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June 19, 2005 [LINK]

Look for the union label

To no one's surprise, Mayor Williams unveiled an agreement by which labor unions will get special preference in the construction contracts for the new baseball stadium in D.C. This, of course, will inflate the project's total cost by at least five or ten percent, but that was something I took for granted from the beginning. "Let the overruns begin!" Ironically, the union requirement (a political quid pro quo) may prejudice the interests of District residents and businesses, many of which are non-union. Since the city is undertaking the project on its own, it has every right to set the terms for construction. Does this mean construction delays caused by strikes may be more likely? Of course. I'm in no hurry for the Nats to leave RFK. It has already become as much a part of their winning ways as it was for the Redskins in decades past. Which leads us to:

Will Nationals usurp Redskins?

In today's Washington Post, Mark Gauvreau wonders whether the phenomenal success of the Washington Nationals will result in a switch in fan loyalty and attention away from the Redskins. Until recently, such a possibility would be almost unthinkable. It was not until the 1970s, however, when George Allen and then Joe Gibbs turned the team into a real powerhouse, that football enthusiasm really gripped the city. Given the Redskins' huge frustrations of recent years, D.C. sports fans could easily tire of waiting and give themselves over to those scrappy, eager newcomers who are playing in the 'Skins old home.

Nats salvage a win

The Nationals bounced back from two losses in Arlington (Texas), winning this afternoon by 8 to 2. Brad Wilkerson knocked in half of those runs, three of which came in the eighth inning on a double. After his amazing hot streak in April he fell into a bad slump, but he seems to have pulled out of it now. He is leading the majors in doubles this year (with 26), but with a .278 average, he's unlikely to make the All Star team. The Nats are headed to Pittsburgh, and will return to D.C. on Friday.

Soccer at FedEx Field

The D.C. United soccer team played two home games at RFK while the Nats were on the road, and they won both. Because of continuing problems with the temporary grass infield turf, it has been decided to play an exhibition game against the English team Chelsea FC at FedEx Field on July 28. That will be a tight squeeze for a soccer field, and it will be interesting to see what the reactions are. Most soccer fans in D.C. are Latinos, many of whom would have a hard time getting to the suburb of Landover, Maryland.

Posted (or last updated or commented upon): 19 Jun 2005, 10: 20 PM

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Blog highlights have been compiled for the years 2010-2012 thus far, and eventually will be compiled for earlier years, back to 2002.


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The "home made" blog organization system that I created was instituted on November 1, 2004, followed by several functional enhancements in subsequent years. I make no more than one blog post per day on any one category, so some posts may cover multiple news items or issues. Blog posts appear in the following (reverse alphabetical) order, which may differ from the chronological order in which the posts were originally made:

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