Cub fans aren't going to want to hear this, but when Andre "hawk" Dawson is inducted into the Hall of Fame this summer, an expos cap should be displayed on his plaque. Dawson, who waited 10 years to be voted into the Hall Of Fame, played for 4 teams over the course of 21 seasons. As most know, he broke in with the expos, playing for 11 years (1976-1986). Dawson then came to the cubs as a free agent, allowing the cubs to pay him any "fair" deal--anything to escape the astroturf of Montreal's Olympic Stadium and play 81 more games a year on natural grass at Wrigley Field. Dawson went on to play for the cubs for 6 seasons (1987-1992) before finishing his career with the redsox and marlins. The events leading to Dawson's signing as a cub are legendary. In the the mid 1980's, with the cubs at their peak as being a miserly, penny-pinching organization, it was a miracle that a player of Dawson's stature and ability would be willing as a free agent to play for a salary significantly under his market value just to play on natural grass more often. Cub fans rooted for Andre because he was a great player; they embraced him for wanting to be a cub. Beautiful story, but this should have little to do with deciding on the hat that Andre wears into Cooperstown.
The decision regarding the cap on the Hall of Fame plaque (classic cubby blue vs. weird, Euro-looking, multi colored "elb") should come down to two factors: longevity with a team and statistics with a team.
Take a look at the longevity factor. Andre spent 11 years with les expos, compared to only 6 with the cubs. During those 11 years, Dawson was part of something very special in Montreal. As much as hawk stood out as a rare 5-tool talent with the expos, there were several other great players that the expos developed during that era. The expo organization fielded some highly competitive teams in the late 70's and early 80's culminating in an eastern division title during the strike shortened season of 1981. In a way, Dawson's tenure with the expos represents this era of expo greats developed within the team's farm system: players like Tim Raines, Gary Carter, Tim Wallach, Steve Rodgers, and Bill Gullickson.
The Hall of Fame, after all, is a museum that aims to celebrate baseball history. If there is a place in Cooperstown to recognize Ozzie Smith doing back flips in the 80's, then there should be a place that commemorates the great scouting and player development of the Montreal Expos from the mid to late 1970's. An argument could be made that former expo Gary Carter's enshrinement into the Hall of Fame several years back is sufficient for representing these great expo teams that are often overlooked. However, while Carter was a great player, some contend that Carter's over enthusiasm rubbed teammates the wrong way, especially during his career with the mets. While there may not be consensus among baseball America that hawk belongs in the hall, the overwhelming sentiment among his teammates is that Dawson was one of the greatest and most respected players in all of major league baseball during his era.
As a member of the cubs, Dawson played for 6 years. Sadly, 5 of the teams he played for were truly horrible, including the last place 1987 team, for which he won the NL MVP. While the 1989 team ranks high among cub fans (including this blogger) for winning an NL eastern division title, that team is more remembered for the accomplishments and over achievements of some young budding stars (Mark Grace, Greg Maddux) along with some one year wonders (Jerome Walton, Dwight Smith) who faded into obscurity. By August of the '89 season, Dawson's knees were completely shot. It's a wonder he could even walk, let alone play, in the '89 NLCS against Will Clark and the San Francisco Giants. Dawson ended up slumping badly in the play off series, which the giants won 4 games to 1.
In terms of statistics, Dawson was great for both teams, but individually achieved more as a member of the expos. As an expo, Dawson was the National League rookie of the year in 1977 and was named to 3 National League All-Star teams (1981, 1982, 1983). In 7 of his 10 years with the expos, Dawson hit at least 20 home runs and stole 20 bases in the same season--something he never did with the cubs. Dawson's unique blend of power and speed, one of his greatest strengths as a player, was clearly more evident in his play with the expos. Dawson did have an incredible season with the cubs in 1987, winning the NL MVP award, and leading the NL in home runs, RBIs, and total bases--but all for a team that finished dead last in the NL eastern division that year. And while Andre did not win the MVP during his time with the expos, he did finish 2nd in voting for the award twice as an expo--once on the 1981 division winning team and again in 1983. Defensively, Dawson was superior with both teams, playing center and right field with the expos in cavernous Olympic Stadium, and as a right fielder with the cubs. Andre ended up winning 8 gold gloves through his career, but won all but two of them while playing for Montreal.
Since being voted into the hall of fame earlier this month, Dawson has made statements about his appreciation for cub fans who supported him during his 6 years with the cubs. Dawson goes down in cubs history as one of the greatest and most respected players in the team's storied franchise. And if the decision was completely up to him, Andre would probably prefer being enshrined as a cub. But his career in Montreal was longer and even better. As much as cub fans may disagree, the Hall of Fame committee should do the right thing and commemorate Dawson by displaying an expos cap on his plaque.
The following sources contributed to this post:
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Expos-or-Cubs-Which-cap-should-Andre-Dawson-wea?urn=mlb,212404
http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/d/dawsoan01.shtml
http://www.ydr.com/ci_12585884
