C.J. KNUDSEN
General Manager – Vermont Expos, Class-A New York-Penn League affiliate of the
Washington Nationals
C.J. began his career in baseball with the Vermont Expos as an intern in 1995. The
following year he graduated from Keane State College in New Hampshire with a
degree in Sports Management. In 1997, C.J. rejoined the team as Assistant
General Manager and in 2000 was promoted to the full-time G.M. When Major
League Baseball announced that the Montreal Expos would move to Washington D.
C. in time for the 2005 season, Vermont decided to play one final season under the
“Expos” name. C.J. recently took the time to answers some questions and shares
his thoughts with Jack Moulds of exposhistoricalsociety.org.
1) You’ve been with the Vermont Expos club for the greater part of the last
decade. Was this season bittersweet in any way in that it was the last under the
“Expos” name?
“It was definitely a season of ups and downs. There were times when the team
showed flashes of brilliance and other times when it looked like they had never
stepped on a field before. But it was an outstanding clubhouse and since it was the
last Expos season, it was pretty neat for us. We sponsored a program on Team
990 Radio in Montreal which used to broadcast the Expos games and that was
great for us. The last home game is when it really hit home that this was it. Then
we finished up in Tri-City and (Francisco) Plasencia hit two home runs. We got on a
roll at the end (winning their last seven games) and it was a nice way to go out.
2) National publications such as The New York Times and Sports Illustrated have
featured the Vermont Expos this year, not to mention ESPN’s SportsCenter did a
live broadcast from Centennial Field. What was it like for a team in a market your
size to receive that type of exposure?
“It really started around June. The New York Daily News did a nice piece on us that
went national. That really increased excitement around here and we got more and
more national exposure. Then we got word that SportsCenter was coming here and
(Owner, Ray) Pecor and I were a little nervous because even though tickets were
selling, they weren’t selling as fast as we had thought. But we ended up selling out
the night before and that really turned out to be the crowning point for this
organization. We were able to showcase the Montreal Expos and our organization
as well as having the best fans in baseball.
3) Despite the rumors, what was it like to run your club in 2004 knowing the parent
club was destined for relocation?
“Well, we we’re limited but even prior to that we had the contraction issue which was
big. When you’re talking about eliminating major league teams, obviously minor
league teams would have to go too and there was a worry that we might be
eliminated. Luckily we got word that we were guaranteed a team whether it be a co-
op or what not. Thankfully that didn’t happen but we were ordering the minimum on
a lot of items for awhile not knowing if we would be here or not.”
General Manager – Vermont Expos, Class-A New York-Penn League affiliate of the
Washington Nationals
C.J. began his career in baseball with the Vermont Expos as an intern in 1995. The
following year he graduated from Keane State College in New Hampshire with a
degree in Sports Management. In 1997, C.J. rejoined the team as Assistant
General Manager and in 2000 was promoted to the full-time G.M. When Major
League Baseball announced that the Montreal Expos would move to Washington D.
C. in time for the 2005 season, Vermont decided to play one final season under the
“Expos” name. C.J. recently took the time to answers some questions and shares
his thoughts with Jack Moulds of exposhistoricalsociety.org.
1) You’ve been with the Vermont Expos club for the greater part of the last
decade. Was this season bittersweet in any way in that it was the last under the
“Expos” name?
“It was definitely a season of ups and downs. There were times when the team
showed flashes of brilliance and other times when it looked like they had never
stepped on a field before. But it was an outstanding clubhouse and since it was the
last Expos season, it was pretty neat for us. We sponsored a program on Team
990 Radio in Montreal which used to broadcast the Expos games and that was
great for us. The last home game is when it really hit home that this was it. Then
we finished up in Tri-City and (Francisco) Plasencia hit two home runs. We got on a
roll at the end (winning their last seven games) and it was a nice way to go out.
2) National publications such as The New York Times and Sports Illustrated have
featured the Vermont Expos this year, not to mention ESPN’s SportsCenter did a
live broadcast from Centennial Field. What was it like for a team in a market your
size to receive that type of exposure?
“It really started around June. The New York Daily News did a nice piece on us that
went national. That really increased excitement around here and we got more and
more national exposure. Then we got word that SportsCenter was coming here and
(Owner, Ray) Pecor and I were a little nervous because even though tickets were
selling, they weren’t selling as fast as we had thought. But we ended up selling out
the night before and that really turned out to be the crowning point for this
organization. We were able to showcase the Montreal Expos and our organization
as well as having the best fans in baseball.
3) Despite the rumors, what was it like to run your club in 2004 knowing the parent
club was destined for relocation?
“Well, we we’re limited but even prior to that we had the contraction issue which was
big. When you’re talking about eliminating major league teams, obviously minor
league teams would have to go too and there was a worry that we might be
eliminated. Luckily we got word that we were guaranteed a team whether it be a co-
op or what not. Thankfully that didn’t happen but we were ordering the minimum on
a lot of items for awhile not knowing if we would be here or not.”
10 Questions with C.J. Knudsen
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