Mayor Tony Williams holds up a ceremonial home plate, signifying the return of baseball to Washington, D.C. William F. Yurasko/WWN
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The million-to-one shot came in. Hell froze over. A month of Sundays hit the calendar. Major League Baseball relocated the Montreal Expos to Washington, one day short of thirty-three years since the last game played by a baseball team that called the Nation’s Capitol home.
With apologies to the late, great, Shirley Povich.
Yesterday evening, I was at the City Museum for the press conference announcing the Expos new home. It was wonderful to be at such an important and historical event for the city and region. The atmosphere was mostly joyous and more of a pep rally than a press conference. It was great to see all the officials wearing the red Senators hats and see all the fans in their old Senators apparel. I also got to meet Ryan Moore (and his fiancée) of Distinguished Senators and Chris Rehling (and Gray-remembering crew) of Remember the Grays, both interesting and fun people. I also got to meet the hero of D.C. baseball, Ward 2 councilman Jack Evans and Mayor Tony Williams. There will be a fair amount of photos to post in the coming days, keep coming back and I will get to it.
Now all that needs to happen is D.C. has to pass funding for the stadium. May I remind anyone that the ballpark financing will come 100% from new revenue and not from the general fund, which means that schools, social services, and health care WILL NOT lose any public revenue to support a baseball team. The large business community asked to be taxed to build a ballpark and other funding will come from team leases as well as taxes on concessions and so forth. Now, get it done D.C.!
For the sake of timing, I am just going to post all the headlines without commentary.
The Washington Post
- Baseball’s Coming Back to Washington
- Lucrative Deal On Stadium Won Baseball Over
- Play Ball!
- Diamond in the Rough
- After 33 Joyless Years, Fans Counting the Days
- Thomas Boswell – At Last, A Team to Call Our Own
- Michael Wilbon – With D.C. Back in the Market, It’s Time to Go Shopping for a Name
- George Solomon – From Writing a Wrong to Righting It
- – Baseball Just Whitewashes Mayor’s Image
- Sally Jenkins – Is the District Being Sold A Bill of Goods
- Mike Wise – The Game May Have Left, but the Memories Linger for the Old-Time Senators
- From Olympics to Nationals to Statesmen to Senators
- Area Baseball Network Must Form Quickly
- Editorial – Baseball’s Return
The Washington Times
- D.C. gets Expos; 33-year wait over
- Ballpark issues divide council
- Club to have new name in ’05
- Move doesn’t make Expos’ woes vanish
- Thom Loverro – Wait is over for diehard District fans
- There is no joy in Baltimore
- Grays were District’s best team
- In Montreal, a painful farewell
- Redskins’ area supremacy faces challenge
- Players’ feelings mixed on move
- Dick Heller – A time for satisfaction and sadness
- Expos at a glance
- Fans glad to have team of their own
- Senators rose to the heights in ’24
- Several in hunt to buy Expos
- A Youthful Juggernaut Cut Down by the Strike
- Editorial – D.C. in the big leagues …
- … Means more plays from City Hall
The Baltimore Sun
- D.C. rejoins big leagues with return of baseball
- David Steele – Any way pie is sliced, there’s enough for all
- Diversion of dollars is topic of speculation
- Montreal bids mournful adieu to home team
- D.C. parks one
- Schmuck – Maybe fans weren’t flying south, but Oriole Park was near-empty nest
- Overlooked: Expos’ sad state
- Editorial – The Washington Expos
- It’s official, but obstacles and decisions still remain
- This time around, there’s nothing to worry for — really
- Orioles facing fight for fans and corporate sponsors
USA Today
- Selig confirms Expos’ move
- Expos have much to do before 2005 season
- Washington hopes to write comeback story
- What’s in a nickname?
- Mike Lopresti – Washington may get rain on Expos parade
- Baseball no more in Montreal
The Montreal Gazette
- 31,395 say goodbye: Sledge’s pop-up closes book on nos amours. Marlins 9, Expos 1 Batista lightens mood after unruly fans pelt field with golf balls
- Adieu, Nos Amours: At 10
- Bittersweet day in Montreal as Expos officially play final home game – Canadian Press
- Trouble remains at bay in Expos home finale, a 9-1 pounding from Marlins – Canadian Press
- Expos mascot will likely still have a job…somewhere
The New York Times
- A 3-Decade Campaign Is Over: Baseball Is Back in Washington
- Early Unscientific Poll Shows Divided Capital
- To Fans, Expos’ Goodbye Is More Bitter Than Sweet
- Murray Chass – Washington: The City of Broken Promises
Okay, that is more than enough for today. Later in the day, I will add Penn State stories to this edition.