Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Who Should Have the Right?
Andre Dawson is now in the Hall of Fame. I don't think too many people would contest that.
What some people are contesting though is the choice of baseball cap Dawson's HOF plaque will display when it gets mounted in Cooperstown.
The suits who take care of such decisions opted for Dawson to adorn the Montreal Expos ball cap.
But Dawson isn't too happy about it. Here was his response to that announcement:
"It was a little gut-wrenching for me to hear that but it's their decision."
"I'm disappointed," Dawson told a Chicago radio station, "I can proudly say that because Chicago was my preference."
Dawson played 11 seasons with Montreal, 6 with Chicago, and he also stayed for a cup of coffee with both Boston & Florida. I was going to Google whether or not he won a World Series with the Cubs, but then I remembered they haven't won anything in over 100 years.
Anyway, the Hawk's comments are kinda deflating for those who supported the Expos back in their heyday (emphasis on the word heyday, as the team only averaged about 273 fans each game after the lockout year). You'd hope he'd be proud to wear the logo of the team that brought him into the league, won rookie of the year, almost all of his gold gloves and was part of the Montreal team that won it's only playoff series against the Philadelphia Phillies.
But Chicago is his choice, where he won a league MVP in 1987.
I say if Dawson's heart is really set on wearing the Cubs ball cap, so be it. If I was the owner of the Expos (well, I guess that's kind of impossible now) I wouldn't want to force anyone who didn't want to wear my team's logo to do it.
And in Dawson's case, do you really want to have your image affiliated with a team that no longer exists because of bad ownership, fan apathy and MLB ineptness?
There's history to consider, sure, and that's the main reason why the Hall went with the choice it did. Still, shouldn't it be up to the player?
# posted by SBP : 9:25 PM
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It used to be more or less up to the player, but that left room for all sorts of malfeasance. The rumour when Wade Boggs signed with the Tampa Bay Rays at the end of his career was that his contract included a clause that his HOF plaque bear an image of the august third baseman wearing a Rays cap, even though all his accomplishments came in a Red Sox cap (and a few years with the Yankees). Dawson's comments are hurtful for Canadian ball fans, and old Expos fans in particular, but I guess with no team left in Montreal there's a sense of "who cares." Fact is The Hawk spent 11 seasons with the Expos, and 6 in Chicago, while racking up the numbers you quoted. There are more Cubs fans than there ever were Expos fans, so there's bound to be some disappointment over this, but I think the Hall board got this right. There's already an Expos cap in there, though -- Gary Carter, but you can bet he'd have rather gone in wearing a Mets cap. Even in death, the Expos can't get no respect.
That's funny...no idea that was Wrigley field! If there's one player that might actually be happy to don the Expos cap in the Hall, it's Tim Raines. I know it's the most difficult Hall to get into, but looking at his numbers, I don't see how Raines can't get in. I remember him in an interview one time where he said, yes, I won two World Series as a Yankee, but I always think of myself as an Expo. Hopefully, he'll be elected to the Hall and he'll be proud to be remembered as a Montreal Expo at the same time.
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