Opening Day Roster:
Vive L'Expos! Vive Youppi! Long before they became the wandering vagabonds who finally found a home in Washington, the Montreal Expos entered the National League to great fanfare when Major League Baseball expanded north of the border for the first time in 1969. During their first 8 years of existence, they were barely relevant. They lost 100+ games twice, and never finished higher than 4th place. In 1977, playing in cavernous Olypmic Stadium for the first time, they finished 5th at 75-87, 26 games behind the Phillies. 1978 was supposed to be much better - in fact, predictions not only of the team's first winning season but of a possible division title were on the wind. They had acquired Ross Grimsley and Rudy May in the off-season, both of whom promised to improve their starting pitching which, aside from Steve Rogers, was unreliable in 1977. Darold Knowles was obtained to shore up the pen, and with the same level of offense they had in 1977 good things weren't too much to hope for. In the end, the pitching was respectable, but the offense sputtered along with several starters seeing their production decline (at one point, their pitchers posted a better combined average than their pinch-hitters). Given the pre-season expectations, it could be fairly said that 1978 wound up being the most disappointing season thus far in team history - the club finished with a 76-86 record, good only for 4th place, 14 games behind Philadelphia. With many of the the same cast in place, however, they would win 95 games in 1979 and in so doing transform the Expos into a perrenial contender for the division title.
In the minors, Bill Gullickson was at AA Memphis and Tim Raines was at A West Palm Beach.
Dick Williams entered his second season as skipper in 1978. His two World Series titles with the 1972-1973 A's and his AL Pennant with the 1967 Red Sox brought the Expos a degree of credibility they had never had before. His coaches were Billy Gardner at 1st, Ozzie Virgil at 3rd, Jim Brewer with the pitchers, Mickey Vernon with the hitters and Norm Sherry in the pen.
Ross Grimsley, SP:
Dick Williams was happy to see Ross signed as a free agent in December of 1977 - he had authored 2 of Cincinnati's wins against Williams' A's in the 1972 World Series, and Williams had always respected his talent. As the Expos' principal new arrival for 1978, he didn't disappoint. He threw a 3-hit shutout over the Mets in his first start on April 9, he 2-hit the Cubs on August 11, and wound up with a team-best 19 complete games to go with a 20-11 record. In doing so, he became the first Expo to win 20 games. Alas, it would be his last good season, and Ross was out of the majors for good after 1982.
Steve Rogers, SP:
In 1978, Steve entered his 6th year in the Montreal rotation. He led the team with a 2.47 ERA and 126 strikeouts, but posted only a 13-10 record because of a chronic lack of run support - in his first 3 losses, the Expos scored just one run, and by the end of June they were averaging less than 3 runs in his starts. He threw a 3-hitter at the Giants on June 12, but lost to Ed Halicki who only allowed 1 hit. On July 20, he got between Chris Speier and GM Charlie Fox during a locker room argument, and got punched in the face by Fox for his troubles.
Rudy May, SP:
The 13-year veteran came to the Expos in a December, 1977 trade with Baltimore for Don Stanhouse. He had won 18 with the O's in 1977 and, like Grimsley, was expected to be a key starter. After starting out 2-1, he lost 4 straight starts, then won 4 straight, including a 2-hitter against the Pirates on May 27. On July 20, he went to the DL with a broken bone in his foot. He returned on September 1, and had a good month. He lowered his pre-DL ERA by almost half a run, went 2-1 and threw a 4-hit shutout in Philadelphia on the 26th. He finished an overall disappointing 8-10.
Wayne Twitchell, SP:
Wayne was in the rotation through June, when his 3-6 record and 5.40 ERA saw him banished to the pen for the rest of the year (he was replaced in the rotation by young Hal Dues). At the end of the year his record stood at 4-12 and he registered a 5.38 ERA. The veteran was released by Montreal after the season, and played for the Mets and Mariners in 1979 before hanging it up. )
Bill Atkinson, RP:
Feeling he had a problem in 1977 with throwing his arm out while still warming up in the pen, Bill valued advice given by his new teammate, the veteran Darold Knowles, who told him never to get "ready" in the pen - just get almost ready; save someting for the mound. He made 22 appearances, earning a 2-2 record and 2 saves, before being shipped to Denver in exchange for Gerry Pirtle on July 2. He returned in September, making another 7 appearances and earning another save before the year was out.
