Unofficial Expos History/Histoire Officieuse d'Expos

Traveling Expos

"A truly unbelievable event, one that will surely occupy a place in “Nos Amours” history, alongside Larry Parrish’s flying batting helmet with his every fence-busting swing, Warren Cromartie impersonating their mascot Youppi during an extended rain delay or Bill Lee claiming to need to sprinkle his pancakes with weed as that made him impervious to inhaling exhaust fumes during his morning runs."

You learn a little more history of the Expos everytime you stop by Traveling Expos.

Later.

Stick to your guns/Bâton à vos Pistolets

ESPN.com - MLB - Stark: Five who could get traded:

"Orlando Cabrera
Nothing seemed like more of a lock than Cabrera winding up with the Cubs this week. But at last check, the Expos were still believed to be asking for one of the Cubs' two hottest prospects, outfielder Felix Pie and pitcher Angel Guzman. So they've been stuck in the same game of chicken for days.

"The Giants also have talked about Cabrera, in a complicated deal that also would have brought them a reliever. But that seemed unlikely. So since the Expos have no shot to keep Cabrera after he becomes a free agent, they still figure to turn back to the Cubs at some point."

Come on Minaya, don't give in.

Later.

Power Alley/Ruelle de Puissance

ESPN.com - MLB - MLB Power Alley:

"Don't be surprised if the 'Spos catch the Mets and escape the NL East basement by the end of the season. (One last-place vote.)"

Of course, the Mets whomped the Expos last night, 10-1.

Though I do have a soft spot for Al Leiter who has "allowed three hits and one run in six innings, improving to 6-1 in his last 10 starts. Leiter has a 2.18 ERA, and 1.00 in three starts against Montreal this season, allowing just two runs in 18 innings." Or in other words, been an Expo-killer.

The good news of it all: "Despite the loss, the Expos split the four-game series to finish a 5-2 homestand in front of the biggest crowd -- drawn by a discount tickets and hot dogs promotion -- since 30,112 attended the team's Montreal opener on April 23." They're winning, they're selling tickets (and hot dogs), they're coming out of the cellar.

Watch out Montreal... I mean D.C.... I mean Northern Virginia....

Actually, how about they just play out the rest of year for Montreal?

Later.

Draft pick/Sélection d'ébauche

ESPN.com - MLB - ESPN News Wire:

"MONTREAL - The Montreal Expos on Saturday signed 21-year-old lefthander Bill Bray, their top pick in this year's draft."

Very nice to get the deal done. I imagine that they didn't pick anyone great b/c of signing bonus issues, but good to get their top pick either way.

Later.

It was the hitting/Il était frapper

ESPN.com - MLB - MLB RECAP:

"MONTREAL (AP) -- Though it's probably too late to salvage their season, the Montreal Expos are hitting -- and winning."

Certainly wasn't the pitching: "Ayala's scoreless streak is the longest by a reliever in the majors since New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera finished the 1999 season without allowing a run over his final 30 innings." Wow! I think one of the first games I wrote about, Ayala took the loss. And he hasn't looked back.

Some more pitching notes, and some historical perspective: "Ayala's shutout streak is the longest by a Montreal reliever since John Wetteland pitched 25 consecutive scoreless innings in 1993. ... Cordero tied the Expos' rookie record for saves in a season set by Dale Murray, who had 10 saves and a 1.03 ERA in 32 games in 1974." Cordero has 10 saves and a 2.72 ERA

It's nice to have the hitting come back like they did. In the bottom of the fourth they scored 3, then the Mets scored 4 in the top of the fifth - seems like that would take the wind out of your sails. But they came right back and scored 3 more for - well Armas Jr., Corcoran and Tucker. Though Tucker was the beneficiary of all the runs in the bottom half of the inning.

Was Corcoran supposed to be long relief or a situational pitcher? Not sure, but he gave up two walks in what was most likely a crucial situation. In fact the Expos and the Mets combined to draw 12 walks. Not too many control pitchers last night.

Expos have won 6-of-7! Endy Chavez went 2-for-3 with a walk, an RBI and no Ks. Let's go 'Spos.

Later.

Raise?/Augmenter?

ESPN.com: SPORTS NATION - Vote: Should your team raise or fold -- or go all in?:

"Go all in = Go for it! Win now!
Raise = Should make a move but protect the future
Check = Should stay in the game but be very cautious
Fold = Wait 'til next year -- should make moves for the future"

So far the Expos are ranked as follows:

Go all in: 20.5%
Raise: 1.8%
Check: 4.7%
Fold: 72.8%

(on 2,354 votes).

