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It's All Happening in Montreal

batmagadanleadoff Mar 26 2014 09:37 AM

When I first read this headline, I thought the Mets were the squanderers, and then wondered how that angle would be worked into a Mets-Jays series. ____________________________________________ Baseball City That Squandered Baseball Relishes Brief Return Montreal Hopes Mets-Blue Jays Exhibition Is Just the Beginning By KEN BELSON MARCH 23, 2014 [fimg=744]http://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/03/24/sports/24METS1/24METS1-master675.jpg[/fimg] Montreal Expos fans watching their team play its final home game at Olympic Stadium on Sept. 29. 2004, before the franchise left for Washington. For the Mets and the Toronto Blue Jays, they are just games at the end of the long spring training schedule, the final chance for the players to work out the kinks and the managers to trim their rosters. But to the city of Montreal and the universe of misty-eyed Expos fans, the games are a chance to celebrate a much-maligned team that left town a decade ago. On Friday and Saturday, Major League Baseball will return to Montreal for the first time since 2004, the final year the Expos played there before moving to Washington and becoming the Nationals. The team’s departure came after years of underinvestment, declining attendance and unsuccessful negotiations for a new stadium. Fans and former players talk wistfully about the Expos, but a tragicomedy of errors off the field doomed the team, which was often successful on it. Despite the ragged past, a group led by the former Expos outfielder Warren Cromartie hopes to draw a team back to Montreal. It is a long shot because Major League Baseball has no interest in expanding and a team moving to Canada is unlikely. But Cromartie and several silent partners funded a study by Ernst & Young that outlined what would be needed to attract a team, including an owner capable of spending an estimated $1 billion to buy one and build a stadium. Cromartie said that much had changed since the Expos left town and that in time, Major League Baseball would return. “We need a second chance,” Cromartie said. “The games are the beginning of getting our team back.” The games between the Mets and the Blue Jays, their final two of the spring, will be played at Olympic Stadium, the former home of the Expos, which was often mocked because it was ill-suited for baseball. The organizers have already sold more than 75,000 tickets for the exhibitions, a sign of the growing nostalgia for the Expos. The games are likely to be a sideshow, though, compared with the pregame ceremonies. On Friday, Gary Carter, a Hall of Fame catcher and perhaps the most beloved Expo, will be honored. Carter, who also starred for the Mets and died of brain cancer in 2012, will be represented by his wife and daughter and honored by former teammates, including Cromartie, Tim Raines and Steve Rogers. On Saturday, the fans will recognize the 1994 Expos, whose run toward a championship was derailed by a players’ strike that led to the cancellation of the playoffs. The team, which will be represented by outfielders Moises Alou, Marquis Grissom and Larry Walker and pitchers Ken Hill and Pedro Martinez, among others, had the major leagues’ best record, at 74-40, when play stopped in August. The strike not only spoiled a season in which the Expos were on pace to win more than 100 games and wrest control of the National League East from the Atlanta Braves, but also damaged the team’s contentious bid for a new stadium. When baseball returned in 1995, the Expos’ owners were vilified for dismantling a talented roster, a move that drove fans away and is seen as the beginning of the end for the team in Montreal. The team’s spiral downward left Expos fans bitter. But in recent years, their animosity has turned into affection, partly because of Carter’s death and the induction of the former Expos outfielder Andre Dawson into the Hall of Fame. In Montreal, chic youngsters who never saw the Expos play have sported the team’s cap. A street was renamed after Carter. The weekend celebration “is a big, big deal,” said Jonah Keri, a writer for Grantland whose new book, “Up, Up and Away,” traces the team’s history. “If you can’t have games, there is a rich nostalgia,” Keri said. “That’s all you have to celebrate — no opening day, no playoffs. You root for symbols of the past.” The games and the celebration of the Expos’ glory years were the brainchild of Evenko, a Montreal-based company that produces concerts and sporting events. Simon Arsenault, the company’s manager of events and business development, said the idea of inviting the Blue Jays to play was spawned three years ago. After the Toronto Raptors played the Knicks in Montreal during the 2012 N.B.A. preseason, the idea picked up steam. Arsenault and his group realized that the 10th anniversary of the Expos’ departure and the 20th anniversary of the 1994 team were approaching, so he contacted the Blue Jays in January 2013. He also reached out to Cromartie, who was planning an alumni gala, and the events, along with a celebration of Carter’s life, were combined. “For us, it was important to do something for Expos fans and do something for one of the greatest players, Gary Carter,” Arsenault said. “It was a chance to remember all these great people.” Including the Blue Jays was natural because they are the only Canadian team left in the majors and, even though they compete in the American League, they were an Expos rival. For several years, the teams played an annual exhibition game known as the Pearson Cup, named after a former Canadian prime minister. The Blue Jays see the events in Montreal as a way to promote themselves in Quebec, where their games are broadcast on television and radio, said Howard Starkman, the Blue Jays’ vice president for special projects. “Our territory is Canada,” he said. “We get people from eastern Ontario and Quebec coming to Jays home games.” [fimg=644]http://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/03/24/sports/24METS4/24METS4-articleLarge.jpg[/fimg] Some of the Expos faithful showing support for their major league team before a game against the Mets on Oct. 3, 2004. The Blue Jays have helped the exhibitions’ organizers prepare the field and the clubhouses and work with Major League Baseball. They also recruited the Mets, who played in the same division as Montreal during the Expos’ 35-year run. The choice of the Mets is poignant, too, because the first and the final regular-season games the Expos played, in 1969 and 2004, were at Shea Stadium. (The Expos won, 11-10, in their debut and lost, 8-1, in their finale.) Like Carter, Rusty Staub, whose number was also retired by the Expos, was a popular Met after leaving Montreal. Jackie Robinson played at the Brooklyn Dodgers’ Class AAA affiliate in Montreal before he broke the major league color barrier in 1947. The swirl of history has helped sell far more tickets than anticipated, Arsenault said. Some seats in the top deck with obstructed views could be made available, depending on demand. To complete the reunion, the organizers have hired several former Expos employees, including the groundskeeper and the public-address announcer. Batting cages, bands and family zones should help create a festival atmosphere, and some of the proceeds from the games will be donated to a local baseball federation. “The games will not only be baseball games but a celebration of baseball,” Arsenault said. That celebration includes memories — of when fans dressed up in three-piece suits and fur coats to see the Expos play; of when Canadian movie stars such as Donald Sutherland were in the stands; of when the team regularly attracted more than two million fans a year and, for a few seasons, outdrew the Yankees. “I was right in the middle when we were pulling 35,000 in nightly, and it was fun to play in front of those crowds,” said Rogers, a pitcher who played his entire 13-year career with Montreal. Largely forgotten will be the freezing weather, blinding sunsets and poor sight lines at Jarry Park, the team’s first home; the problems of the cavernous Olympic Stadium, with its yellow seats, crumbling concrete and incomplete roof; and the procession of owners who were unwilling to spend enough to revive the team. “From 1995 to 2004, it’s amazing they survived that long,” said Dave Van Horne, a longtime announcer for the Expos who, in 2000, was forced to call games on the Internet because the team was unable to sell its radio rights. “Everything fell apart, and they were never able to get a movement to keep the team together and put a good product on the field to keep the fans in the seats.” Cromartie and the Expos’ supporters hope to put fans back in the seats, not just this weekend but in the years to come. “We still have a long way to go to get our team back,” Cromartie said, “but this is the first step.” [fimg=344]http://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/03/24/sports/24METS3/24METS3-master180.jpg[/fimg] Gary Carter was a beloved Expos player. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/24/sport ... .html?_r=0

