Expos fans bask in Raines’ spotlight
Star entering Cooperstown inspires diamond dreams of another Montreal ballclub
COOPERS TOWN, N. Y.—The Montreal Expos are such a distant, albeit dear, memory that when the Baseball Hall of Fame went looking for a jersey to put in Tim Raines’ exhibit, even Raines did not have one. Fortunately for all concerned, a collector agreed to lend the colourful 1981 Rain es shirt that he owns.
The man was thrilled to do it, too. “It’s a great summer to be an Expos fan,” said Perry Giannias, having driven 51⁄ hours from Montreal
2 with his son and friends to lead what promises to be a strong Canadian contingent for Raines’ induction Sunday. Giannias, who organizes an annual event called ExposFest, noted that former Expo Vladimir Guerrero earlier was enshrined in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.
“And now we have Raines go into Cooperstown,” he said. “For a city that has no baseball team, it’s as good as it gets.”
That is the rub. The fact the Expos moved to Washington (and were renamed the Nationals) 12 years ago is enough to make this a bittersweet weekend. It could be one last hurrah for the once-beloved franchise, the last public recognition of any kind. (Guerrero, who will be on the ballot for the second time in 2018, told the Los Angeles Times in 2016 that he would “probably” choose a Los Angeles Angels hat for his plaque “since there is no team in Montreal.”)
Or, this might be a shot of adrenalin for the effort to bring baseball back to Montreal. In either case, the festivities and ceremony here will be an exercise in joie de vivre. At least four and possibly five buses of Expos fans are expected to attend. He will be inducted along with Jeff Bagwell and Ivan Rodriguez as well as former commissioner Bud Selig and longtime Royals and Braves executive John Schuerholz.
“It means a lot because Montreal was the biggest part of my career,” Raines said recently. “I mean, it’s where I started. It’s where I grew up as a major-league player. It’s where I lived for 12 years.”
Raines also takes great pride in having been on the Yankees team that ended the 18-year title drought in 1996. “We didn’t care who was going to be the star, from one day to the next. And we truly enjoyed playing together,” said the outfielder who also played 109 games for the champion 1998 Yankees.
In all, the man they called Rock played 2,502 games across 23 seasons for six teams. He finished with a .385 on-base percentage, 2,605 hits, 1,571 runs, 1,330 walks, 170 homers and 808 stolen bases — including at least 70 every year from 1981 to 1986, something no other major-leaguer has ever done.
Only Andre Dawson and the late Gary Carter have entered Cooperstown as Expos before Raines, who never received cheers as loud and heartfelt as the ones that engulfed him when he returned for a second tour in a Montreal uniform in 2001. Chances are, he will hear a reprise Sunday.
“It’s amazing to have Tim Raines go in the hall of fame. When I was a 5-year-old, he was the first baseball player I really admired. I followed his whole career. I’m actually a White Sox fan now because he got traded there,” said Rahul Behl, who was admiring the Raines display case.
His children Maya and Daylin, 11 and 8, respectively, wore Expos shirts and caps even though the team never has existed in their lifetimes.
Might there be Expos, Part II? “I’m trying not to get my hopes up,” Behl said.
Not so for Giannias. Before the question was even asked, he said, “2021. They’re going to play in Olympic Stadium for a couple years while a new downtown park is being built. It’s going to be right near the river. They’re modelling it after (San Francisco’s) AT&T Park.”