Sean McAdam wrote that they should check. "EXPOS: These guys don't even know where they're going to be playing, never mind who's going to be playing for them. Other than Cabrera, who has one foot out the free agent door, they're unlikely to be active, though that doesn't diminish the interest in the likes of outfielder Brad Wilkerson or starter Tony Armas Jr. MLB won't authorize a fire sale, since it would like the new owners to be buying into a respectable team and not a glorified expansion roster."

At least he's being reasonable about MLB's back-door involvement.

Later.

Doh/Doh

Montreal Expos News:

"The Expos had the bases loaded with no outs in the fourth inning, but Einar Diaz hit into a double play, scoring Brad Wilkerson."

Due to the severity of the no out, bases loaded play it's both my favorite and least favorite play. It can pick you up or piss you off.

My sister Lauren, another avid Expos fan, reports from Buenos Aires that she spent all of her time in JFK waiting for the flight in the sports bar watching the Expos. Good fan.

Off to work.

Later.

Top Base Stealing Teams/Base supérieure volant des équipes

Baseball Prospectus | Articles | Rogue's Gallery: The Most Efficient Base-Stealing Teams Ever:

"1993 Montreal Expos (80.28%)"

With Marquis Grissom sporting a handsome 84.1% percent success rate over 63 attempts.

Later.

I've been busy, so have the Expos/J'ai été occupé, ainsi ai Les Expos

Baseball Musings: Going Out in Style

"Looks like the Expos are trying to end their stay in Montreal with a bang. They've won four in a row, and are beating up on the Mets tonight 10-4 as they bat in the bottom of the fourth."

And they did win, 19-10.

So that's five in a row, folks. Endy Chavez goes 2 for 5, with a walk. Keep that ball Joe.

Later.

Google Ads/Google Liens commerciaux

Do the people at Google that run the ads have a sense of humor? I think so.

I ran some random Google searches for baseball teams:

new york yankees
new york mets
montreal expos
chicago cubs
anaheim angels
san francisco giants
texas rangers
toronto blue jays
minnesota twins
florida marlins
tampa bay devil rays
detroit tigers
houston astros
boston red sox
baltimore orioles
milwaukee brewers
cincinatti reds

And I started paying attention to the Google Ads shown, specifically for the ebay ad.

A lot of them (yankees, cubs, red sox, mets) didn't have ebay Google Ads - and "detroit tigers" resulted in no Google Ads at all.

I got a few screen shots of the ads.

Blue Jays:


Fairly straight-forward. "Ebay Has Low Prices: Ebay has good deals on everything. It's easy to shop and buy today!"

Then we have the most common kind which reads "Find It For Sale: Low Priced Athletics Oakland. Huge Selection!"

This is evidenced by the A's and Orioles, and with the Reds despite a title which reads "Cincinatti Reds at Ebay." It's funny that the syntax for the A's and Orioles is screwed up, but not the Reds.

Here are the screen shots:




And then here are the screen shots for Jeffrey Loria-owned franchises:




Note the title change to "Expos Montreal for Sale" and "Florida Marlins for Sale."

Somebody has to have a sense of humor for that to happen.

Anyone else feel like checking the rest of the teams through Google?

Later.

Looking good/Regarder bon

The Sports Network - Major League Baseball:

"Luis Ayala picked up the win yesterday and extended his consecutive scoreless innings streak to 18 1/3, the longest by an Expos reliever since Britt Reames tossed 20 scoreless frames in 2002.
Righthander Tony Armas Jr. has just one victory (1-1) in his last four starts, but has pitched incredibly well in that span with a 1.18 ERA (3ER, 23 IP)."

Ah, it's the pitchers that I love.

Later.

D.C. it is?/D.C. il est?

ESPN.com - MLB - Sources: Expos' new home likely D.C. area:

"Expos players were told this week that a decision on their 2005 home is near, that it won't be Montreal and that there is a strong likelihood they will be living in the Washington, D.C., area."

Maybe. Glad they are telling the players earlier rather than later.

In related news, the Expos beat the Mets, or should I say the Mets lost to the Expos - once again running into a meltdown from the bullpen.

Later.

For Joe Cook/Pour des Joe Cook

ESPN.com - MLB - BOXSCORE

Endy Chavez goes 3-for-4. Now assymptotically approaching .750 BA. What a stud! Hold onto that signed baseball.

