Montreal Expos - First Game Ever!

[andyr1313]

Don Chevrier!

[indy66]

When Montreal was the ''Métropole'' of Canada before the goddamn separatists took over...

[Vinzzz27]

ramenez nos expos, nos amours...bring back the expos... Montreal expos we miss U

[fosterch]

Very few baseball stadiums could match the atmosphere in Montreal when they were winning. But with no salary cap...

[ryan48888]

IF YOU WANT THE MONTREAL EXPOS BACK AND HAVE FACEBOOK PLEASE JOIN THIS GROUP

[pmdnyc]

Steve Renko...John Boccaballa..I remember that name from the announcer at jarry park....Rusty....Carter...Mars­hall..Raines...Dawson.. Valentine.. Coco Laboy....Mack Jones...Bill Stonemans no hitter barely a week into the expos existance...I grew up as a Mets fan and always will be a Mets fan, but i have a special place for the expos in my heart. Bring Them Back to Montreal!

[steever1]

Theres a facebook page called "we want expos back" i would ecourage everyone to join to show that there is a market for the expos return.

[pmdnyc]

@steever1 I am New York Mets fan.. I was at the Expos first game...they beat my Mets. I would love to see the spos return to montreal. The Montreal fans were robbed of their chance at a title due to the strike, and the list of great players coming from the expos is incredible considering their brief history.. Mets and Expos are tied together... from Clendennon in 69 to Staub in 73 and Carter in 86... You have my vote for their return.

[Cheessa]

Don Chevrier looks so young there.

[cooltheo92]

suport us type "expos back" on facebook

[jerrytimes]

This is what happens when fans never go to the games.

[robphilll22]

Hate home dugouts on the third base side..

[LCDragonrats]

Who the fuck is Strombo?

[glerb46]

expos had the best uniforms

[drshagstein]

What MLB under the lackluster & incompetent leadership of Bud Selig did to the Expos & the city of Montreal is a travesty. It's sad how Selig couldn't seem to be bothered trying to help the Expos get a decent TV contract & new ballpark to ensure their survival in Montreal, but tirelessly worked on behalf of the Nationals to ensure they got precisely those things from DC.

Selig owes the people of Montreal an apology, but more importantly, an MLB franchise.

[FasterThanYou321]

You guys would have won the World Series in '94 if not for that strike. Greedy players.

[ThePaddyjoejr1]

@FasterThanYou321 The Fucking Owners Were Greedy! Fucking owners!!!

[ThePaddyjoejr1]

@FasterThanYou321 The Fucking Owners Were Greedy! Fucking owners!!! The world series Should have gone on! The owners owe Both the Players & The Fans,BIG TIME. FUCK THE OWNERS!!!!

[BoyJewish]

As a baseball expert, I miss the Expos. I was raised in Buffalo NY and we could get the games on TV with Duke Snider doing the color! I loved how they played the organ when the ball was in play!

[alxzanki]

...seriously, at least the expos grew there talent unlike the Nats that cant even get something decent together. This franchise had to take several stabs in the back wich made fans lose confidence in management, and then of course there was Brochu who acted as the angel of death and scorch the 94 team , attendance went down from there on.

bottom line :je veux mes expos

[diamonddog13]

The late Don Chevrier.

[Rockhound6165]

Maybe if the people in Montreal actually supported the team they'd still be around. 

[blaster1985]

Great footage! I'll never understand why we lost the team; a downtown park was a no brainer; unfortunatly, there were no brains to be had.

[Ike2RulZ4]

My favorite Expo as a kid was Coco Laboy, their third baseman in 1969. Great name. It was also a hoot to here the P.A. announcer introduce John Bocabella.

[tomtrh]

@Ike2RulZ4

And do you know who the PA Announcer who introduced John Boc-A-BELLA was? The one & only Claude Mouton! That's right! The voice of the Canadiens was also "La Voix des Expos" for a couple of seasons.

[parkman35]

Vive l'Expos! Montréal ne vous oubliera jamais!

[sportsoracle]

Two of those expansion Expos became fixtures with the Angels...Gene Mauch who managed the Angels to 2 ALCS appearances in 1982 and 1986, and Bill Stoneman who was the Angels' GM who helped to build the 2000s Angels' teams.

