As the first Major League Baseball team to play in Canada, the Expos joined the league as an expansion team in 1969. Named after the Expo 67 World’s Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, the Expos began playing their home games at Jarry Park Stadium, on a temporary basis.

After the 1976 Olympic summer games, they began playing there home games at Olympic Stadium. Beginning with 10 losing seasons, the Expos had five winning seasons to follow, highlighted by their 1981 season, a division win, and also their only trip to the playoffs in Expos history only to lose to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series.

Despite boasting young talent like Gary Carter and Andre Dawson, they failed to have any success for the rest of the 80s. The 90s began with new ownership and some hope with a 3rd, and 2 2nd place finishes leading up to 1994, while in 1st place overall, the unthinkable happened, the league went on strike and there was no playoffs or World Series, hurting the Expos chances of a new stadium.

Why The Expos Relocated

After the 1994 strike and failure to secure a new building, the Expos got rid of a bunch of there talented players, causing attendance to disappear. In 2001, the league voted to remove 2 teams, the Expos, and the Minnesota Twins, but due to scheduling, they had to keep the teams in the league.

Despite efforts by the league to raise attendance, including playing 22 “home” games in Puerto Rico, the league announced that the 2004 season would be their last, and were moving to Washington taking over all team records, players, minor league teams and spring training facility’s.

Montreal Expos Notable Players

Gary Carter C 1974-1984 and 1992
Andre Dawson OF 1976-1986
Frank Robinson MANAGER 2002-2004
Jackie Robinson 2B 1946 (Montreal Royals)
Tim Raines OF 1979-1990 and 2001
Larry Walker 1989-1994
Pedro Martinez 1994-1997
Dennis Martinez 1986-1993
Vladimir Guerrero 1996-2003
Andres Galarraga 1985-1991 and 2002
Moises Alou 1990 and 1992-1996
Marquis Grissom 1989-1995

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