one National...

, Manager, 1977–81

Retired numbers

Gary Carter Gary Carter Gary Edmund Carter , nicknamed "Kid" and "Kid Carter", is an American former Major League Baseball catcher. During a 19-year baseball career, mostly with the Montreal Expos and the New York Mets, Carter established himself as one of the premier catchers in the National League, winning three Gold... C 1974–84 & 1992	Andre Dawson Andre Dawson Andre Nolan Dawson , nicknamed "The Hawk", is an American former center fielder and right fielder. During a 21-year baseball career, he played for four different teams, spending most of his career with the Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs .An 8-time National League All-Star, he was named the... RF/CF 1977–86	Rusty Staub Rusty Staub Daniel Joseph "Rusty" Staub is an American former Major League Baseball right fielder, designated hitter, and first baseman. He enjoyed a 23-year baseball career with 5 different teams... OF 1969–71 & 1979	Tim Raines Tim Raines Timothy Raines , nicknamed "Rock", is a former American professional baseball player. He played as a left fielder in Major League Baseball for six teams from 1979 to 2002 and was best known for his 13 seasons with the Montreal Expos... LF 1979–90 & 2001	Jackie Robinson Jackie Robinson Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson was the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947... 2B Retired 1997

The Montreal Expos have retired four numbers in honour of five players, including Jackie Robinson

Jackie Robinson

Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson was the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947...

's number 42 which was retired throughout baseball in 1997. Robinson had special ties to baseball in Montreal. He started his minor league career with the Montreal Royals

Montreal Royals

in 1946. The Royals were then a AAA affiliate of the Brooklyn Dodgers.

On August 14, 1993, on the twenty-fifth anniversary of his first payment to the National League for the Montreal expansion franchise, Charles Bronfman was inducted to the Expos Hall of Fame as its inaugural member. In a pre-game ceremony, a circular patch on the right field wall was unveiled, with Bronfman's name, the number 83, which he used to wear during spring training, and the words "FONDATEUR / FOUNDER".

When the franchise moved in 2004, other than No. 42, the Washington Nationals initially returned the numbers retired by the Expos to service and assigned them to new players, but later reversed their decision after the 2010 season.
In 2010, while honouring newly inducted Hall of Famer Andre Dawson, the team introduced a "Ring of Honor" at Nationals Park that included Gary Carter

Gary Carter

and Andre Dawson

Andre Dawson

.

On October 18, 2005, the Montreal Canadiens

Montreal Canadiens

honoured the departed team by raising an Expos commemorative banner, listing the retired numbers, to the rafters of the Bell Centre

Bell Centre

The Bell Centre , formerly known as the Molson Centre , is a sports and entertainment complex in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It opened on March 16, 1996 after nearly three years under construction...

External links

La Défense de Montréal – Voros McCracken
Voros McCracken
Robert "Vörös" McCracken is a prominent sabermetrician. Vörös is a nickname from his Hungarian heritage, meaning "red," specifically "blood red." He is most widely recognized for his pioneering work on Defense Independent Pitching Statistics .-DIPS published:McCracken first publicly disclosed his...

's notes on the meddling by ownership and Major League Baseball that killed the Expos in Montreal (November 9, 2001).
1985 Expos – Radio highlights from the 1985 season on AM-600, including "The Heat is On" Expos-mix.
Encore Baseball Montréal (French and English) – Encore Baseball Montréal is a non-profit organization that aims to be the voice of baseball fans in order to maintain interest in baseball in the province of Quebec
exposhistory.org – Valderi-Valdera! Les Expos Sont Là! It's Up, Up, & Away! A site dedicated to the history of the Montreal Expos. See every day in Expos history, including scores/box scores, day-to-day standings, transactions and more.
independent-baseball.com – Montreal Expos tribute section — pictures of Montreal Expos games
Sports E-Cyclopedia's History of the Expos
CBC Digital Archives – Major League Baseball Comes to Canada
SRC – Départ des Expos de Montréal
Official site of the Washington Nationals
Montreal Expos Sports Illustrated Website
Montreal Expos CBS Sportsline Website
Archives de Montréal – Photo album of the opening game at Jarry Park, April 14, 1969
Montreal Expos / Washington Nationals Franchise Record at Baseball Reference

| colspan = 3 align = center | National League Eastern Division Champions
National League East
The National League East Division is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. The Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies are tied for the most National League East Division titles . All of Atlanta's NL East titles came during a record stretch of 14 consecutive division titles...

|-
| width = 30% align = center | Preceded by:
Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...

| width = 40% align = center | 1981

1981 National League Division Series

| width = 30% align = center | Succeeded by:
St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Creation of the franchise

Social impact of the Expos

Early years

Promise of the 1980s

Under new ownership

Hope and disappointment in 1994

Final decade

Purchase by Jeffrey Loria

Purchase by Major League Baseball

Final season

After the move

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

Longest home runs

No-hitters

Baseball Hall of Famers

Retired numbers

See also

External links