[hawksfan212a]

JAQUE LEMNIOUXXX

[generaltabarnak]

i play 10 years baseball 4 to 14year old now i hate baseball!! fuck you

WASHINGTON!

[ottvalley]

I lived and died with the Expos.Mostly died

[tomtrh]

@ottvalley

1979, 1981 & 1994....ohhhhh '94!

[mrceebees14]

People in America don't give a crap about hockey, people in Canada don't give a crap about baseball.

[vineet123kumar123]

if it wasn't for da 1994 strike...TORONTO BLUE JAYS VS MONTREAL EXPOS IN THE WORLD SERIES dat wud b awesome :D give a thump up if u like

[Snowking587]

The Best World Series Game Ever..

[connorpenny]

the record of the jays when the players went on strike was 50-60 and the expos was like 70-40

[azbaldy5]

i used to live in the nya rea i saw this game on tv the Mets LOST, they were so lousy the could not beat an expansion team

[IvMaDdNeSsvI]

yes but ended up to win 100 games the mets did.

[Buccanadien]

And, don't forget, they WON the World Series that year!

[Eaglesfanmd]

The Expos would have won the series in 1994 had it not been for the strike

[FunnyCanadian]

Yess !!

[louisgdehaut]

Not sure about that, but they had everything to go far.

[nabeshabu]

I fully agree.

[richardbyt1]

That was the beginning of the Mets' big year

[Rockopeetzee]

What a way to watch your favourite team die.Just like watching my Parents die of Cancer.The former owners and fans of Montreal should be shot and pissed on for letting the Expos die.

[Freebleeper]

It's funny both the Expos best seasons were during the strike years.

[panhandleman2]

-- Montreal baseball fans (if they can be called that) .... let their product slip away without a fight. MLB should never consider another team there. Mexico City before anywhere else outside the US.

[willc1975]

This really brings back some memories for me . I remember the baseball cards I had of the early Expos like Jose Co-Co Laboy , John Bocabella ( I love the way the PA announcer would say his name ! ) Bob Beetle Bailey , Rusty Staub , Bill Stoneman ( who threw the Expos first no hitter ) and the other Expos of 1969 . I do hope that Montreal will get another franchise some day . Had it not been for he strike of 94 . The Expos would still be there .

[spacerazer]

ESPN CLASSIC CANADA has shown the first Toronto Blue Jays game. NEVER the first Expos game in NY or Montreal. Do the tapes still exist?

[ebntje]

And Montreal beat the Mets 11-10 in their very first regular season game

[OzoneReviews]

If there's one franchise that should move it's the PittsPirates.

[vdven]

them or the Royals

[RCmack]

@OzoneReviews I never want the Pirates to leave Pittsburgh. The Pirates just need a very wealthy owner, like Mark Cuban, or one of the Arab sheikhs who own top European soccer teams, to buy them so they can be competitive once again. Cuban failed in his bid to buy the Texas Rangers. Who knows, Cuban could now attempt to purchase the Bucs. If he buys the Pirates, he will spend money to bring top players to Pittsburgh. It's really a nice city. They have a nice new ballpark.

[TPM75108]

I heard the Athletics may move in the future but I think they want to stay in CA

[sludgefactoryinyou]

i hope the marlins move to montreal!

[USAGiant]

Not happening. They just finalaized plans to bulid a new home to open by 2012 season in Downtown Miami at old Orange Bowl NFL stadium for Miami Dolphins.

[sludgefactoryinyou]

that really sucks

[USAGiant]

I been to Montreal 3x in my life and really enjoy it. Biggest factor of Expos leaving Canada more than anything was crappy manangement/ownership after the 1994-95 strike.

Remember the Expos had '2' future hall of Famers in Larry Walker and Pedro Martinez on the '94 club. If they stayed for '95 and beyond, made playoffs etc team is stiil in Montreal today.

I love baseball but Bud Selig is a jerk. Montreal does deserve an MLB team more than places like Miami and Phoenix IMO.