Later.

Few runs/Peu de runs

ESPN.com - MLB - MLB RECAP:

"Only it was Burnett who won, his fourth in a row since dropping his first two decisions. Burnett induced the Expos to hit into three double plays in the first four innings and got a lift when catcher Jason Kendall threw out Endy Chavez as he tried to steal second with two outs in the third."

'Spos lose 2-1 behind fine pitching by Livan. And poor hitting (see above) by the rest of the team.

That's all for now.

Later.

Who needs Carl Everett?/Qui a besoin de Carl Everett?

ESPN.com - MLB - MLB RECAP:


"PITTSBURGH (AP) -- The Montreal Expos have baseball's worst offense partly because they don't hit many homers or drive the ball to the outfield enough. For at least one night, though, the routine groundball provided more than enough scoring."

So it's not that they changed their tactics, but rather had some luck. Which doesn't bode well. But, a win's a win.

In related Expos news: Carl Everett was traded to the Chicago White Sox for Jon Rauch and Gary Majewski.

Some helpful quotes in case you don't feel like reading past all the Carl Everett junk.

Rauch: "The 6-foot-11 Rauch, the tallest player in major league history, was 6-3 with a 3.11 ERA at Triple-A Charlotte. He went 1-1 with a 6.23 ERA in two starts for the White Sox this season."

Majewski: "Majewski was 3-3 with a 3.19 ERA and a team-high 14 saves at Charlotte."

Vidro on the trade: "'I guess they did what they thought was best for the team,' Montreal second baseman Jose Vidro said. 'We were not winning. They can get some young guys they think they can develop.'"

Later.

My answers/Mes réponses

Most Valuable Network

"Oh sure, it’s had a batting leader four times (Al Oliver - 1982; Tim Raines - 1986; ?; ?), a stolen bases leader numerous times (Ron LeFlore - 1980; Tim Raines - 1981-1984; Marquis Grissom - 1991-1992), a couple of Hall of Famers (Gary Carter, Tony Perez), several All-Stars (most recently Livan Hernandez), including an MVP-winner (Hmmm... Carter (twice) and Raines were All-Star MVPs - and Dawson won it while with Chicago), a journeyman pitcher throwing two no-hitters before the team was barely 5 months old (Bill Stoneman), a reclamation project pitching a perfect game at Dodger Stadium (Dennis Martinez) only two days after a work-in-progress pitcher hurled 9 perfect innings (Mark Gardner), only to lose it in the 10th, the finest ever Canadian-born 5-tool slugger (Larry Walker) and a weak-hitting, mediocre infielder that set the all-time mark for getting plunked by enemy hurlers (Rob Hunt - 50 times in 1971, all be right-handed pitchers; Mark Gardner, he of 9 perfect innings fame once hit 3 batters in an inning in 1992). "

Just thought I'd try to fill in the blanks - for those of us who haven't followed them as long.

Someone asked me the other day if I would root for the Expos after the moved. I wasn't sure either. Despite having been to Montreal just once, and going to San Juan, I feel less and less inclined to see them out of Montreal - while realizing that it will help their situation.

Later.

Standings/Positions

ESPN.com - MLB - Daily Glance:

Team	W-L	GB
Philadelphia	46-42	-
Atlanta	46-42	-
NY Mets	45-43	1.0
Florida	45-43	1.0
Montreal	31-57	15.0

Close division, let's hope the top teams beat up on each other - and 'Spos beat up on all of them.

Later.

Stupid Statistic/Statistique Stupide

ESPN.com - MLB - Productive Outs

Rank: 1
Player: Montreal Expos
PO: 107
OPP: 274
POP: 0.391

"The Productive Out
A Productive Out, as defined and developed by ESPN The Magazine and the Elias Sports Bureau: when a fly ball, grounder or bunt advances a runner with nobody out; when a pitcher bunts to advance a runner with one out (maximizing the effectiveness of the pitcher's at-bat), or when a grounder or fly ball scores a run with one out.

PO - Productive Outs, OPP - Total Outs in potential Productive Out situations, POP - Productive Out Percent, Minimum - 16 opportunities to qualify."

Granted, it's not a great statistic, but the Expos are the best at converting it. Though, they also have the least chances.

Later.