batmagadanleadoff Mar 26 2014 09:40 AM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Blue Monday: The Day That Haunts Montreal An exclusive first serial from ‘Up, Up, and Away: The Kid, the Hawk, Rock, Vladi, Pedro, le Grand Orange, Youppi!, the Crazy Business of Baseball, and the Ill-fated but Unforgettable Montreal Expos’ by Jonah Keri on March 23, 2014 The following is an excerpt from Grantland staff writer Jonah Keri’s new book, Up, Up, and Away, which details the history of the Montreal Expos. The book will be released on March 25 and is now available for preorder. ??? The first playoff berth in franchise history had been secured. The first playoff series in franchise history had been won. All that remained was a five-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, with the winner earning the National League pennant and a trip to the 1981 World Series. Ray Burris’ five shutout innings in Game 2 sent the Expos back home to Montreal with the series tied 1–1. Jerry White decided Game 3 with a three-run homer in the sixth inning that turned the crowd at Olympic Stadium into a delirious mess. The Expos had a chance to clinch the series in Game 4, only for the Dodgers to score six runs over the final two innings en route to a 7–1 win. Now, with the League Championship Series tied 2–2, the Expos were a single victory away from advancing to their first World Series. What transpired next became one of the darkest moments in Expos history, one that would haunt the team for the rest of its existence and turn one man into a pariah for the rest of his career. This is the story of Blue Monday. Read the rest at http://grantland.com/features/jonah-ker ... k-excerpt/

