March 11, 2004
Selig on Expos: Mumble mumble
The latest on the Montreal Expos fiasco from MLB grand poobah Bud Selig, as told to SI's Tom Verducci:
- "We [have said we'd like to find a buyer]Ýby the All-Star Game this year and I really hope [that's the case]. ... The relocation committee is hard at work and we all agree by the middle of the season we ought to have a buyer and a site." This appears to be backing off from second-in-command Bob DuPuy's earlier promise that a new home for the Expos would be decided upon this year.
- On the possibility of moving the Expos to Las Vegas: "Look, life is not what it was two or three decades ago. Gambling is legal, there are casinos within miles of most every ballpark in the major leagues." Anyone feel like counting?
- On the possibility of moving the Expos to D.C. or Northern Virginia, which Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos has griped would squeeze his team's market: "Look, I've always been sensitive about moving teams without proper thought. For instance, [moving the A's to Oakland created] a two-team market in which both teams have struggled for decades. That was just poor planning." As Doug Pappas notes: "In the 36 seasons since the Bay Area became a two-team market, the two clubs have made the playoffs a combined 21 times, as often as the two New York clubs (giving the Yankees credit for strike-shortened 1994). This compares to eight playoff appearances for the two Chicago teams and 14 for the two Los Angeles clubs over the same period."
- On whether the whole Expos saga had become an embarrassment to baseball: "I don't know if 'embarrassment' is the right word."
Posted by Neil deMause
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