Second Half/Deuxième Moitié

ESPN.com - MLB - MLB RECAP:

"Livan Hernandez (6-9) continued his struggles against Atlanta this season, falling to 0-4 with a 9.90 ERA in four starts. In his previous outing last week, he lasted only two innings and was charged with six runs on right hits....After retiring the first six batters, he gave up three runs in the third, including Giles' first double. He got through the fourth with no further damage, but the Braves jumped on him in the fifth."

Well, that pretty much sums that up. With poor pitching and an anemic offense, you'll lose 'em all.

I was going to put up some inspiring words and despite thinking better of it, here we go.

My soccer coach used to always tell us when we were down at half-time that if the other team could score that many in a half, so could we. For some reason that always motivated me to not think we were out of it. It didn't always work, in terms of the final outcome, but often it did. And I remember coming back from 3 or 4 goals on more than one occasion.

So my fighting words to the 'Spos are, you can win. It's only half way - that's not the end of the world. You're in a jam, but come out and play like you're going to win. No more games in San Juan, so the travelling should be better.

Best of luck.

Later.

Second half home games/Deuxième moitié de jeux à la maison

SI.com - Writers - Fish: MLB owes Expos a home - Tuesday July 13, 2004 4:38PM:

"'The players believed last year that the play of games in Puerto Rico compromised their ability to compete for the division championship,'' explained Gene Orza, the union's No. 2 official. 'You remember, the Expos were in the hunt last year. So they wanted to put all those Puerto Rico games in the first half of the season. They didn't want to have the inconvenience of the travel.

'The premise was, 'Look, last year we were in the hunt. We might be in the hunt again. Let's get as many home games in the hunt period as we can.' That is what the schedule does for them.''

Well, sorry, this dog doesn't hunt. The Montreal season is history, and it has been for weeks. At the break, the Expos lug a 31-56 record -- second worst to the Diamondbacks -- to go with a 13-29 road mark."

Just something to read, no time to comment.

Later.

1994 - A hard pill to swallow/1994 - une pillule dure à avaler

Expos were rolling when '94 strike hit:

"No team lost as much from the 1994 baseball strike as the Expos. When the players walked out, Montreal was 74-40, six games ahead of Atlanta in the National League East. The Expos had just gone on a 20-3 tear."

Some 'Spos fans still remember 1994.

Pedro, John Wetteland, Larry Walker, Marquis Grissom, Moises Alou....

Not a bad lineup.

Later.

Frank's the Man/Frank est l'homme

Montreal Expos News:

"He gave up the chance to get 600 homers and 3,000 hits because the opportunity to become the first black manager in the big leagues -- for the Cleveland Indians -- came when he was 39 years old. Thus, Robinson spent his last two active seasons as a player/manager and his playing time decreased before he retired in 1976."

In his last two years, as a player/manager, he hit 12 home runs and 43 hits in decreased playing time. His final totals were 586 home runs and 2,943 hits. So damn close - but being the man that he is, it doesn't matter too much. And I think breaking the managerial color barrier is just as important.

Later.

Off Wing Opinion: Blogging The Expos/Outre de l'Opinion d'Aile: Blogging les Expos

Off Wing Opinion: Blogging The Expos

"UPDATE: Now MLB says the announcement on the fate of the Expos will take place at the August 18-19 owners meeting in Philadelphia. Then again, MLB has made promises like this before, only to extend the deadline."

(Interesting/funny/sad quote from above link: "Both local camps sent members here for the All-Star festivities to lobby for support from MLB owners and executives, a situation that has become an annual norm.")

Though Eric opines that "if the decision on the Expos isn't a fait accompli by a week before the meeting, and an actual vote of National League owners on the relocation isn't on the agenda, then you can forget anything happening in Philly."

I concur. However, I'm interested if it will only be a vote by National League owners. Wouldn't that take away the vote from Peter Angelos, owner of the Orioles - and opposer of the plan.

"DuPuy also said the heated objections of Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos would need to be "resolved and reconciled" if the Expos come to Greater Washington. He declined to elaborate."

One last note on Eric's blog, Off Wing Opinion, where he states, "A couple of months back, I thought about adopting them as Off Wing's official baseball team..." It seems to me a lot of people like the Expos, but have trouble following them - as was my problem. I hope Les Expos will help that out.

Later.

All-Star Game with Rob Neyer/Tout le jeu d'étoile avec des Rob Neyer

ESPN.com: SPORTS NATION - Chat-5567:

"Brendan (Hartford): Why is there no talk about anyone going after Livan Hernandez at the deadline? He's having a strong year and $15 million over the next two years isn't too out of whack.