G-Fafif Mar 26 2014 01:01 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

My enthusiasm for Montreal to spotlight itself has been dimmed by a vision of "he hasn't been the same since playing on that turf" appearing in somebody's game story a few weeks down the road.

RealityChuck Mar 26 2014 02:46 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

And I thought it was all happening at the zoo.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 26 2014 02:54 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

I do believe it. I do believe it's true.

Nymr83 Mar 26 2014 08:07 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Montreal should get a team, I personally vote for moving the one in Philadelphia.

Mets Guy in Michigan Mar 27 2014 09:12 AM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

We seem to have a spare one here in New York. Send the MFYs north of the border.

Farmer Ted Mar 27 2014 09:49 AM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

The Teds flew up to Montreal for a long weekend and took in this game. Fonzie struck out three times. Lost to a Yoshii, Chen, Graeme Lloyd combo. Holy hell. http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes ... 4210.shtml Yeah, the stadium was a real shithole. Dark, cold, and nothing but poured concrete. The roof was, well, weird. We sat ten rows behind home plate and the seats didn't have arm rests for crissakes. The Big O was a decent subway ride from downtown but nothing to moan about. Montreal was nice even in a chilly April.

batmagadanleadoff Mar 27 2014 10:22 AM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Farmer Ted wrote: Lost to a Yoshii, Chen, Graeme Lloyd combo. Holy hell. They all pitched for the Mets. It seems as if half of all Montreal Expos once played for the Mets.

MFS62 Mar 27 2014 12:04 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

metsguyinmichigan wrote: We seem to have a spare one here in New York. Send the MFYs north of the border. You might get my vote to be the next Commissioner of Baseball. One more question. How do you feel about the DH? Later

Mets Guy in Michigan Mar 27 2014 12:12 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

MFS62 wrote: metsguyinmichigan wrote: We seem to have a spare one here in New York. Send the MFYs north of the border. You might get my vote to be the next Commissioner of Baseball. One more question. How do you feel about the DH? Later DH was created to extend the careers of gimpy Yankees. Repeal.

MFS62 Mar 27 2014 12:39 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

That settles it. You get my vote! Later

metirish Mar 27 2014 01:49 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

I bet it doesn't take Fran Healy long to bring up "Le Grand Orange", Fran constantly talking about Rusty is one memory I have of baseball in Montreal.

Frayed Knot Mar 27 2014 01:51 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

metirish wrote: Fran constantly talking about Rusty is one memory I have of baseball in Montreal. Fran constantly talking is one memory I have of Fran.