Hal Dues, RP:
One of three rookies to make the opening day roster (Reece and Papi were the others) Dues was slated to pitch long relief. Once the season began, he was also used as an occasional 5th starter, and towards the end of June he was inserted into the rotation on a regular basis, taking Wayne Twitchell's place. He was 3-0 in July, but in August he was sent to the pen to accommodate young Scott Sanderson's arrival in the rotation. At the end of the year, he had a 5-6 record and a very nice 2.36 ERA.
Fred Holdsworth, RP:
The journeyman Holdsworth, with Dues, was slated to do long relief work in 1978. After only 6 appearances, covering just 8.2 innings (and generating a 7.27 ERA), he was placed on the DL on May 15 due to shoulder soreness in his throwing arm. He came off the DL on July 9, and was immediately sent to Denver, where he stayed the rest of the year.
Stan Bahnsen, CL:
A 10-year veteran of the Yankees, White Sox and A's before joining the Expos during the 1977 season, Stan wrote to Dick Williams during the off-season and suggested he be moved from the rotation to the pen. He began the 1978 season in the closer role. He accumulated 5 saves through mid-May, and was moved to more general relief work with the arrival of Mike Garman on May 20. Despite a trip to the DL from June 5 through June 27, he made 43 relief appearances, closing out 22 games and earning 7 saves to go with a 1-5 record and 3.84 ERA.
Bob Reece, C:
Stuck with the unenviable task of backing up Gary Carter, Bob only saw action in 7 games before being shipped to Denver on June 12 after the Expos acquired Ed Herrmann from Houston. He returned when rosters expanded in September and saw action in another 2 games. His 9 total games were his only big league appearances - his debut was on April 22 and his bow came September 16.
Pepe Frias, IF:
Pepe served as the Expos' primary middle-infield reserve in 1978, mainly at second, were he got into 61 games in the late innings. He hit .267 in his limited role.
Darold Knowles, RP:
The well-traveled, veteran left-hander was acquired in November of 1977. His arrival in Montreal reunited him with his former manager, Dick Williams, with whom he was a part of 2 championship teams in Oakland. Williams considered him a tough, game reliever and he was expected to have a positive influence on the youngsters in the pen. For the year, Darold led the staff with 60 appearances. He finished out 27 games, earning 6 saves to go with a 3-3 record and a bullpen-best 2.38 ERA.
Gary Carter, C:
1977 had been this future-hall of famer's first injury-free season, and it showed in his numbers - he had near-career best performances in all major categories. 1978 was different - he was hitting only .235 at the break, and was beginning to hear it from the fans in Montreal because he had just signed a significant deal with club. His hitting eventually improved to .255, but this was about 30 points below 1977, and he was down in HR and RBI as well. Things would get better in 1979, and he'd soon be back in the fans' good graces.
Dave Cash, IF
Going into his second season as the Expos' second baseman, Cash came to camp 10 pounds lighter and a newly-converted vegetarian. It showed early on - he was hitting over .300 in late May and by the break had 2 HR - exactly 2 more than he had all the previous year. His hitting tanked in the second half, however. He finished the year batting just .252, down more than 30 points from 1977. He did lead the team in at-bats with 658 and the fewest strikeouts with just 29. He had the second-best fielding record in the majors at his position.
Wayne Garrett, IF:
Wayne spent the first half of 1978 pinch-hitting and playing behind Larry Parrish at third. At third base, he was generally used as a defensive replacement, but he did start 11 games. On July 20, he was sold to the Cardinals.
Stan Papi, IF:
Stan was out of baseball entirely in 1975 with severe, life-threatening hypoglycemia. Montreal didn't give up on him, however, and after a couple years at Denver, and a brief audition in 1977, he made the opening day roster in 1978. He got into 67 games as a reserve shortstop, third baseman and pinch-hitter. He hit just .230 with 11 RBI.
Larry Parrish, IF:
Going into 1978, it wasn't certain that Parrish would be the Expos' starting third baseman. Successive poor seasons in 1976 and 1977 put his hold on the job in doubt (he had been booed loudly in the 1977 home opener). But he worked hard during winter ball in Venezuela under the guidance of Expo coach Ozzie Virgil, and it paid off. For his effort, he was cheered at the 1978 home opener (which choked him up). He hit safely in his first 8 games, and wound up with career highs (to that point) in HR, RBI and batting average.
