04/25/24
February 05, 2002
Looks like the twins will be playing ball next year. : "The Minnesota Supreme Court refused Monday to consider an appeal of an injunction that forces the Twins to fulfill their Metrodome lease. The decision could jeopardize Major League Baseball owners' plans to contract two teams for the 2002 season."
In my opinion, the best resolution to this thing is if donald watkins buys the twins and follows through on his promise of a privately funded stadium, and the expos move to washington.
posted by jnthnjng at 08:58 AM on February 05, 2002
I agree with jnthnjng. Give Watkins the Twins and move the Expos out . . . to Washington, I suppose. The Twins need to stay in existence and remain in Minnesota.
posted by jacknose at 09:59 AM on February 05, 2002
I hope no MLB team moves to Washington for the time being. Until a new stadium is built, the team would have to play at RFK. This would royally screw the current tennants, DC United.
posted by salmacis at 10:55 AM on February 05, 2002
salmacis - I wonder if the DC United will even enter the thought process of a team moving to the nation's capitol. Soccer tends to be given second-rate attention by most Americans, and that doesn't look to be changing very rapidly.
posted by bcb2k2 at 11:06 AM on February 05, 2002
hopefully scheduling could be worked out for dc United and the dc "Expos" to share RFK. it works out ok for football and baseball, why not for soccer and baseball? i don't know about other MLS teams, bcb2k2, but the United seem to have a pretty large and loyal following. maybe it's just because washington is such an international city.
posted by danostuporstar at 12:01 PM on February 05, 2002
I've been to a game in Minnesota, it was a nice stadium. If you like astro turf and all. Can you get a house carpeted with astro turf?
posted by adampsyche at 12:53 PM on February 05, 2002
I have trouble believing that Major League Baseball really wants to contract. Does anyone else think that all of this talk is really just a hardball tactic to encourage the teams to get new owners and/or locations?
posted by rcade at 02:01 PM on February 05, 2002
This would royally screw the current tennants, DC United. You're saying there's soccer team in DC? :) They won the championship or something a while back, right? I think even a bad Wizards team gets more ink, and the 'Skins get the most.
posted by owillis at 02:03 PM on February 05, 2002
I think if the Expos move to D.C., there's a good chance they'll be renamed the Washington Senators. As for soccer teams sharing stadiums, they do usually get screwed pretty easily. For example, in Chicago, the Fire were pretty much left in the lurch when they decided to renovate Soldier Field.
posted by joehyuk at 03:24 PM on February 05, 2002
I wish I could transplant my soccer love into you obviously needy people. I'd accept an equal delivery of football enthusiasm ;0)
posted by walrus at 03:48 PM on February 05, 2002
rcade: yes, i think you're right. (the people at Baseball Prospectus have brought up that possibility before.) though i really do think that baseball wants out of Montreal, they probably wish they could dump the devil-rays rather than the first bidder for the other team (which turns out to be pohlad and the twins). it'd be a real shame to lose the twins, aka the washington senators, and their history (walter "big train" johnson; harmon killebrew).
posted by moz at 04:03 PM on February 05, 2002
walrus: maybe read some grantland rice poetry? look for the "galloping ghost" in his words. more information on the earliest NFL superstar can be found by searching for Red Grange.
posted by moz at 04:10 PM on February 05, 2002
Damnit moz, you know me better than I hoped. I read "A Tip to Teddy" and "Game Called", and I was already hooked. These aren't necessarily about football, but I can dig. And I did use to like it when I had the enrgy to stay up until the early hours to watch it. I guess I should stop using that excuse for my video recorder so I can participate here properly. Now if I ask who I should support, would that start a major flame war?
posted by walrus at 04:26 PM on February 05, 2002
I wouldn't say that the Chicago Fire were screwed in the Soldier Field renovation... they're temporarily moving to a very fine neighborhood in the Western Chicago suburbs which just happens to be overpopulated with soccer moms and their soccer-loving kids (and isn't my hometown or anything). Its also within an hour's drive of the city. The Bears on the other hand are moving 2 1/2 hours south of the city. If they stink it up next year, the no shows are going to be cooky-high.
posted by thebigpoop at 04:31 PM on February 05, 2002
walrus: the bears! if you would prefer an AFC team, i would go for the steelers. (or the browns. your choice.)
posted by moz at 06:42 PM on February 05, 2002
thebigpoop, I'm not saying the Fire were screwed by having to go to Naperville, just that they were left scrambling for a place to play.
posted by joehyuk at 07:12 PM on February 05, 2002
walrus: About 17 years ago I made a purely arbitrary decision to support the Bengals. Ah well, I got one Superbowl appearance out of it..
posted by salmacis at 02:37 AM on February 06, 2002
I just hope they send one of the possibly defunct (Expos) teams to Washington...