Rob Neyer: Good question, Brendan. He's certainly pitched well enough over the last calendar year to make us think he's for real. A bunch of contenders could use a good starter."

If Day comes back healthy, and pitching well, maybe you could trade him for some offense. Or is it a rebuilding year?

"Justin (Portland, Ore.): After MLB's latest postponement, is there any chance the Expos play anywhere but Montreal in 2005? Also, the local media says PDX isn't actively seeking a team. Are you and I out of hope for a hometown major league team?

Rob Neyer: Just today, Commissioner Bud promised the situation would be resolved before next season. And if you believe that, I've got a baseball team in Milwaukee I'd like to sell you. As for Portland's chances, I don't get the impression there's much going on there (or here, if you prefer, as I'm typing this in the Rose City). The timing just isn't right."

Ah, another year in Montreal. Maybe they will hit up Monterrey, Mexico for their other "home" games. See how long it takes Mexico to find out that they're not putting up a good team. It only took San Juan 1 year to figure that out.

"Rob Neyer: Dan Shulman just mentioned, on ESPN Radio, that we might never see another Expo in an All-Star Game, because Livan Hernandez is being held back for extra innings. I think that would be a real shame. You'd think that MLB would dictate at least a token appearance for a member of les Expos."

I thought I heard that Livan had pitched an inning, but apparently I heard wrong.

Meeting.

Later.

Minor League Ball/Boule mineure de ligue

OurSports Central - Independent and Minor League Sports News from OSC:

"Steve Mortimer broke a 1-1 tie with a solo home run in the top of the eighth inning and three Expos pitchers combined to strikeout 15 Spinners as Vermont opened a five-game series at LeLacheur Park with a 2-1 victory over Lowell in New York-Penn League action Monday night."

Just what we need: more pitching. No, seriously, you can't have enough pitching, right?

Later.

A Virginian Perspective/Une perspective Virginian

Norfolk is playing waiting game for Major League team (HamptonRoads.com/Pilot Online):

"Baseball leaders have postponed decisions on the Expos in each of the past two years, in part to give Washington a chance to come up with a viable plan, Zimbalist and Rishe said."

Andrew Zimbalist isn't such a bad person to be getting your facts from.

If I were Norfolk, or Mexico, or San Juan, I'd be be pissed.

Later.

Make a decision/Prenez une décision

DuPuy confident Expos will move for 2005:

"Baseball's No. 2 official expressed confidence Monday that the Montreal Expos will move before the 2005 season but wouldn't set a new deadline for a decision.

The Expos were bought by the other 29 teams before the 2002 season, and baseball at first hoped for a decision by July 2002 but later pushed it back to the 2003 All-Star break and then to this year's break. The bidding areas have said in recent weeks that they think a decision could be made by late July or early August.

'I've been hanged out to dry by coming out with proposed dates,' Bob DuPuy, baseball's chief operating office, said before the All-Star Home Run Derby. 'The sooner we get it done the better. I believe it will happen this summer. I believe it's very important we get this done this year.'

Washington, D.C., and Northern Virginia's Loudoun County, near Dulles International Airport, appear to be the top contenders to land the Expos. Also bidding are Las Vegas, Monterrey, Mexico; Norfolk, Va.; Portland, Ore., and San Juan, Puerto Rico."

Really Bob? You've been hung out to dry after putting off this decision only two years? Sorry to hear that. A team that regularly draws headlines like this: Expos' only constant is uncertainty, it might be nice to get it done.

I'm sure you're having a great time playing all of the cities off of each other. Seeing who will give Bud the nicest new stadium. (That link also turns up this tidbit: "Robert A. DuPuy, who is both Selig's personal attorney and Major League Baseball's president and chief operating officer..." Which came first? The chicken or the bad egg?)

But there are the concerns of the players. Says Livan Hernandez, "Everybody's waiting and wants to know for next year because people want to make some plans. Maybe go to the (new) city and see what's going on, where you might live, because it's a new city. It's not easy for anybody."

I doubt that Bob and Bud care. Says Selig, "This thing has taken longer than it should have, but it's been almost to our advantage in a way. It's given the cities applying a chance to get their houses in order a little more." Of course this thing has taken longer than it should have - there's some serious bidding going on. And I'm sure Bud wants to add at least $500 million to his already impressive $3.22 billion in public funds for new stadiums in the past 12 years.

