If this account is to be believed, a provisional relocation of the Montreal Expos to Washington, D.C. is all but a done deal. Then again, another source quoted in the story says that Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos, who has opposed the move from the start, will not be placated for at any price.
Bottom line: stay tuned, as we're sure to hear plenty more overnight. If you're so inclined, pop over to the Washington Post in the next 90 minutes, and you'll probably find the story that will front tomorrow morning's paper.
UPDATE: Here's the Post story, complete with another tidbit that will cheer area Soccer fans:
Meanwhile, it was learned yesterday that the D.C. United soccer team is in the advanced stages of negotiations for building a privately funded new stadium near Poplar Point on the east side of the Anacostia River, across the water from the South Capitol Street site where the District wants to build the Expos' new $400 million home.The 25,000-seat soccer and concert stadium would be surrounded by a training facility, retail establishments and neighborhood recreation fields. "The vision for a stadium is to anchor a mixed-use development," said team president Kevin Payne.
Otherwise, most of the details are the same. For a report from Montreal on the last days of the Expos, click here. More tomorrow morning.
At this point, I’m rooting for Peter Angelos to do whatever he has to in order to stop this move. This idiotic exercise in urban planning by Mayor Williams and his lapdogs on the Council needs to be brought to a screeching halt. And if the Mayor & Co. are going to do an end-run around democracry–which none of the baseball supporters seem to care about–then I say late Angelos bring down his wrath.
D.C. does not “deserve” a baseball team through an act of statism and abuse of government power.