OT: All-Purpose Expos Return Speculation Topic -- Part Deux

[LeHab]

I'm no baseball fan, but the reality is that 15 teams have won the world series since 2000. Compare that to 12 teams winning the stanley cup in the nhl in the same time span.

The main concern for baseball going forward is probably that they are the oldest fan demographic in an industry where the entire demographic is also aging.

In the region I live, I actually see a major increase in cricket fields, and a declining amount of baseball diamonds..... And this is an area of Canada that always seems to represent Canada in the little league world series.

Yeah aging demographic is certainly of concern. MLB is trying to modify some rules to make the game more friendly to younger fans. MLB should go where the younger fans are - online with less blackouts. But we know TV networks are still running the show.

 

[Kimota]

Soccer! Replacing baseball since 1981. We saw that when nobody gave a f*** about the CF Montreal making the playoffs this year.

Soccer is a weird thing. I played myself in the little leagues as a kid in the 90s and I loved it. Cause I tried Baseball and it was too slow for me. Soccer was closer to hockey where you constantly move so I prefered that. But I could never watch it more than 10 minutes on TV.

 

[BLONG7]

There will never be one in baseball.

You could be right, because it seems the owners don't have the stones.................doesn't change the narrative, there should be...................if not years from now there will be MLB with 8 rich teams, in there own bizzarro world.

 

[DaBadGuy7]

 

[Runner77]

The Expos had many issues but a major one was the Big O and its location. We can readily see why.

 

[Runner77]

What could have been.

 

[BLONG7]

What could have been.

Losing the Expos was a heart breaker.................to this day.

 

[Runner77]

Hurts as hell to watch this but Carter went out in style, with the ball sailing over the Hawk’s head, of all people.

 

[donghabs98]

A darn shame momentum on a Expos return has basically stalled and faded. The hype of 2014-2019 was nice to see even if it was poorly timed in the sense there was no real opportunity to get a team back. Only hope is thay work is now just done behind the scenes and that Brofman's group is ready whenever a real opportunity arises (whicb I suspect would be through relocation rather than expansion due to the fees).

 

[Runner77]

 

[salbutera]

A darn shame momentum on a Expos return has basically stalled and faded. The hype of 2014-2019 was nice to see even if it was poorly timed in the sense there was no real opportunity to get a team back. Only hope is thay work is now just done behind the scenes and that Brofman's group is ready whenever a real opportunity arises (whicb I suspect would be through relocation rather than expansion due to the fees).

Unfortunately, it’s over… Stevie Bronfman even said Mtl’s not capable of supporting a full season / 81-home game schedule.

 

[Kimota]

I would only accept their returns if they had their white uniforms not the damn ones with the stripes. The white ones was my favorite uniform in baseball. They are not the Expos without it.

 

[salbutera]

 

[Player 61]

2028 seems long! Tampa Lease Expires in 28. Patience is key MTL. If Tampa does not Build a new Parc <--- Same Park Billingual Team will be in Montreal.! Las Vagas is getting Oakland.. Were talking about re-Location not Expansion. Relocation is Free, Not like the 850Million Dollars NHL Got From Seattle. Montreal will get Tampa in Time.. R

 

[BLONG7]

2028 seems long! Tampa Lease Expires in 28. Patience is key MTL. If Tampa does not Build a new Parc <--- Same Park Billingual Team will be in Montreal.! Las Vagas is getting Oakland.. Were talking about re-Location not Expansion. Relocation is Free, Not like the 850Million Dollars NHL Got From Seattle. Montreal will get Tampa in Time.. R

Just a hunch? Or, are you in the know?
Man.............I miss the Expos. MLB has never been the same for me without a team in Montreal. I had friends that would listen to the games with me on the radio.... before TSN started to televise games.
Late 70's were great Expos teams, and it continued into the 80's

 

[Naslundforever]

Is downtown still a thing, though?