Make a decision. Base it on economics, base it on stadiums, base it on fans - just make it.

Later.

Sad and pathetic ending/Fin triste et pathétique

SLAM! Sports - Baseball - Montreal - Sad and pathetic ending:

"The litany of Expos greats, Gary Carter, Andre Dawson, Tim Raines, Steve Rogers, Mike Marshall, Rusty Staub, Vladimir Guerrero, Ken Singleton, Larry Parrish, Larry Walker, Andres Galarraga, Dennis Martinez, Pedro Martinez, still dwarfs that of the Blue Jays."

Not a bad bunch. I miss Vlad. Here's a picture of me and him. He certainly looked a lot closer.



Later.

Relocation/Relocalisation

SI.com - MLB - No Expos decision until after All-Star break:

Ah, the All-Star Game. This time it counts, right? Well, let's hope Bud makes a decision that counts, instead of putting it off again.

"'I'm confident a decision will not be made before or at the All-Star game,' Bob DuPuy, baseball's chief operating officer, said Friday after speaking on a panel at the annual convention of the Associated Press Sports Editors. 'It's our goal to have narrowed down our decision by the All-Star game and be focused in.'"

And celebrate Livan Hernandez.

(I saw El Duque pitch at Yankee Stadium yesterday - great to see the eephus pitch every once in a while.)

Later.

Other Expos Blogs/D'Autres Blogs d'Expos

Les Expos: Expos release Andy Fox/Andy Fox de dégagement de Les Expos

As noted in the comments, check out:

www.stros.mostvaluablenetwork.com

and

www.synapticflatulence.blogspot.com

And, as always, check out baseball musings.

I'll be putting up some sidebar links later today - please drop any suggestions in the comments feed.

Later.

Expos release Andy Fox/Andy Fox de dégagement de Les Expos

Major League Baseball : News:

"Fox, who was seen talking to Carroll and Nick Johnson after the game, doesn't have any regrets and is hoping that a team will pick him up after the All-Star break."

Andy Junipero Fox was released from the Expos. From the middle name, could you guess that he is from California?

And is the ball in the picture going by him?

Best of luck being picked up by another team.

As the article states: "Fox didn't get much playing time because third baseman Tony Batista, shortstop Orlando Cabrera and Jose Vidro rarely took days off. And when they did take a break, Jamey Carroll was always the first option."

Nice to see Frank Robinson developing his young players.

Later.

Downs comes through/Les Downs vient à travers

ESPN.com - MLB - MLB RECAP:

"Downs pitched seven sharp innings to give Montreal its first win by a left-handed starter in three years, and the Expos took advantage of two dubious decisions by Castillo to beat Pittsburgh 2-1 Sunday in their final game this season in Puerto Rico."

First win for a lefty Montreal pitcher in three years. Similar line to his last loss against Montreal where he gave up no earned runs and one unearned run.

Vs. Atlanta: 6 1/3IP, 7H, 1R, 0ER, 3BB, 4K - Game score: 58
Vs. Pittsburgh: 7 IP, 5H, 1R, 0ER, 2BB, 5K - Game score: 68

I don't think Montreal has had a lot of lefty pitchers, but three years is quite a while. Downs' ERA has also come down from the clouds to a respectable 4.91.

Keep up the good work.

There is also a good article on why San Juan is hurting the Expos more this year than last, how attendance is plummeting and how there are fewer latin stars visiting San Juan compared to last year.

Later.

French translation/traduction française

Les Expos - in French

Babelfish provides a handy-dandy tool to translate web pages into other languages. You can see it over to the right beneath the picture of my sister, me and a cardboard cutout of El Duque in San Juan. BTW, El Duque is starting for the Yankees today.

It doesn't, apparently, like to re-translate the titles.

Does anyone read french? Is the translation worth it?

Later.

Downs' day to shine/Downs' jour à briller

ESPN.com - MLB - MLB PREVIEW

After an excellent outing on July 6th, giving up one unearned run through 6 1/3 innings (though 7 hits) and getting pegged with the loss in a 1-0 Atlanta game, Scott Downs is back on the mound.

Here's hoping he'll continue his winning ways.

Later.

Montreal shuts out Pittsburgh/Montréal ferme hors de Pittsburgh

ESPN.com - MLB - MLB RECAP:

"Biddle pitched five scoreless innings to win his first start in almost two years, and Jamey Carroll drove in two runs to help the Expos beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-0 Saturday night."

