Goodbye Gary

I was never the biggest Montreal Expos fan. Yes, I watched Dave Van Horne and Duke Snider many a time on CBC, but I just never caught on to the Expos the way I did with the Blue Jays (my 2nd favourite team behind the Cubs). However, there was one player on the Expos that you couldn't help but like and that was Gary Carter. The catcher had that infectious smile and a tremendous talent. He showed his hustle each and every day. He never took an at-bat off and he became the best player in the history of the club. His style made him a fan favourite. Ask many a person who watched the Expos on a day-to-day basis during his years and they would likely tell you "The Kid" was their favourite. Young ballplayers grew up wanting to be like Carter. I know I wanted to play the game the way he did. I didn't want to be a catcher, but I wanted to have the same love of the game that he had.

I knew the day would come when news would come that Carter was gone, but there was still a lump in my throat when that news became official Thursday afternoon. Carter is just another who has left us long before he should have because of a disease that I truly hope some day can be cured.

I leave this post with what was his last hit as a major leaguer and the obvious love that was shown to him by the Expos fan base.



Thanks for the memories Gary. You are an all-time great and there are still many out there who wish they could play the game the way you did.