We asked broadcaster Dave Van Horne, honoured with the Ford C. Frick Award in Cooperstown in 2011 to pick the top five Montreal Expos who now reside in Cooperstown. Van Horne was the lead play-by-play broadcaster on opening day 1969 ... and it stayed that way for 32 years.

A Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame inductee. Van Horne now works Miami Marlins games as he has since 2001. Van Horne was named the 1996 Jack Graney award winner and in 2014 was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in St. Marys, Ont.

Vlad Guerrero ... rated No. 5 of the Expos in Cooperstown

By Dave Van Horne

Fred Ferreira was the top Latin American scout for the Montreal organization. Fred wasn’t the first to see Vladimir Guerrero; Expos scouts Victor Franco and minor league manager Arturo De Freitas knew all about the the kid brother of Wilton Guerrero, who had been signed by the Dodgers.

In 1992 Ferreira got his first look at Vladimir, in the Dominican Republic after hearing from Franco and De Freitas. At the time, Vladimir was 15, but told everyone he was 16, in hopes of getting a tryout and getting signed. Young Vlad was just a little taller than Wilton’s 5-foot-10, but weighed just 150 pounds. He was dismissed by some scouts, but not the Expos.

When he showed up, riding on the back of a scooter driven by a friend of Franco’s, Ferreira was there for the workout. Vlad arrived wearing a pair of mismatched baseball cleats. He passed all the tests, running and throwing and then in batting practice, took some swings and while running to first base, pulled his hamstring and had to sit on the bench, dejected. Ferreira however, had seen all he needed to see. He signed Vlad, and sent the scooter driver home without the passenger he brought to the workout.

The Dodgers kept Vladimir on their radar screen just to keep Wilton happy. They passed on Vlad, and that may be one of the biggest scouting mistakes the Dodgers ever made. The same team that didn’t think Pedro Martinez was big enough and strong enough to be a starting pitcher. Go Expos!

In Montreal, we’d heard from Ferreira and others, including Felipe Alou, about the raw talent that Guerrero possessed. He was immediately on the fast track after signing and getting through the early professional tests in the Dominican. When Vlad arrived in the big leagues in the fall of 1996, we got a first glimpse.

He hit his first home run off Mark Wohlers of the Braves, ran all over the outfield trying catch any ball hit in the air and at times bounced off the outfield wall, or the side wall in the corner. Vlad thought, if its in the ballpark, “I got it!” Felipe had to step in. He alone, would be Guerrero’s hitting coach, outfield coach and base running coach. The other coaches were told that only Felipe would handle the coaching and instruction of Vladimir Guerrero. Felipe had to keep the player healthy and on the field, so that meant Vlad had to play under more control in the outfield, and on the base paths.

Spring training 1997 was Vlad’s first big league camp. He did so well, that the Expos traded Cliff Floyd to make room for Guerrero in right field. On the final day of spring training, in a game against the Baltimore Orioles, he was hit by a Mike Mussina pitch, and the foot injury cost him the first 28 days of the season. He played another 29 games and pulled a hamstring, missing two weeks. He returned to play another 17 games and got hurt again, hit by a pitch in a game vs the Reds, and was out another two weeks.

He missed 12 of the final 19 games due to general soreness. He was just black and blue, giving 100% effort every time he was on the field. His rookie year consisted of 90 games. When he was healthy, he was sensational. He batted .302 with 35 extra base hits or 35.7% of his 98 total hits.

With his injury plagued season behind him, Vlad put together a wonderful second year in 1998, you can look it up! 324/.371/.589, 38 home runs, 190 RBIs, 108 runs and played in 159 games.

That season, was the beginning of his All Star, MVP and Hall of Fame calibre career that spanned 16 seasons.

No question, he was one of the All Time Fan favorites; the prodigious power of his bat and arm, his long strides and speed to cover vast territory in the outfield, and a big smile that lit up the ballpark. He was a kid, playing a man’s game in the big leagues and enjoyed every moment on the field.

Vlad spent seven seasons (eight, if you count those nine games in 1996) in the Expos uniform, six with the Angels, where in 2004 he won the AL MVP award, then two more with Texas and Baltimore. To me, he was an Expo. Signed, developed and delivered to the majors as an Expo.

The City of Montreal loved him and made him comfortable. Felipe Alou guided him through early struggles and was like a father to Vlad. Felipe never stopped teaching him the finer points of the game. The organization even acquired his brother Wilton in July of 1998, adding to his level of comfort in the city and in the big leagues. The team also made him a man, wealthy beyond his dreams. Free agency made him a rich man, beyond his wildest expectations.

This marvelous talent, who came from a poor family of nine children, got off the Island, as did his brother. To see all of the career numbers, check the plaque at the Hall of Fame.

I’ve been privileged to have seen so many terrific players over my time, 32 years, in Montreal. These five players made it from sandlot ball and the Little Leagues through the ranks to Major League Baseball and beyond. The beyond being Cooperstown.

There is nothing in the game beyond that honor. These players are the Expos who have done it all.