Biddle comes out of the bullpen for the first time in two years and pitches well (2H, 1BB, 3K, 0ER). Vargas, Horgan and Ayala complete the four hitter, giving up two hits over 4 innings. Pitching is the rock upon which the Expos are built.

Not to mention defense. In a game where Pittsburgh had six baserunners (or at least that's Hits plus Walks), they turned three double plays. Not a bad way to keep that shutout going.

Jamey Carroll goes 1-for-4 with 2 RBIs. And Crazy Carl Everett goes 2-for-3.

And seeing as pitching is keeping it going for Montreal, the pitcher Horgan goes 1-for-1 with an RBI. That's helping your cause.

Later.

Game Recap/Récapitulation de Jeu

How to have 10 hits and not score a run: see here.

Damn. More to come, but I'm in upstate NY at the moment.

Later.

The offense is offensive, in a bad way/L'offense est blessante, d'un mauvais état

Baseball Prospectus | Articles | Prospectus Triple Play: Cleveland Indians, Montreal Expos, Seattle Mariners:


"Paces: The Expos record currently stands at 28-52, for a .350 winning percentage, which keeps them safely out of a 'worst team of all-time' discussion. They have scored only 276 runs in 80 games: 3.45 runs per game. That would make the Expos the most anemic offense since the 1981 Blue Jays scored 3.10 per."

Just a general endorsement of Baseball Prospectus' Triple Plays, and a nice justification of my blaming the offense for their terrible record.

It goes on to say...

"Some good news: Some of the Expos' pitchers, on the other hand, have been somewhat more valuable than the hitters:

Player 2004 VORP
Hernandez 37.6
Day 25.2
Ohka 15.9
Cordero 12.9"

Let's go 'Spos.

Later.

Let's go Nick!/Partons Nick!

Sports | Baseball | canada.com:

"Robinson is perplexed by Nick Johnson's struggles at the plate. Coming into Wednesday's game, the first baseman was hitting .250, with one HR and six RBI in 17 games since coming back from a lumbar strain that kept him out of the lineup for 46 games."

He's definitely down for the year compared to his career, but the most striking difference is his splits:

Year totals: 0.757 OPS (38 games)
Olympic Stadium: 0.743 OPS (12 games)
Hiram Bithorn: 0.359 OPS (7 games)

Yikes. Get that guy out of San Juan!

(BTW, I think my french translation page is breaking down.)

Later.

Hill on the hill/Hill sur la colline

Montreal Expos News:

"Expos go for two in a row"

Isn't that a defeating title? Baby steps, I guess.

Hill looks like he had a good outing last time out, despite an inflated ERA. Best of luck today.

Later.

Montreal v. Pittsburgh Recap/La récapitulation de Montréal contre Pittsburgh

Expos Crush, well... Beat Pirates:

I was at Yankee Stadium last night, trying to enjoy the game, but just couldn't keep my eyes off of the out-of-town scoreboard for the Expos game. It mostly looked like this:

Pittsburgh 0
Montreal 0

I didn't notice when Pittsburgh was up one run, but I was kept on the edge of my seat when the scoreboard changed to:

Pittsburgh 1
Montreal 1

And then quickly:

Pittsburgh 1
Montreal 2
Schneider - Solo HR

And that's how it stayed. The Yanks brought in Rivera and then broke the game open in the next inning. And I just kept watching the out-of-town scoreboard until it said "Final." I clapped and everyone wondered what the hell I was clapping for between innings.

The recap is fine, it was a good game to win. Tony Armas, Jr. pitched well (7IP, 4H, 2BB, 3K, 1R, 0ER). But I think the most interesting parts were outlined in the game notes at the bottom.

"Montreal turned a nifty double play in the first, when Jack Wilson hit a hard grounder that bounced off the glove of Cabrera. It was picked up by 2B Carroll, who touched second and threw to first."

I saw the play on previews for SportsCenter this morning. Wow! You can also catch it on the video recap (plays of the game) over at montrealexpos.com. If you do listen to the video, please tell me if they could find a more uninterested announcer.

"Roberto Clemente's No. 21 was retired on Hiram Bithorn Stadium's right-field wall in a brief ceremony before the game. Clemente's widow, Vera, threw out the first pitch."

Great player, great man. Is it true that he had exactly 3,000 hits?

"Montreal 1B Nick Johnson made two leaping catches of hard liners -- one by Redman in the fifth, and another by Rob Mackowiak in the seventh."

