September 16, 2004
Gentlemen, start your lawyers
Stadium negotiations may be going nowhere fast, but the MLB Commissioner's office has nonetheless filed notice with the judge overseeing the RICO suit filed by former Expos minority owners that the league plans "subject to the negotiation of satisfactory terms and the affirmative vote of the major league clubs to relocate the Montreal Expos baseball club in time for the commencement of the 2005 regular season." The RICO plaintiffs promptly indicated that they would file for a preliminary injunction against any relocation, attorney Jeffrey Kessler saying, "We probably will look for a schedule for a hearing to be held in November."
All this will likely be moot if the RICO plaintiffs lose their arbitration ruling next month. If they win, though, and MLB somehow comes up with a plan to move the Expos by then, the team's fate could end up being decided by U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungaro-Benages.
Meanwhile, there's again talk of a "conditional" award of the Expos to D.C., with a permanent home to be determined once it's clear who'll cough up the most stadium cash. As previously noted, this would solve a bunch of problems for MLB, it's unclear whether it would pass muster with the players' union, which has been insisting that baseball pick a permanent home for the team and stick with it.
LATE NOTE: On second read, it's possible the Post meant a "conditional" award in the sense of "We promise to give D.C. the team once it shows us the stadium money." That wouldn't solve so many problems.
