The 'Hawk' Enters Cooperstown Wearing Expos Colours
While Andre Dawson attained his only MVP trophy as a Chicago Cub, the latest member of the Baseball Hall of Fame will forever be immortalized in the hallowed halls as a Montreal Expo.
The 1977 National League Rookie of the Year winner informed Chicago radio station WMVP-AM on Wednesday that his first choice was to have the Cubs cap on his plaque and echoed some "disappointment" that his input was limited during the process.
Though Dawson was crestfallen by the outcome, in a prepared statement released later on Wednesday by the Hall of Fame, the "Hawk" understood why the Expos cap would be on the plaque.
"I respect the Hall of Fame's decision to put an Expos logo on my cap, and I understand their responsibility to make sure the logo represents the greatest impact in my career," Dawson said in a statement issued by the Hall of Fame.
"Cubs fans will always be incredibly important in my heart, and I owe them so much for making my time in Chicago memorable, as did the fans in Montreal, Boston and South Florida, my home. But knowing that I'm on the Hall of Fame team is what's most important, as it is the highest honor I could imagine."
Arguably some of the reluctance might be that the Montreal Expos franchise no longer exists.
That said, should players and/or managers have a voice in the conversation as to which cap adorns their Baseball Hall of Fame plaque?
What say you Fadoo?
Hall picks Expos; Dawson preferred Cubs [MLB]
Report: Dawson to enter Hall as Expo [The Associated Press]
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hazzard wrote on Feb 5, 2010
Perhaps the best solution would be to have players enter the HOF without a specified hat/team. Let's face it, very few players will ever enter having played an entire career with a single team. The idea of entering the HOF as an "team name" is an antiquated one from a different era. The players are voted in based on their career. No specific team should be identified above the rest. Just tell everyone who they all played for. Not sure why so many think that being in the HOF for a team that no longer exists is somehow a snub. The team still exists, it's just in Washington and is called the Nationals now. Are HOF members of the Brooklyn Dodgers or New York Giants or Milwaukee Braves ashamed or forgotten? As for the log, it may be strange but it's hardly ugly. Everything about the Expos was unique and cool. Too bad Montreal just didn't embrace baseball.paul wrote on Feb 2, 2010
Topcat - The Expos Logo was one of the best in baseball. It was very unique, had a classic baseball feel to it with the lettering that you see, but wasn't just a plan letter with a few extra serifs scattered around. I'm glad that the Hall will honour the history of this team and consider players to enter wearing the cap of a team that no longer exists. Players should get to choose, but when some players (Boggs, Canseco etc.) chose to sign a contract that states that they'd enter the Hall with a certain teams hat, then I guess the players don't get to choose.Topcat wrote on Feb 2, 2010
Chris - you arent wrong at all, and actually neither is Hugo. Some players loved the atmosphere in Montreal, being so different than that of the US, but only one player (Staub) actually tried to live in the city full-time, and that lasted exactly one season. It was, and still is, a great cosmopolitan city, but NOT a great sports town outside of Les Canadiens, and that is more cultural than sports-loving. I dont blame Dawson or Carter for NOT wanting the Expos logo on the HOF. It was a team of underachievers that happened to play some pretty entertaining baseball. The final seasons of the Expos is one of the biggest disgraces in MLB - the plug should have been pulled a lot sooner and the fans just turned their back on them. Was a fun dozen years or so, but no real successes. Hawk, the Kid, and everyone should be able to choose their own cap to wear in the HOF, especially when the team selected doesnt even exist anymore. 10 more years and no-one will even recognize the ugly logo.Chris wrote on Jan 28, 2010
I'm not under 30 but I'm close enough. ;) I guess my memories of the Montreal Expos are very different. I always got the sense that (much like with Toronto) the players would pick Montreal 30th out of 30 teams to play for. Not only did the barrier of another country exist, but also the barrier of another language and a very different culture. Let's face it, it could never feel like home to an American ball player. I've always been shocked to discover some of the players that played in Montreal, and even the long history that the franchise has had. In my life, there's really only been one team up here and that's Toronto. They have completely overshadowed everything about the Expos during my lifetime.HugoMonster wrote on Jan 28, 2010
Chris you must be under 30. The truth is that the players LOVED being in Montréal … just ask Rusty Staub, Tim Raines, Tony Perez, Pete Rose, Gary Carter to name just a few. The problem was a bad stadium (The Big O), poor ownership and front office management, a very untimely hit by Rick Monday and a league-wide strike that was the demise of the Expos. Montréal has a great and storied history of both pro and amateur baseball.Harry Caray wrote on Jan 28, 2010
Yet a franchise that is snakebit by the so-called Billy Goat curse and hasn't won a World Series in over 100 years is why Dawson wants to be remembered as a Cub, please. This smacks of monetary considerations, if anything.Chris wrote on Jan 28, 2010
And people in MLB wonder why Montreal fans turned away from baseball. The players didn't (and still don't) want to play here. The league didn't want to be here. And the plug got pulled on the Expos best chance of winning a World Series in 1994. MLB didn't exactly endear themselves to fans in Montreal. Dawson sees it as a major drawback to be in the HOF as an Expo not because the Expos are a defunct franchise, but because they were the Expos and nobody in baseball had any respect for them.Steve wrote on Jan 28, 2010
Chadoo, you beat me to the punch. Yeah, apparently the Rays inserted HOF bonus clauses into their contracts as means to, pardon the expression, "back door" the franchise into Cooperstown. The Baseball HOF decided to close that loophole in 2001, reserving the right for themselves. It will be some time before a Ray earns a spot in the HOF, but gauging by the talent the Rays have assembled there could be any number of potential candidates. If Evan Longoria is able to produce at his current pace, he has a very good chance.chadoo wrote on Jan 28, 2010
Andre Dawson can thank/blame the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for this. They signed over the hill players like Wade Boggs and Jose Canseco with clauses in their contracts stipulating they go into the Hall of Fame wearing a Devil Rays cap (although they wouldn't worry about Canseco seeing he has no chance in hell of getting into the Hall thanks to his shameless drug revelations). This was a very cheap and cheesy way for teams to try and weasel their way into Cooperstown.BRUCE THE MOOSE wrote on Jan 28, 2010
Great move; Baseball Hall of Fame!! Like it or not, Hawk; you're an Expo first, and foremost.hazzard wrote on Jan 27, 2010
I was disappointed that Hawk didn't like going in as an Expo too. Carter was similarly upset when he went in as well (he wanted to be a Met I think). If Raines shows a similar reaction when he's voted in it'll be a trio of great Expos showing zero respect for the team or it's fans. A pity that. You'd think being in the hall for a team that no longer exists would be cool....as you know you'll be one of a very small group.Howard Sculnick wrote on Jan 27, 2010
I'm really disappointed in Hawk's reaction to being inducted as an Expo. As reported elsewhere he made his name as an Expo. Yes the Expos no longer exist but they were once a great and proud franchise. Other factors including politics put them on the s*** heep. He should be honoured for his accomplishments as a Cub but they wouldn't have happened had he not been an Expo.TBone wrote on Jan 27, 2010
I guess they needed a CDN in there before Alomar does it next year