Yes, I know this is a baseball card blog.. And there will likely be Topps Now cards made of what I'm going to talk about in this..
This will not be a card post..
This is an Expos post..
Or more specifically, the Washington Nationals wearing Expos uniforms celebrating the 50th anniversary of the team..
The problem is... The Expos ceased to exist in 2004.. So...
How are the Nationals celebrating the 50th anniversary of a team that ceased to exist when they moved? Did the Twins do this? Have the Rangers done this? I don't remember hearing those teams ever wearing the Senators uniforms after they moved.. So why are the Nationals celebrating the Expos? Is it because of the groundswell to get the Expos back??
Is it because, unlike Washington, there are people who actually want the team back? I mean, there's a reason the Nationals are the third team in modern era MLB
So yeah.. I'm not happy about the uniforms.. I mean, they were well done.. I will show pictures from today's game below.. But in my, and a lot of others online's opinions, this is a slap to the face of Expos fans.
The Nationals beat the Royals 6-0
I think it's cool. Honestly, I hate the Hurricanes with the fire of a thousand suns but when they wore Whalers colors I just..let it go. It was great seeing the old team represented, even for a game or two. That picture of Max Scherzer in Expos blue is awesome.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the Twins did wear Washington throwbacks and so did the Texas Rangers.
I saw those afterwards..
DeleteI don't like it. Not a bit.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think about the Montreal Expos... the Nationals aren't a part of those thoughts. It's weird though... because I have no problem associating my beloved Athletics with Kansas City and Philadelphia. Maybe it's the fact that when the Expos moved to Washington, they changed their name too.
ReplyDeleteThat is a big difference though.. The A's kept their name throughout their history.. Same with the Braves, once they settled on the Braves name..
DeleteAs a lifelong Expos fan, I'm 100% with you on this.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is there was no continuity between the Expos and Nationals - I don't know of any Expos fans who transferred their allegiance to the Nationals (more went to the Jays) and until now Washington has basically acted like it was an expansion team with no pre-2005 history rather than a successor to the Expos - they don't even recognize Montreal's retired numbers (which are acknowledged by the Habs.....) or use Youppi as their mascot (again....thank Habs).
So its just weird. I hope that whenever Montreal gets a franchise (either they Rays or maybe an expansion team), Washington gives them the rights to use the Expos logo, name, etc because they just aren't up to the task of honoring the Expos' tradition.
It just reeks of opportunistic cash grab to me.. They know there's a lot of momentum for baseball back in Montreal and specifically, the Expos.. So they're thinking why not hop on the gravy train..
DeleteBut I'm cynical lol