[65viewer]

Let me reply the best way I can: Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha!

If jeff Loria's estate sells the club perhaps, but I really don't see this in my lifetime...

[sgk1967]

I wanted to see a Jays/Expos World Series. Not to be....

[riderfanszmul]

94 could have been!!!!

[flingo21]

RIP Montreal Expos. Went from being my favorite team to just another boring, losing, generic team. Not to say they were great, but the nationals are embarrassing. I wish they would of kept the colors and Expo name. At least just flip the awesome M on the hat upside down! But no! It never works out like that...

[calen23]

I would like to know the attendance of that first game ever played in Montreal!

[markfinn0]

The seating capacity at Jarry Park was 28,456. Opening Day 1969 attendance was roughly that. There were several 30,000+ days as well.

I remember going to Opening Day 1970 (or 1971); sitting in the bleachers, and throwing snowballs at Lou Brock (St.Louis outfielder)

[gbernatchez]

tobad that team dosent exist any more

[Badgerinmaine]

I grew up in Wisconsin and am mostly a Brewers fan, but I miss the Expos too. In the years I've lived in Maine, I saw more Expos games at Olympic Stadium than Red Sox games at Fenway. The tickets were a phenomenal bargain toward the end, too.

Olympic Stadium itself, though, wasn't a great ballpark in the latter days of the Expos. The Metrodome was a cheerier, better place to see a game, in fact.

Au revoir, Expos.

[mogwai142]

In the 90s my dad would buy us tickets (4 for 4$!) in the bleachers but we would slowly move closer and ended up behind the first base sometimes!

[VViewer92]

Canada's sporting community really got fucked over in the '90s. The expos were on their way to win the world series = it gets cancelled. Vancouver Grizzlies sign bryant reeves to 6 year deal = 1998 strike turns him into a shell of his former self. Montreal Canadiens win the 1993 stanley cup = gary bettman is named the NHL commissioner. Seriously, what do americans have against us canadians being successful in sports? they have guns, what else are they compensating for?

[matthewfein]

Bring back the Expos!! They destroyed a great rivalry by moving to D.C.!!

[spacerazer]

ESPN Classics hs shown the first Blue Jays game dozens of times but never once the first Expo game or the first home game.

[FiskPole]

Isn't that because it was snowing throughout the Blue Jays game?

[DeeDonner]

Jarry Park was a great ballpark!

[teddyzed]

Ironically, it was Drapeau's other big prize, Olympic Stadium, that doomed the Expos.

[parkman35]

@teddyzed Jean Drapeau était un chien! Tout Québec le savait toujours.

[hoosierlooker]

RIP Chevy

[CuzIgoTMonEY]

bring them back :( :( :( i would litteraly cut my right nut off for one more game!

[kingofallwhites]

Death to the Nats. The Expos will rise again! Gardons nos Expose dans le Montreal!

[cooltheo92]

@kingofallwhites suport us type "expos back" on facebook

[averagejoe511]

@kingofallwhites We don't deserve the EXPOS!!!!

[1Bandit455]

Ditto--Canucklehead74--I sent BS a email when the EXPOS were still playing--he replied --were trying to keep the EXPOS--BS.

[canucklehead74]

I still cant watch MLB...I grew up in Montreal and was raised and loved the Spos...so many memories. El Presidente El Perfecto, Pedros near perfection in June of 95. All the crazy games they played in. Go Vlady Go!! They are NOT the Expo=Nationals. Baseball is dead and FUCK Bud Selig that Son of a Bitch single handedly killed them. They would have had a down-town Stadium. A conspiracy after the Jays won back to back...then 94..lets cancel the world series...please. Go screw yourself Selig POS.

[doors1959]

I allways though Montreal got screwed ,being a small market team and Bud wanting baseball back in D C .Bud Selig is the biggest dick in baseball today.Montreal's Double A team played in my home town of Harrisburg Pa.I allways loved to watch the Expos play because they had so many great player come up the through Harrisburg.

[brzklt]

"Montreal got screwed"

Welcome to Oakland

[wouguydisney]

umm the expos moved to Washingotn D.C. Not Oakland!!!

