Tributes pour in for ‘Voice of Montreal Expos’ Jacques Doucet, dead at 86

Broadcaster Jacques Doucet, who was the radio voice of the Montreal Expos for 33 years, has died at the age of 86.

His daughter Martine confirmed on social media that Doucet passed away Thursday evening.

The Montreal native began his sports media career as a journalist in 1959 at La Presse Canadienne, covering the Major League Baseball debut season of the Expos in 1969. In 1972, he moved into the radio booth as the French-language play-by-play commentator for Expos games, continuing in that role until the franchise left for Washington after the 2004 season.

Afterward, Doucet continued calling baseball games, eventually becoming the French-language TV voice for the Toronto Blue Jays on TVA Sports from 2011 until his retirement in 2022. By then, his nickname had been refined as the “Voice of Baseball” in Quebec.

Doucet worked alongside Rodger Brulotte, who passed away earlier this year, for many seasons at CKAC.

Let’s listen to the two legendary Expos voices we lost this year.

Here’s the epic broadcast call from Jacques Doucet and Rodger Brulotte at the end of Spring Training in 2018. Native Montreal son Vladimir Guerrero Jr. walks it off in front of 50,000 at the Big O.…

— Montreal Expos (@Montreal_Expos) August 28, 2026

Ever the journalist, he wrote several books, including “Les Secrets du baseball” with former MLB pitcher Claude Raymond and “Il était une fois les Expos,” a history of the franchise, co-written with Marc Robitaille. Doucet also published his autobiography, “Mémoires d’un micro (“Memoirs of a Microphone”) in 2014.

Doucet received the Medal of Honor from the Quebec National Assembly in 2011. He was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2020 and into the Expos Hall of Fame in 2021.

He revealed in 2024 that he was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.

As news of Doucet’s passing spread, tributes poured in from peers, coworkers, friends, and the franchises he called games for.

We join the MLB community and our colleagues at @TVASports in extending our sincere condolences to the family and friends of Jacques Doucet.

The ‘Voice of Baseball’ in Quebec and a Canadian Baseball Hall of Famer – his impact on the game and the Montreal Expos will be remembered… pic.twitter.com/vPzqzIJVI3

— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) August 28, 2026

RIP 2020 Hall of Famer Jacques Doucet

“Jacques Doucet was the French voice of the Montreal Expos for over three decades. Along the way, he invented a whole new glossary of baseball terms to help French-speaking fans understand the game and called virtually every meaningful game… pic.twitter.com/S7lyFHlu6f

— Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum 🇨🇦⚾️ (@CDNBaseballHOF) August 28, 2026

Jacques Doucet, la voix légendaire des Expos de Montréal, nous a quittés.

Derrière le micro pendant presque toute notre histoire, c’est lui qui a créé tout un lexique français du baseball.

Intronisé au Temple de la renommée du baseball canadien en 2020, il mérite aussi sa place… pic.twitter.com/sdXVDdo2eO

— Montreal Expos (@Montreal_Expos) August 28, 2026

As a kid, I remember catching Les Expos in French, understanding none of it, but loving every word of it. I figured out the “lanceur” pitched & eventually learned about the men w/ those voices, Jacques Doucet & Rodger Brulotte, each of whom has recently passed away. Legends. RIP. https://t.co/mHm10mykXr

— Bob Socci (@BobSocci) August 28, 2026

Déclaration des Canadiens à la suite du décès de Jacques Doucet 🕊️

Canadiens statement on the passing of Jacques Doucet pic.twitter.com/631KewQSxq

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) August 28, 2026