Did you know that…

…before becoming the Vermont Lake Monsters, the team was the last professional club to use Expos as their name?

At the end of 2004 baseball season the Montreal Expos announced that they would be moving to Washington D.C. and would change their team name to the Nationals. Minor League Baseball allows teams 60 days from the end of a season to submit a change of name and logo for the following season. This rule left the Expos’ Minor League affiliate in Vermont with no time to make the change, so in 2005 they maintained the Expo moniker while the big club started their new life as the Nationals.

During the 2005 season the Vermont Expos received over 30,000 team name suggestions from fans and in the end Lake Monsters won out. The name refers to the mythical creature located in nearby Lake Champlain. It’s the American version of the Loch Ness Monster who is affectionately known as “Champy.” A mascot version of the creature, named “Champ”, has been around since the team started playing in Burlington in 1994. This new team name allowed the organization to hold on to a bit of their local identity (and the mascot suit).

They did update the logo, opting for a fiercer version of “Champy” or “Champ” (the choice is yours), trading his goofy wagging tongue for a bat in his mouth. The team holds an annual “Tribute to the Expos” game, bringing in former Expos greats while the team dons the old powder blue unis.