Maybe not so much Nick "The Stick" as Nick "The Glove." I love watching him make the diving stop towards the 1st base side.

"Nick Johnson and Jamey Carroll were rocking the high socks last night."

Well, that wasn't an official game note, but still very cool.

Check out Joe's optimistic comments in the last post.

Later.

Where have you gone Vlad Guerrero?/Où êtes-vous allé Vlad Guerrero?

ESPN.com - MLB - MLB Power Alley:

"Dating back to last season, Los Expos have homered only twice in their last 17 games at Hiram Bithorn Stadium. (Six last-place votes.)"

The Expos are ranked 30th out of 30 in the Power Rankings.

Might it be the pitching? Nah, not too bad.

Might it be the fielding? Well, it's certainly not helping. At least the pitchers are fielding well.

Might it be the hitting? Most likely.

Team OPS: .670 (30th out of 30)
Opponents OPS: .780

Suprisingly they don't strike out a lot, but still rank last in OBP and Slugging.

Later.

Performance in San Juan/Exécution Dans le San Juan

Monreal Expos Team Report - July 8, 2004:

"The team has logged a 4-13 mark in San Juan this season."

Ouch. Last year they were 12-10 in San Juan (and played .711 ball in Montreal!) There home record last year was 52-29, not too bad.

This year their home record is 15-26. So that means they are 11-13 in Montreal, a far cry from their .711 winning percentage last year.

One home stadium seems like a great idea. Though San Juan was fun, and gave quite a few people a reason to go to Puerto Rico, it doesn't seem like a good idea for the team.

"Batista will become the second Expo to reach the 1,000-hit plateau this season. On June 17 versus Minnesota, Jose Vidro singled off Terry Mulholland to record his 1,000th career hit."

Congratulations to both.

BTW, if anyone would like to translate the titles, instead of babelfish, please let me know.

Later.

Genesis/Genèse

It all started with report, "B+ FOR BASEBALL: THE MLB MIDSEASON REPORT CARD," by Will Leitch. The fifth paragraph of the introduction states, "As always, we include links to the best blogs for each team -- click the photo to go to the blog -- and if you have a better suggestion than the one linked, definitely email Will Leitch at leitch@blacktable.com and let him know." Originally, I was looking for information on the Yankees, which is the team I root for (being from New York and all). The blog of choice was, appropriately, Bronx Banter.

After soaking in the rays of the A grade for the Yankees, I moved onto the Expos, my National League team of choice. No blog listed. I tried to find one to pass along to the author, but to no avail.

So, it was time to start an Expos blog. I have followed the Expos for a few years now. It all started in my senior year college dorm room with my brother Terrence. Infuriated by the possibility of contraction, we found the site Buy The Expos. It was started by a couple of guys from Penn, with the idea that people would pledge money and try to buy the Expos. Being part of it really made me think that the public was interested in the Expos. However, as you can see, the site doesn't list the amount of money "raised" and basically fell by the wayside.

But that little push made me an Expos fan. I travelled to Montreal with Terrence and my sister Lauren on the last day of the season to see if Vlad Guerrero would become a member of the 40/40 club. Great game - it was inspiring to see everyone (all 25,178 people) excited about Vlad. Ultimately he did not get the 40th home run.

They had even traded for Cliff Floyd and Bartolo Colon that season. But as Peter Gammons said in his latest article (about why Omar Minaya, Expos GM, should have a guaranteed job when the Expos move), "When the club looked as if it has a chance in 2002, Minaya jumped early and made the Bartolo Colon and Cliff Floyd deals, to try to pique interest in Montreal as well as make the team more attractive to prospective buyers. Did the deals work out? No."

So this is the genesis of this blog: Excitement followed by disappointment, but always a glimmer of hope. But all human wisdom is contained in these words: Wait and Hope!

In deciding to write about the rest of Expos' season and follow them to their new home, let's set a few ground rules:

1. I'm used to posting short blurbs throughout my work day, but will try to put something up each day (a la Bronx Banter's game recaps).

2. The history of the Expos escapes me, as it does most people. I will try to fill in some details as we go along. Last time I was at the Hall of Fame, I took a few pictures of Gary Carter's plaque and will post them later. Of note, is that the Expos had a lot of good players at one time.

3. My french is terrible to non-existent. My apologies.

4. I'm a really big fan of Nick "The Stick" Johnson.

5. This will be fun for me, hope you enjoy it as well.

Later.