This week, I’m starting us off with Andre Dawson from 1981. Even before he came to the Cubs, Andre was one of my favorite baseball players to follow in the 1980s.
Perhaps I was inspired by the latest episode of the The Sports Lunatics co-hosted by APBA fan Howie Mooney. In that episode, he put together an all-time APBA All-Star team for both Canadian baseball teams. You can bet that Andre was on the Expos team.
In 1981, the players went on strike and the season was divided into two halves with the first place teams playing for the honor to represent their divisions. Due to two strong second place showings, Cincinnati had the best overall record in the entire MLB but did not advance to the postseason.
The Montreal Expos did advance thanks to a first place showing in the second half. That was in great part to outfielder Andre Dawson who had a banner year. Missing only five games, Dawson played in 103 with 394 at-bats. He hit .302 with 21 doubles and 24 homeruns.
Dawson, not known for being an on-base kind of guy, still collected 35 walks in the short season and had a .365 OBP. I left his CS stat in his line below. He stole 26 bases and was only caught four times.
| Split | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 Totals | 103 | 441 | 394 | 71 | 119 | 21 | 3 | 24 | 64 | 26 | 4 | 35 | 50 | .302 | .365 | .553 |
At first glance, Dawson’s 1981 card looks very similar to his 1987 card with the Cubs. Aside from not being fast and a few less steal numbers, it is quite similar including the OF-3.
I don’t know what it is about 51-10s or 51-11s . I just get excited seeing them. Add four power numbers to them like Dawson’s 1-5-5-6, I get all tingly.
In fact, this 1981 card is tailor-made for a runner on first. His 5s turn into homeruns. The 10 gets extra value by getting the steal. Plus the 62-22 and 53-15 are both a hit by pitch. One more thing, Dawson ’81 has no 24s which means he won’t be grounding into too many double plays.
What happened to the Expos in the 1981 postseason? ‘Spos may be triggered but here is how it went down against the Dodgers.
That is one depressing video but in a way, I’m glad it exists for historical record.
Good luck with that All-Canadian APBA project, Howie! This one’s for you, eh? If readers want to follow Howie’s podcast, here is the link to The Sports Lunatics.
