Former Montreal Expos left-hander Dan McGinn passed away on March 1 at the age of 79 in Omaha, Nebraska.
Tag: 1969
But What Do I Know? . . . Andrew Case, Fergie Jenkins, Matt Stairs, Andre Dawson
Bob Bailey was the hero of the Montreal Expos' first spring training game. By Kevin Glew Cooperstowners in Canada Some Canadian baseball news and notes: -Fifty-three years ago today, the Montreal Expos played their first spring training game. They defeated the Kansas City Royals 9-8 in front of 1,768 fans in a road game at... Continue Reading →
Tuesday Trivia: Who hit the first regular season home run for the Montreal Expos?
By Kevin Glew Cooperstowners in Canada Back in 2009, just prior to the 40th anniversary of the first regular season game in Montreal Expos' history, I found myself thinking about that 1969 Expos squad. I wasn't alive when they played, but I had heard stories about original Expos like Rusty Staub, Mack Jones, Coco Laboy... Continue Reading →
Former Expo and original Blue Jay Ron Fairly dies at 81
Ron Fairly, the only player to be named an all-star as a member of the Montreal Expos and Toronto Blue Jays, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 81. A cause of death has not been released, but the Seattle Mariners, whom Fairly had most recently worked for as a broadcaster, shared the news... Continue Reading →
But What Do I Know? . . . Canada Day Edition – Fergie Jenkins, Larry Walker, Dave Pagan
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: · On July 1, 1969, the Montreal Expos defeated the Chicago Cubs 11-4 in front of 19,858 fans at Jarry Park in the first major league game played in Canada on Canada Day. Expos pitcher Steve Renko was the star of the contest, holding the... Continue Reading →
But What Do I Know? . . . Brett Lawrie, Brett Cecil, Bill Stoneman
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: Congratulations to Langley, B.C., native Brett Lawrie, who recorded his 500th career hit on Thursday. His milestone hit was a single off of Minnesota Twins reliever Trevor May with two out in the top of the eighth inning in a 3-1 win for the Chicago... Continue Reading →
Ex-Expos: Whatever happened to? . . . Ron Brand
He’s the most versatile player ever to don a Montreal Expos uniform. During the 1970 season, Ron Brand, who was primarily a catcher, played every position except for pitcher and first base. “I believe I’m the only guy who’s ever caught 300 [major league] games and played all of those other positions more than once,”... Continue Reading →
Original Montreal Expo Steve Shea passes away
Steve Shea, a reliever on the Montreal Expos first team, passed away on March 4 in North Hampton, N.H., at the age of 72. A cause of death was not released, but a comment below his online obituary suggests that it was not unexpected. The right-handed throwing Shea was purchased by the Expos from the... Continue Reading →
But What Do I Know? . . . Ryan Dempster, Michael Saunders, Ron Taylor
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: • Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish reported on Wednesday that Gibsons, B.C., native Ryan Dempster has opted to retire. After helping the Boston Red Sox win the World Series in 2013, the Canadian right-hander took the entire 2014 season off for personal and physical... Continue Reading →
March 6, 1969: Montreal Expos’ first spring training game
On February 24, I wrote about the Toronto Blue Jays’ first spring training game that took place on March 11, 1977 in Dunedin, Fla. But what happened in the Montreal Expos’ first spring training contest eight years earlier? To find out, I trekked over to the D.B. Weldon Library at Western University to track down... Continue Reading →