The 1988 Montreal Expos season was the 20th season in franchise history. The Expos finished in third place in the National League East at 81–81, 20 games behind the New York Mets.

Offseason December 7, 1987: Dave Engle was signed as a free agent by the Expos.Dave Engle page at Baseball Reference December 16, 1987: Bryn Smith was signed as a free agent by the Expos.Bryn Smith page at Baseball Reference December 18, 1987: Rex Hudler was signed as a free agent by the Expos.Rex Hudler page at Baseball Reference December 18, 1987: Dennis Martínez was signed as a free agent by the Expos.Dennis Martínez page at Baseball Reference March 5, 1988: Otis Nixon was signed as a free agent by the Expos.Otis Nixon page at Baseball Reference March 24, 1988: Graig Nettles was purchased by the Expos from the Atlanta Braves.Graig Nettles page at Baseball Reference CFL quarterback Matt Dunigan retired from the Canadian Football League in 1988 and chased a childhood dream of professional baseball. Dunigan attended an open tryout with the Montreal Expos and was one of two players selected to sign a contract.

Spring training The Expos held spring training at West Palm Beach Municipal Stadium in West Palm Beach, Florida – a facility they shared with the Atlanta Braves. It was their 12th season at the stadium; they had conducted spring training there from 1969 to 1972 and since 1981.

Regular season

Opening Day starters Hubie Brooks Tom Foley Andrés Galarraga Dennis Martínez Tim Raines Jeff Reed Luis Rivera Tim Wallach Mitch Webster

Expos pitcher Pascual Pérez threw a five-inning rain-shortened no-hitter against the Phillies on September 24, 1988. It was the first no-hitter in Veterans Stadium history. Perez allowed one walk, and another Phillies baserunner reached on an error. Umpire Harry Wendelstedt waved off the game after a 90-minute rain delay after the game was stopped by a steady rain with one out in the top of the sixth. However, due to a statistical rule change in 1991, no-hitters must last at least nine innings to count. As a result of the retroactive application of the new rule, this game and thirty-five others are no longer considered no-hitters.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Notable transactions July 13, 1988: Jeff Reed, Herm Winningham, and Randy St. Claire were traded by the Expos to the Cincinnati Reds for Tracy Jones and Pat Pacillo.Tracy Jones page at Baseball Reference July 14, 1988: Dave Engle was released by the Expos. July 14, 1988: Mitch Webster was traded by the Expos to the Chicago Cubs for Dave Martinez. July 23, 1988: Casey Candaele was traded by the Expos to the Houston Astros for Mark Bailey.Casey Candaele page at Baseball Reference September 1, 1988: The Expos traded a player to be named later to the Texas Rangers for Tom O'Malley. The Expos completed the deal by sending Jack Daugherty to the Rangers on September 13.Jack Daugherty page at Baseball Reference

Draft picks June 1, 1988: 1988 Major League Baseball draft Marquis Grissom was drafted by the Expos in the 3rd round. Player signed June 13, 1988.Marquis Grissom page at Baseball Reference Bret Barberie was drafted by the Montreal Expos in the 7th round.Bret Barberie page at Baseball Reference

Major League debuts Batters: Jeff Huson (Sep 2) Johnny Paredes (Apr 29) Pitchers: Tim Barrett (Jul 18) Brian Holman (Jun 25) Randy Johnson (Sep 15)

Roster 1988 Montreal Expos Roster Pitchers

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Manager

Coaches (Pitching) (Assistant) (Hitting) (Bullpen) (Third Base) (First Base)

Player stats = Indicates team leader

Batting

Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI SB C Nelson Santovenia 92 309 73 .236 8 41 2 1B 157 609 184 .302 29 92 13 2B 127 377 100 .265 5 43 2 SS Luis Rivera 123 371 83 .224 4 30 3 3B 159 592 152 .257 12 69 2 LF 109 429 116 .270 12 48 33 CF Mitch Webster 81 259 66 .255 2 13 12 RF 151 588 164 .279 20 90 7

Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI SB Otis Nixon 90 271 66 .244 0 15 46 77 216 59 .273 4 14 29 Dave Martinez 63 191 49 .257 2 12 16 Mike Fitzgerald 63 155 42 .271 5 23 2 Tracy Jones 53 141 47 .333 2 15 9 Jeff Reed 43 123 27 .220 0 9 1 Casey Candaele 36 116 20 .172 0 4 1 Wallace Johnson 86 94 29 .309 0 3 0 Graig Nettles 80 93 16 .172 1 14 0 Johnny Paredes 35 91 17 .187 1 10 5 Herm Winningham 47 90 21 .233 0 6 4 Jeff Huson 20 42 13 .310 0 3 2 34 37 8 .216 0 1 0 Tom O'Malley 14 27 7 .259 0 2 0 Wilfredo Tejada 8 15 4 .267 0 2 0

Pitching

Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 34 235.1 15 13 2.72 120 32 198.0 12 10 3.00 122 Pascual Pérez 27 188.0 12 8 2.44 131 John Dopson 26 168.2 3 11 3.04 101 Brian Holman 18 100.1 4 8 3.23 58 Floyd Youmans 14 84.0 3 6 3.21 54 4 26.0 4 0 2.42 25

Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO Neal Heaton 32 97.1 3 10 4.99 43

Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G W L SV ERA SO Tim Burke 61 3 5 18 3.40 42 Andy McGaffigan 63 6 0 4 2.76 71 Jeff Parrett 61 12 4 6 2.65 62 Joe Hesketh 60 4 3 9 2.85 64 Bob McClure 19 1 3 2 6.16 12 Randy St. Claire 6 0 0 0 6.14 6 5 0 0 1 3.12 4 4 0 0 1 5.79 5 Rich Sauveur 4 0 0 0 6.00 3

Award winners Tim Wallach, Gold Glove Award

1988 Major League Baseball All-Star Game Andrés Galarraga, first base, reserve

Farm system LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: IndianapolisJohnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007

References

External links 1988 Montreal Expos team page at Baseball Reference 1988 Montreal Expos team page at www.baseball-almanac.com