Ottawa Lynx (1993-2007)

What Happened?

The Ottawa Lynx started off in 1993 as the AAA affiliate of the Montreal Expos, and played in the International League. They were brought into town by Howard Darwin, a successful Ottawa business man. A beautiful 10,332 seat stadium in the East end out town was built, and from the get go the fans showed up in droves.

Throughout the first season, sell-outs were a usual and almost constant occurrence. Baseball was at the height of its' popularity at the time. Their affiliation with the nearby Expos, and the success of the Toronto Blue Jays, who were on their way to winning their second straight World Series had most of Canada suffering from baseball fever.

The Lynx were a good team right from the start, as their parents, the Expos, were on their way to being one of the best in the big leagues. This meant a lot of good young players had to spend some time with the Lynx before getting the chance to move up to the big club. That talent culminated as the team with the International League Championship in just their third season (1995).

Despite the early success, attendance soon dropped considerably. The Major League Baseball Labor Strike in '94, and a shaky ownership situation are two major reasons why the fans stopped supporting baseball in Ottawa. Ray Pecor, had purchased the team from Darwin in 2000, and lost money on it every season until the end. Then in 2003, their affiliation with the Expos ended, due to the uncertainty of the Expos future. The Lynx then became the AAA affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. That relationship ended at the end of the 2006 season, and the Lynx then became the farm team for the Philadelphia Phillies, before their impending move to Allentown, PA for the 2008 season.

After that, the Lynx existence was no more. The lynx played their last game in September of 2007. The Phillies AAA team relocated to beautiful Allentown, Pennsylvania, and became the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs.

Baseball did come back to Ottawa in the form of the Ottawa Rapidz. The team plays in the Can-Am Baseball League, a non-affiliated Single A League. Early indications are that the Rapidz will not last too long, as baseball and Ottawa still don't mix.

Notable Players

Jose Vidro
F.P. Santangelo
Matt Stairs
Rondell White
Cliff Floyd
Orlando Cabrera
Ugueth Urbina
Kirk Rueter
Curtis Pride
Jamey Carroll
Michael Barrett
Javier Vazquez
Walter Young
Chris Roberson

Mascots

Lenny The Lynx
Skratch (sending Lenny to the Graveyard)

Tearjerking Lynx Tribute

RIP OTTAWA LYNX

Enter the Graveyard

The sports world is a place for hopes, dreams and investments. Fans follow their teams game in and game out, in hopes that they'll see them hoist the trophy at the end of the year. Athletes dream about hitting big shots and making big coin. And on top of all the investments the fans and the players make, the owner's invest a lot of time and money into their teams.

Here at the Sports Graveyard, we know the world of professional sports can be a funny place. Sometimes things work out for an organization, and other times they don't. No matter the case, they all started out with big promise. No team, or business, ever starts off with failure in their sights. As fans of sports we hate to see teams leave their towns, or fold all together. But we also like to remember those teams for what they were, in good times and in bad.

Tune in when you can to help us mourn the teams we've lost through stories, pictures, video, and the odd opinion.

From the depths of the Graveyard,

The Grim Reaper