Frayed Knot Mar 28 2014 02:27 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Tonight's game (7:00) in Montreal free on both MLB.TV and MLBN

metirish Mar 28 2014 05:14 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Frayed Knot wrote: Tonight's game (7:00) in Montreal free on both MLB.TV and MLBN Thanks, was searching for it ...

seawolf17 Mar 28 2014 05:20 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

I miss the Expos.

d'Kong76 Mar 28 2014 05:39 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Forgot this was on MLB tonight. Baseball fever!

metirish Mar 28 2014 05:41 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

seawolf17 wrote: I miss the Expos. me too, seeing Felipe Alou , wow he looks great at 78....love the hats....I do wish they never left but the crowds were awful weren't they?

Zvon Mar 28 2014 06:06 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

metirish wrote: seawolf17 wrote: I miss the Expos. me too, seeing Felipe Alou , wow he looks great at 78....love the hats....I do wish they never left but the crowds were awful weren't they? Me three. I thought they had a pretty healthy fanbase up until the the '94 strike. The Expos were in first place, but no World Series that year. And after that the team was de-constructed. They were screwed in the '81 strike too. After '94 the fans said FUCK YOU BASEBALL! and I don't blame em. If we all said that to baseball when it was necessary I think the game would be in better shape. Unfortunately, now they are proving what the owners have known all along. Baseball is such an awesome game that no matter what you do to the fans, they will return and spend.

metirish Mar 28 2014 06:09 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Ugh, some asshole on talking about bringing an AL team to Montreal...

Frayed Knot Mar 28 2014 06:15 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

metirish wrote: I miss the Expos. me too, seeing Felipe Alou , wow he looks great at 78....love the hats....I do wish they never left but the crowds were awful weren't they? For a while they did alright. From the founding in 1969 through '76 they were up and down, hovering around average to somewhat below but never at the bottom. After moving into Stade Olympique in 1977, which helped with the weather for early/late season games, it got better and when the team was contending for the top so were the crowds: 3rd (of 12 in the NL) in 1981 & '82 and 2nd in '83. After that they started trailing off and throughout the '90s they were constantly at or near the bottom. Lot of factors involved though. It was a really bad stadium for baseball for one, and the club had the bad timing to keep having their best seasons during seasons interrupted (or ended) by strikes.

Zvon Mar 28 2014 06:38 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Mejia hit by the ball on a rug-cutter up the middle. Might have gotten his elbow. He did not look hurt but he was removed from the game.

metirish Mar 28 2014 06:44 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

I must say I am enjoying Buck Martinez and whoever Jerry is .......

Zvon Mar 28 2014 07:08 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

d'KaBOOM!

metirish Mar 28 2014 07:10 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

That was a promising sight from d"arNo

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 07:36 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Just tuning in now. Not sure whose voices I'm hearing.

seawolf17 Mar 28 2014 07:37 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Edgy MD wrote: Just tuning in now. Not sure whose voices I'm hearing. It's the Jays' broadcast team -- Buck Martinez and some other dude. (Now talking with Mel Didier, former Expos scouting director.)

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 07:38 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Yeah! Mel Didier, Montreal scouting director 1970-1975 being interviewed. Real Weeziana accent.

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 07:39 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

So, what's with the delay?

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 07:40 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Oh, mound repair. Can the Mets broadcast booth have a weekly visit from Mel Didier? This guy is gold.

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 07:43 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Campbell kind of swings the bat like a skinnier Gary Carter. Dives into the pitch.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 28 2014 07:48 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Poor Germen. Looks great except when he's giving up hits.

seawolf17 Mar 28 2014 07:49 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart with a base hit for Toronto.

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 07:55 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Sheesh, look at those spring numbers for Parnell. A 1.50 ERA? A .105 opponent average? A 0.50 WHIP? Who needs a 100 MPH heater?

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 08:05 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Laggy with a leg hit. An old-fashioned Astroturf hit.

