Longtime Canadian Press and Expos beat writer Richard Milo named winner of Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s Jack Graney Award
Longtime Canadian Press writer Richard Milo has been named the winner of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s 2022 Jack Graney Award.
The St. Marys, Ont.-based shrine presents this award annually to a member of the media who has made significant contributions to baseball in Canada through their life’s work.
“Richard Milo’s articles were essential reading for French-speaking baseball fans in our country,” said Jeremy Diamond, chair of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame’s board of directors. “For more than two decades, he was one of the most talented and respected writers on the Expos’ beat and we’re proud to recognize him with this award.”
Born in 1950 in Montreal, Milo was a standout outfielder for the Laval-Ahuntsic of the Montreal Junior Baseball League during his teens and was a member of the Quebec teams that won the Canadian Junior Championships in 1970 and 1971.
He was also the only player from Quebec to suit up for Canada in the 1975 Intercontinental Cup which was held in Moncton, N.B. and Montreal. During that tournament, Milo batted against U.S. pitcher Scott Sanderson, a right-hander he’d later cover on the Expos beat. Canada lost in the bronze medal game to Nicaragua in that tournament.
Following his playing career, Milo started a sportswriting career, working for weeklies, Le Petit Journal and Le Patrie, before moving on to Le Devoir in 1978. He started covering the Expos in 1977 and was present on October 3, 1981 when the Expos clinched their first and only postseason berth with a 5-4 win over the New York Mets at Shea Stadium.
In 1985, Milo joined the French service of the Canadian Press where he would cover the Expos until the club moved to Washington after 2004 campaign.
During his tenure on the Expos’ beat, he reported on the club’s highs and lows and was one of a select group of writers to be present for two perfect games. He witnessed Expos right-hander Dennis Martinez throw one against the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 28, 1991 and then watched New York Yankees right-hander David Cone toss one against the Expos on July 18, 1999.
After the Expos left town, Milo continued to be a prominent sportswriter, covering hockey, soccer and the CFL in his home province. He retired from the Canadian Press in 2008 but later contributed to NHL.com in 2011 when they launched a French version of their site.
Milo was inducted in the Quebec Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007.
“I was speechless when I received the call. It is such a great honour,” said Milo of being the recipient of the 2022 Jack Graney Award. “I was fortunate to cover two perfect games and now, this award! I fell in love with the game when I was young and ever since, it has been fun and rewarding.”
Details about the presentation of the 2023 Jack Graney Award will be announced in the coming months.
Born in St. Thomas, Ont., Jack Graney was a scrappy leadoff hitter in the big leagues for Cleveland. His big league resume boasts a number of firsts. When he walked to the plate in a game against the Boston Red Sox on July 11, 1914, he became the first batter to face Babe Ruth. Almost two years later, on June 26, 1916, he was the first major leaguer to bat wearing a number on his uniform. After hanging up his spikes, Graney became the first ex-player to make the transition to the broadcast booth, performing radio play-by-play for Cleveland from 1932 to 1953.
Previous Winners of the Jack Graney Award:
1987 – Neil MacCarl – Toronto Star
1988 – Milt Dunnell – Toronto Star
1990 – Austin “Dink” Carroll – Montreal Gazette
1991 – Joe Crysdale & Hal Kelly – CKEY
1996 – Dave Van Horne – Montreal Expos
2001 – Tom Cheek – Sportsnet 590/The Fan
2002 – Ernie Harwell – Detroit Tigers
2003 – Allan Simpson – Baseball America
2004 – Jacques Doucet – Montreal Expos
2005 – Len Bramson – TBS Sports
2009 – Ian MacDonald – Montreal Gazette
2010 – Bob Elliott – Sun Media & canadianbaseballnetwork.com
2011 – W. P. Kinsella – “Shoeless Joe” novel adapted to film “Field of Dreams”
2012 – Jerry Howarth – Sportsnet 590/The Fan
2013 – Rodger Brulotte – Montreal Expos, Toronto Blue Jays
2014 – Richard Griffin – Toronto Star
2015 – Serge Touchette – Le Journal de Montreal
2016 – Larry Millson – Globe and Mail
2017 – Alison Gordon – Toronto Star
2018 – Jeff Blair – Sportsnet
2019 – Ken Fidlin – Toronto Sun
2020 – Dan Shulman – Rogers Sportsnet, ESPN
2021 – John Lott, National Post, The Athletic
2022 – Richard Milo, Canadian Press
