Watertown Expos

From BR Bullpen

From 1923 through 2006, the only minor league team in Watertown, South Dakota, has been the Watertown Expos. They played in the last two years of the longest-running edition of the Northern League.

In 1970, the club debuted, managed by Bobby Malkmus. Outscored 427-375, they finished 32-38, 4th in the six-team league, and were last in attendance (14,475). The league picked no All-Star team, but clear top performers included Paul Sullivan (5-5, 2 Sv, a league-leading 1.99 ERA) and Dale Harrington (9-2, 4 Sv, 3.03, 103 K in 101 IP, tied for second in the league in wins). At the plate, 2B Steve Angelo (.304/~.356/.399) led the league in hits (86) and was 10th in average, while OF Tony Scott (.251/~.328/.428) was third in home runs (10) and led in outfield assists (12).

The next season, the Expos drew just 8,825 fans, less than half any of the 3 other remaining NL teams. Bob Oldis managed the club to a last-place 30-40-1 finish in which they were outscored 539-426, last in both runs and fewest runs allowed. Dan Warthen (9-3, 3.96) had an ERA over two points less than the team average and led the league in hits allowed (109) and complete games (10) while finishing sixth in ERA. SS Larry Lintz hit .280/~.495/.362 to pace the offense. He tied for the league lead with 87 walks and stole 25 bases while only getting caught four times. He scored 64 runs in 65 games. He led the Northern League in OBP that year.

Sources: 1971-1972 Baseball Guides

Year-by-Year Record[edit]

Year Record Finish Manager Playoffs
1970 32-38 4th Bobby Malkmus none
1971 30-40 4th Bob Oldis none