July 13, 2004 [LINK]
ALL STAR GAME
Poor Roger! Was that awful 6-run first inning some kind of divine retribution for having had second thoughts about "retiring" from the Yankees and then joining the Astros? As of the sixth inning, the score is AL 9, NL 4.
The Washington Post ran a front-page story on Sunday exposing the weak link in the campaign to bring the Expos to the Washington area: jealousies and distrust between D.C. and Northern Virginia. How many Washingtonians would drive out to Dulles for a night game, knowing that they wouldn't get back home until after midnight? One D.C. official even cast doubt on whether RFK Stadium would be available for a Virginia team on temporary basis. Yikes! The way MLB honchos are playing Virginia against the District for bargaining purposes may end up ruining everything. One thing is almost certain: whether the stadium ends up north or south of the Potomac, the majority of fans would probably be suburbanites, and most of them would be from the Virginia side. 
Suggestion: Whether Bill Collins (Virginia) or Fred Malek (D.C.) gets the Expos, they should put in an immediate bid to sign Vladimir Guerrero, the former Expo who joined the Angels this year. One of Vlad's main concerns was playing in a city with a high hispanic population, and Washington certainly fits that bill.
Thanks to Steven Poppe for reminding me about a nagging legal problem that may block any Expos relocation. The Las Vegas Sun reports that Expos minority owners are suing MLB and former Expos principal owner Jeff Loria (new owner of the Marlins) over the way their interests were trampled upon when Loria sold out. I would think there is enough spare capital in Washington to pay off the disgruntled investors. According to renowned baseball economics expert Andrew Zimbalist, however, there is a very real chance that the Expos are not going to move at all. Another little-known fact is that Virginia's legislative provisions for baseball stadium financing expire at the end of December. As far as I'm concerned, it's this year or never.