[brzklt]

What I said was that the city of Montreal got screwed just like the city of Oakland has.

[awsomnessguy]

like hooow?????? The a's were the al west champs 3 years ago.

[metalkrush77]

how did Oakland get screwed, you got the Raiders back, you still have the A's... it looks like Oakland will be losing the Raiders again, now that L.A. will be building a new stadium for football.

[venomousspiderwookie]

@canucklehead74

Oh, but he wasn't alone-Martin, Charest, and Loria helped.

[cooltheo92]

@canucklehead74 suport us type "expos back" on facebook

[DontrelleRoosevelt]

@canucklehead74 I can't say I blame you, and this is coming from a nearly life-long Baltimore Orioles fans. The Orioles may be my first team, but the Expos were my heart. Montreal sounds like a wonderful city; I hope I can spend some time there some day.

[DontrelleRoosevelt]

@canucklehead74 I can't say I blame you, and this is coming from a nearly life-long Baltimore Orioles fan. The Orioles may be my first team, but the Expos were my heart. Montreal sounds like a wonderful city; I hope I can spend some time there some day.

[oldweirdharold]

@canucklehead74 Same here, though since moving to FL, I do follow the Rays. Brochu was a catalyst for them leaving, OLIAR [loria] just finished it. I went to about 4 'final games' at the Big O. Bought a bunch of tickets for the final game which I could not attend in person. Saw Vlad's last game there. First game was in 69.

[pompei1968]

@canucklehead74 who the fuck cares about baseball its boring and dumb to play

[CrackerLance]

@pompei1968 Who the fuck stuck a quarter in you?

[asbfly]

@pompei1968

then why are you watching it on youtube?

[deconomou]

... and today they reside in a beautiful new ball park in Washington D.C.

Go Nationals! We won today and are 2-0. :)

[upster69]

deconomou...eisai malakas!

[brerbunny7]

You should die,deconomou. By the way,how's your POS Nationals looking today? 100= losses. Yeah,that's great! Keep up the good work,you sorry mf.

[yacsfc]

It's hard to run an MLB franchise when you average 10K in attendance per game. If they really wanted a team they would've gone to the games.

[xlibman]

it was more, less than 4K fans

But yeah I think ppl should have still come to the games more. it's hard to support a losing team but at least additional tickets they would have sold would have helped financing obtaining new star players or not losing them.

Part of the problem too is that in Canada most ppl prefer hockey to baseball. Habs went on losing seasons for 15 years until 2008, yet they sell out entire seasons since 2005.

[BlackJays]

It's important to note that the Expos averaged about 50K per game in the late 70's to early 80's. I think they had about 30-40K in the early 90's. The low attendance isn't the only thing that killed the Expos, obviously.

[Badgerinmaine]

I was curious about this and looked it up...the Expos didn't average nearly that many fans in the early 80s, but nobody else did either. You're right on the bigger point, though--the Expos were 3rd or 4th in the NL in attendance each year from '79 to '82 and were 2d in '83 for a .500 team--they averaged almost 29K a game+ drew 2.3 million. Their attendance plunged the next year and never bounced back. With a better ballpark, I think baseball could've made it in MTL--I wish it had.

[telluride117]

nos amours

[radiobaseballmtl]

Montreal sports will never be the same again. My heart broke the day they left town.

[JTDutch]

... Very cool historical baseball video. Thanks for putting this up.

[Will87]

RIP Don Chevrier

[bclippinger]

How much I miss them!

[expofreak]

2004 not 2002

[bayridgephantom]

I was at the first game that they played, in 1969, and, sadly, at the last game that they played in 2002. Both were at Shea Stadium.

[Maxwell1901]

You and Ralph Kiner were perhaps the only two to have attended both. Bob Mandt in the ticket office was perhaps a third.

When did this telecast air?  Who was the anchor?

[lsmftymf]

The source of this clip was the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), the network of Hockey Night in Canada which is now shown in the U.S. on NHL Network. The bespectacled & classy anchor of this piece was the late Don Chevrier who also worked for ABC Sports in the U.S. during the 1980s.

[Forsure3333]

I'm proud to be first to make a comment. Thanks.