Tony Perez, IF:
The long-time Cincinnati star was entering the second phase of his career when he served as Montreal's first baseman in 1978. It was his second of three seasons with the Expos, and he was often pulled in late innings for defensive reasons in favor of Del Unser. In 148 games, he hit .290 (2nd on the team), and had 14 HR and 78 RBI (most on the team). On July 4th in Pittsburgh, in the second game of a double-header, he went 3-for-4, including 2 HR, with 3 RBI and 2 runs scored in the Expos' 4-3 loss.
Warren Cromartie, OF:
As the Expos' starting left-fielder in 1978, Warren led the team in hitting at .297 (Williams offered to let him sit the final two games to preserve a .300 mark, but he refused), and was one of the top-fielding players at his position in baseball (his 22 assists from left led the majors). After a number of years in Montreal, he spent the bulk of the 1980s playing in Japan.
Chris Speier, IF:
The Expos' shortstop was coming off a disappointing 1977 that had seen him traded early on from the Giants to Montreal. He had a hard time adjusting to his new circumstances during 1977 and looked to 1978 to be a better year all around. His hopes came true - he got off to his best start in years, so much so he was moved up in the order. Towards the end of May he was forced to miss a week because of a shoulder injury stemming from being hit by a John Urrea pitch. In the end, he put up his best offensive numbers since 1975 - 5 HR, 51 RBI, .251 average.
Andre Dawson, OF:
In only the second year of his hall of fame career, Andre was already one of the best young outfielders in the game. He improved on his power numbers from his rookie campaign - his 25 HRs led the club, and he drove in 72 runs. His average fell by about 30 points to .253 thanks in large part to a prolonged June/July slump. He stole 28 bases, far and away the most on the team, and he led the majors with 17 assists from center field.
Sam Mejias, OF:
An all-purpose outfield reserve and pinch-hitter, Sam got into 67 games in 1978. He was initially slated to regularly replace Cromartie in left in the late innings but Cromartie's defensive improvement ended that idea.
Del Unser, OF:
Del served as Tony Perez' regular late-inning replacement at first, and also did general outfield reserve and pinch-hitting duties. In 38 PH at-bats, he got only 3 hits for a .078 average (by late July, Montreal's regular pinch-hitters - Unser, Mejias, Garrett and Papi - had posted a combined .132 average; the pitchers were hitting .158). It was an anomoly for Del, as he was generally a reliable pinch-hitter, and would prove valuable in that role for the 1980 champion Phillies.
Ellis Valentine, OF:
In 1978, Ellis was one of best young outfielders in baseball. He hit .289, tied for the team lead with 25 HR, drove in 76 runs, and had a cannon for an arm in right field - he led the majors with 25 outfield assists and won a Gold Glove. He could occasionally let his emotions get the better of him, however. He was ejected by Doug Harvey on May 31 after hitting Cubs' catcher Dave Rader, triggering a brawl. Later, he became the first Expo ever suspended by the team (September 20 to 22) when Williams pegged him for failing to run out a ground ball, and for making unkind gestures at the fans.
Jerry White, OF:
Jerry saw very limited action as an outfield reserve and pinch-hitter before being sent to Denver on May 22. On June 23 he was sent to the Cubs as the player-to-be-named-later in the deal which had brought Woodie Fryman to the Expos earlier in the month.
In-Season Moves:
Dan Schatzeder, RP:
Dan was summoned from Denver on May 12 in anticipation of Fred Holdsworth being placed on the DL. He worked out of the pen from then until late June, when was inserted into the rotation. In all he compiled a 7-7 record and 3.07 era.
Ed Herrmann, C:
The veteran catcher was purchased from the Astros on June 9. He served as Gary Carter's primary back-up the rest of the way. In 19 games, he hit just .175. His final major league appearance was as a pinch-hitter in Pittsburgh on September 15 - he got a hit.
Mike Garman, CL:
Obtained from the Dodgers on May 20th for two minor leaguers, Mike quickly fell into the closer's role. In that capacity, he finished 29 games, earning 13 saves and a 4-6 record. On August 9, he refused to enter a game because he felt he had been overworked. His punishment was that Williams sat him for 2 weeks. He also made no secret of the fact he didn't appreciate his trade from L.A. He was released by Montreal late in spring training, 1979, and never played in the majors again. His final major league appearance came on September 29 in St. Louis.
Woodie Fryman, SP:
Woodie was obtained from the Cubs for a player-to-be-named-later on June 9, and couldn't have been happier to be back where he played in 1975 and 1976. He made 17 starts the rest of the way, posting a record of 5-7 with 53 strikeouts and an ERA of 3.61. He threw 3 complete game shutouts, including a one-hitter against the Giants on August 16 where the only safety was a 2nd inning single by Darrell Evans. Beginning in 1979, Woodie served as the team's closer for several years.
