Posts Tagged ‘Montreal baseball’

MONTREAL ON THE RADAR, MONTREAL ON THE ROAD

Last week, Major League Baseball chose Rob Manfred to succeed Bud Selig in January as its next Commissioner. I have been asked what my feelings are about this selection and what we are trying to accomplish at Montreal Baseball Project. To begin, the new Commissioner is gap-toothed and has a great personality, which is a great start between him and me. With all of his experience with Major League Baseball and over two decades of labor peace, allowing the game to be successful for so many years, Rob Manfred has a lot going for him.

Rob Manfred

Rob Manfred

Here is my personal top 10 list of what I would like to see him do:

And last, but not least:

The return of baseball to Montreal would be a big part of his legacy, and would immediately reaffirm the international reach of the game and reconnect it with a missing part of its history. I am certain Rob Manfred has had conversations with Bud Selig about Montreal, and is well aware of what we are trying to do. I think he will be fine, and so will we. We have to continue to do what we have been doing and keep our ears open for his first public comments about Montreal as a future location for a franchise.

ROAD WARRIORS

In late July, I had the great pleasure of meeting Gabriel Morissette and Adry Laurin, two Montrealers visiting every MLB stadium this summer to promote the idea of bringing baseball back to this city. I must say I am tremendously proud of these two for going on this 3-month journey in support of this dream we all share. Their initiative demonstrates the groundswell of support there is at the grassroots, particularly among the youth, for the return of MLB to Montreal.

Gabriel Morissette, moi & Adry Laurin

Gabriel Morissette, Warren Cromartie, and Adry Laurin

Every visit of theirs has become an opportunity to strike up a conversation with baseball fans all across America about how deeply the game resonates in Montreal. Their journey is raising a lot of awareness and publicity for what we are trying to do, even though their car is not in the best shape. By the end of this trip, it may find itself in an institution. But as long as they keep changing the oil and the filter, they should be all right. It is great to have that kind of support and dedication, and I encourage you to follow them on Twitter (@mtlontheroad) and check out their blog on their website.

You will definitely want to look out for my next blog, when I will have a couple of announcements pertaining to baseball in Montreal. Stay tuned!

 

Taking It Up A Notch

It's been a while since the phenomenal success of the spring, when Montreal got its first taste of baseball in a decade. It was tremendous to have nearly 100,000 fans pack the Big O for Major League Baseball for the entire world to see. It lit up the city, and baseball became THE topic of conversation in Montreal.

I saw how old fires were rekindled, and how new grassroots were established at the game. Children who had never had the opportunity to watch a baseball game were now taking one in. Just like for many of us, it was the start of something special, a lifelong passion that lives on many years later.

It is disappointing to still hear doubts about what we accomplished, particularly from people who were part of the Expos organization for so many years. Some of them believe this idea of bringing baseball back is a long shot at best. I think they are out of touch, unaware of how much has changed. They are not in the city anymore, and are still stuck in another time, when things weren't quite right.

Overall, I am tremendously pleased with what has been accomplished in the last little while. If it were easy, it would have been done already, but we've put a lot of hard work into the project so far. The progress we have made has turned doubters into believers and I look forward to continuing this journey to make Montreal a big league city again.

Where we are now is right in the middle. We are in a holding pattern, doing what is required and what we can do behind the scenes, until the right opportunity to bring a team here presents itself.

One thing we are not planning to do is build a stadium without a team. We have to continue to approach this with patience, because this is what has put us in the driver's seat ahead of other cities that have shown an interest in Major League Baseball.

We will continue to celebrate Montreal's rich history of baseball, through galas and other events, to light a fire for the future from our successes of the past. We have a strong group that is doing some great work behind the scenes. We are gaining the trust of the public, and are proud to be ambassadors of baseball in Montreal. We are going full steam ahead from here, engaging various people and groups to ensure we keep moving in the right direction.

On July 12, Expos Nation will be making its presence felt at Citi Field in New York at the Mets-Marlins game, as part of its Expos Day initiative. It is an ambitious idea that deserves our support. It also reflects the type of effort we should be looking to make, given what we have accomplished and where we stand today.