I miss my expos but have you guys been downtown in the last 2-3? Ewww

It would be a tourist crowd I would think with work from home and traffic jams

 

[Naslundforever]

Just a hunch? Or, are you in the know?
Man.............I miss the Expos. MLB has never been the same for me without a team in Montreal. I had friends that would listen to the games with me on the radio.... before TSN started to televise games.
Late 70's were great Expos teams, and it continued into the 80's

Every rainy summer day as a kid

 

[salbutera]

Is downtown still a thing, though?

I miss my expos but have you guys been downtown in the last 2-3? Ewww

It would be a tourist crowd I would think with work from home and traffic jams

Condo construction @ Peel Basin location for proposed ballpark has already begun….

So No - Mtl’s never getting MLB.

Dream is over

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

Just a hunch? Or, are you in the know?
Man.............I miss the Expos. MLB has never been the same for me without a team in Montreal. I had friends that would listen to the games with me on the radio.... before TSN started to televise games.
Late 70's were great Expos teams, and it continued into the 80's

My friends and I listened to games on the radio in the 70's. Dave Van Horne and Russ Taylor. And I saw 50+ games at Jarry Park. I was a Young Expo.

 

[BLONG7]

My friends and I listened to games on the radio in the 70's. Dave Van Horne and Russ Taylor. And I saw 50+ games at Jarry Park. I was a Young Expo.

What MLB and Loria did to the Expos, still bothers me to this day.............I miss that team.
The strike of 94 was a huge part of what killed the team.........and that was on Fehr and the players.
So many things, along with the fans apathy towards the team at times also led to the team being moved.
Brutal....

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

Is downtown still a thing, though?

I miss my expos but have you guys been downtown in the last 2-3? Ewww

It would be a tourist crowd I would think with work from home and traffic jams

I dont know what happened to downtown Montreal in the past 5 years , it's brutal.

 

[salbutera]

What MLB and Loria did to the Expos, still bothers me to this day.............I miss that team.
The strike of 94 was a huge part of what killed the team.........and that was on Fehr and the players.
So many things, along with the fans apathy towards the team at times also led to the team being moved.
Brutal....

The team was dead once Bronfman sold - team was on life support even with Charlie for the last 6+ years of his ownership.

Mtl is simply not a sports town anymore, and hasn’t been since the late 70s / early 80s exodus. Add to it, the demographic of the city has changed so much over last 40-years, there’s simply no tie to baseball for the vast majority of the population.

Saddens me to no end, because Expos & baseball was such a big part of my childhood, but reality is what it is

 

[LaP]

The Expos had many issues but a major one was the Big O and its location. We can readily see why.

The problem with the big O is not only the location. We have 3 months of summer a year. In april, may and beginning of june poeple are watching hockey. Nobody wants to lock himself up on a hot summer day during july or august. No retractabloe roof make the stadium very uninviting in the summer. Not only that but the interior is ugly as f. I went there twice to watch the expos and i'm gonna say if you were not a super big baseball fan the stadium made it hard to watch the game. You can't build a viable fan base with super dedicated fans only you must be able to attrack casual people looking for a fun night.

 

[waffledave]

Saddens me to no end, because Expos & baseball was such a big part of my childhood, but reality is what it is

It's a real shame. I grew up in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, just down the street from the Big O. From my bed as a kid I could see it outside my bedroom window. They were a huge part of my childhood too, my dad used to take me often. I used to go to sleep looking at the stadium and dreaming about the team.

 

[Pompeius Magnus]

Joey Saputo is starting to talk about building a new place for the MLS team, there might be an opportunity for a larger project with a baseball stadium built in the same location out there. I've always felt the MLSE model should be the way to go for Montreal, I.E. one conglomerate for all the pro sport teams/arenas/big events. There has to be a way for all of the big players in town to work something together. It's an absolute cash cow for MLSE. You put Bell, Molson Coors, Saputo, FTQ together in a joint sport venture and you could have something real solid, provided the city is willing to do business.