Ecstasy to Agony: The 1994 Montreal Expos

by Danny Gallagher, Bill Young

Ecstasy to Agony: The 1994 Montreal Expos, How the best team in baseball ended up in Washington ten years later, traces the fortunes of the Expos from that day in 1989 when the organizations original owners Charles Bronfman decided to sell the team and step away from baseball, through to the team's climb to glory in 1994 and then it's final decent into oblivion ten years later.

Genres: Baseball, Sports, Nonfiction

379 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Costa Voutsinas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Looked forward to reading this but did not enjoy the constant repetitive angst of 94 cancellation. Enjoyed the recap of so many memories on the ballfield and even some I was not aware of from off the field.

[Martin Leblanc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best thing next to a ball game in Montréal in 1994.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very well written account of the final decade of Expos baseball. Very well researched and interesting to read. As a diehard Expo fan, who at 12 years old was so angry at MLB for cancelling the World Series, wrote a letter to Bud Selig letting him know, it was fun and sad to recapture the memories of those seasons. Unlike many Expos fans, I did follow the franchise to Washington, even if the history did not for a large number of years. So as sad as I was in 2004 when the Expos left, I have made peace to an extent with it over the last 11 years. Likely tempered by the two playoff appearances by the Nats and their grudging acceptance that they are the Expos, not some relation to the Senators.

My only quibble with the book is that the second half of the book reads more like short newspaper/magazine articles than a flowing story. I realize that once the Expos were shuttled to Washington, there were only dribs and drabs of baseball happenings in Montreal. But I feel that it could have been tied together a little more and woven a more cohesive story. That is what kept the book from being a 5 star read for me.

I still hold hope that one day the Expos will return and play in the NL East (none of this stick them with the Jays in the AL garbage). But for now I can wear my Expos hat to MLB ballparks and even if it is silly, still chant Let's Go Expos!, with the knowledge that in my own small way I am telling MLB that Nos Amours are not dead and alive and well in this fan's heart.

[Dan Lalande · Rating 3 out of 5]

A contextualized look at the ill-fated Montreal Expos of 1994, whose shot at the World Series was curtailed by baseball's notorious labour dispute. It's overlong, hacky and sloppily presented but give it credit for shining light on the organization's unsung heroes, paying close attention to the difficult area of labour relations and holding the team and the city in a loving embrace.

[Mike Matson · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was an interesting look into the factors that caused the team to move to Washington. Also mentioned is the viability of Montreal to become a MLB city again.