Gerry Pirtle, RP:
After laboring in the minors since 1967, 30 year-old Gerry was ready to quit baseball when he was released by the Cubs organization in May of 1978. He was signed by Montreal on May 27 and sent to Denver. He was called up on July 2 when Bill Atkinson was sent down. He made his major league debut that same day, throwing 2 scoreless innings in relief of Rudy May against the Cardinals. He didn't give up a run over his first 5 appearances, covering 9.2 innings. His final major league appearance was on September 7. He was shelled in just over an inning of relief work against the Mets.
Tom Hutton, IF:
Purchased from Toronto on July 20, Tom spent the rest of the season as an infield/outfield reserve. He played primarily at first, taking over for Del Unser as Perez' late-inning replacement, and allowing Unser to play almost exclusively in the outfield in August and September.
Scott Sanderson, SP:
Scott was called up from Denver on August 1. His major league debut was on August 6 at Wrigley Field - he started, and went 5.1 innings, surrendering 6 hits but only 1 run in the Expos' eventual loss. He started another 8 games, compiling a 4-2 record. On September 24, he threw a 3-hit shutout against the Pirates.
David Palmer, RP:
A September call-up, David made his major league debut on September 9. He pitched a perfect 9th inning in the Expos' loss to the Cubs. After 3 more relief appearances, he made a spot start on September 26 in Philadelphia, lasted 4 innings and took the loss.
Bob James, RP:
Called up in September from Memphis, Bob was pressed into starting duties for his major league debut on the the 7th against the Mets - he threw one inning, surrendered 4 runs and took the loss. He made 3 relief appearances the rest of the way.
Randy Miller, RP:
A September call-up, Randy made 5 relief appearances. The last of these, on September 16 at Pittsburgh, was his final major league appearance. He pitched a single inning, and gave up 6 runs on 6 hits.
Jerry Fry, C:
Jerry was called up from Denver when rosters expanded in September. In Denver, he had hit .294 with 6 HR and 40 RBI. With the Expos, he made his major league debut on September 4th at Wrigley, and made his final major league appearance on the 9th against the Cubs in Montreal. For his career, he was hitless in 9 at-bats, going down on strikes 5 times.
Bobby Ramos, C:
Another young catcher to get a September audition, Bobby made his major league debut on the 26th as a pinch-hitter in Philadelphia. He started on the 30th in St. Louis, and wouldn't see big league action again until 1980.
Billy Gardner
Summary of Roster Moves:
May 12 - Schatzeder from Denver (active roster to 25)
May 15 - Holdsworth to DL (active roster to 24)
May 20 - Garman from Dodgers (active roster to 25)
May 22 - White to Denver (active roster to 24)
June 5 - Bahnsen to DL (active roster to 23)
June 9 - Herrmann from Astros (active roster to 24)
June 9- Fryman from Cubs (active roster to 25)
June 12 - Reece to Denver (active roster to 24)
June 27 - Bahnsen from DL (active roster to 25)
July 2 - Atkinson to Denver, Pirtle from Denver
July 20 - Hutton from Blue Jays, Garrett to Cardinals
July 20 - May to DL (active roster to 24)
August 1 - Sanderson from Denver
September 1 - May from DL
September 20-22 - Valentine suspended
September Call-Ups: Atkinson, Palmer, James, Miller,
Fry, Ramos and Reece
Jim Brewer
Expos' Coaches:
Stade Olympique/Olympic Stadium
4545 Pierre de Coubertin Ave.
Montreal, Quebec
Other 1978 Expos Stuff:
Owner - Charles Bronfman
General Manager - Charlie Fox
Minor League Affiliates:
A (short season): Jamestown Expos (NY-Penn League)
44-28, 2nd of 5
Manager: Pat Daugherty
Future Star: Tony Phillips
A: West Palm Beach Expos (Florida State League)
67-77, 5th of 5
Manager: Larry Bearnarth
Future Star: Tim Raines
AA: Memphis Chicks (Southern League)
71-73, 2nd of 5
Manager: Michael Bell/Felipe Alou
Future Star: Bill Gullickson
AAA: Denver Bears (American Association)
64-71, 2nd of 4
Manager: Doc Edwards
Future Star: Tony Bernazard
Norm Sherry
Ozzie Virgil
Mickey Vernon
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