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 08:07 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Comically bad at-bat by the Ikesmith.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 28 2014 08:07 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Oh, Ike.

seawolf17 Mar 28 2014 08:08 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

BREAKING: Ike Davis Still Terrible At Playing Baseball

Gwreck Mar 28 2014 08:08 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Umm, I'm not seeing much improvement from Ike here.

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 08:11 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Kawasaki = fast.

Gwreck Mar 28 2014 08:11 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Nice job hitting the cutoff man there.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 28 2014 08:12 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Bobby needs a K here.

Zvon Mar 28 2014 08:14 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Edgy MD wrote: Can the Mets broadcast booth have a weekly visit from Mel Didier? This guy is gold. He was great. Very enjoyable stories.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 28 2014 08:15 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Glad to see them going for this out.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 28 2014 08:17 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Get off the plate, Edwin.

Zvon Mar 28 2014 08:17 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Thats bullshit. A great pitch and he gets hit swinging at it.

Zvon Mar 28 2014 08:17 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

...well maybe not a great pitch.

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 08:18 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Bobby's WHIP going to Hell here, but he can still get out of this.

Edgy MD Mar 28 2014 08:20 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Oh, boop.

Zvon Mar 28 2014 08:20 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Bullshit loss.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 28 2014 08:20 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

ah, fuck. CAHNfidence ------------

Zvon Mar 28 2014 08:22 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Are we home team tomorrow?

Centerfield Mar 28 2014 08:29 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Now we get to listen to Vin Scully. Awesome.

Ashie62 Mar 28 2014 08:43 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Did Mejia get hurt?

MFS62 Mar 28 2014 08:47 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Ashie62 wrote: Did Mejia get hurt? Hit on the forearm by a liner. Pobrecito. If he didn't have bad luck, he'd have no luck at all. I hope he's ok. Later

metirish Mar 28 2014 08:54 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Centerfield wrote: Now we get to listen to Vin Scully. Awesome. it truly is a joy ....there is nothing better in baseball , the last of his kind , how many years now?, 50 plus?

metirish Mar 28 2014 08:59 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Really, Scully sounds the same now as he did with the Mookie call when he was in his pomp......that is just amazing.

Centerfield Mar 28 2014 09:13 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

How does anyone in the world think "Hmmm, national broadcast. Let's see, Scully is available...I know, let's get Kenny Albert." Fuck Fox.

metirish Mar 28 2014 09:18 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

LOL.....I just laughed ...it's so true....Albert has that hockey puck stuck in his mouth all the time....

Centerfield Mar 28 2014 09:26 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Poor Joe Garagiola. For many years, I made fun of this guy for having nothing to say during those broadcasts. But now I realize that Joe had the sense enough to realize how gold Scully was by himself and anything he said would only take away from the masterpiece that is a Scully broadcast. I picture it as being the equivalent of being told "Hey CF, grab a roller and help Michelangelo paint that chapel. Come on, get a move on."

Gwreck Mar 29 2014 02:20 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Just like it was in the mid-00s: https://twitter.com/clifffloyd30/status ... 3116913665

MFS62 Mar 29 2014 04:01 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Centerfield wrote: Poor Joe Garagiola. For many years, I made fun of this guy for having nothing to say during those broadcasts. But now I realize that Joe had the sense enough to realize how gold Scully was by himself and anything he said would only take away from the masterpiece that is a Scully broadcast. I picture it as being the equivalent of being told "Hey CF, grab a roller and help Michelangelo paint that chapel. Come on, get a move on." The only difference is that Scully has an audience of millions while he paints his verbal pictures. Later.

Edgy MD Mar 29 2014 06:45 PM Re: It's All Happening in Montreal

Centerfield wrote: Poor Joe Garagiola. For many years, I made fun of this guy for having nothing to say during those broadcasts. But now I realize that Joe had the sense enough to realize how gold Scully was by himself and anything he said would only take away from the masterpiece that is a Scully broadcast. I picture it as being the equivalent of being told "Hey CF, grab a roller and help Michelangelo paint that chapel. Come on, get a move on." I'd add to this, but I too know when to shut up.