Major League Baseball first branched outside the United States when the Montreal Expos held their first home game 51 years ago today.
On April 14, 1969, the Expos hosted the St. Louis Cardinals at Jarry Park Stadium in Montreal Quebec. Former Canadian prime minister Lester B. Pearson threw the first pitch of Montréal's historic game, and the home team later held off a seven-run fourth inning by the Cardinals for an 8-7 victory.
Six days earlier, the Expos had played their first regular-season game in franchise history against the New York Mets at Shea Stadium in Queens.