Editing Montreal Expos (section)

===Failed contraction and relocation (2001–2004)===
[[File:Omar Minaya.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Omar Minaya was the first Latin American-born general manager in MLB history.|alt=Close-up view of Minaya as he stands on the field.]]
When Loria took control, he let it be known that Brochu's low-budget approach—or as he called it, "business as usual"—was over.<ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|p=345}}</ref> He promised to rebuild the Expos with "a winning attitude and winning players" in an effort to bring the team back to where it had been only six years earlier.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/26/sports/baseball-notebook-new-montreal-owner-is-swinging-with-his-checkbook.html|title=New Montreal Owner Is Swinging With His Checkbook|last=Chass|first=Murray|work=The New York Times|date=1999-12-26|access-date=February 19, 2017|archive-date=September 19, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170919092345/http://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/26/sports/baseball-notebook-new-montreal-owner-is-swinging-with-his-checkbook.html|url-status=live}}</ref> To that end, he drafted a new partnership agreement that gave him the right to call for cash investments in exchange for team equity—an option that had been unavailable to Brochu. Most of the minority partners, though, continued to treat their participation as a public-relations gesture and remained uninterested in investing additional money. When Loria issued a cash call in May 2000, the only other partners to increase their contributions were Coutu, Loblaw, and Stephen Bronfman. Rather than contribute more money, the minority partners proposed trading Guerrero. Loria instantly vetoed this suggestion.<ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|pp=353–354}}</ref>

As Loria increased his own financial contribution over the next two years, most of the other partners failed to do likewise, which resulted in Loria raising his share in the franchise to 92 percent.<ref name="CashCalls">{{harvtxt|Gallagher|Young|2013}} Ch. 52; Unlike Claude Brochu, Loria had no 'cash-call' restrictions built into his agreement with the consortium and during his short tenure never hesitated to take advantage of that right.</ref><ref name="IwasFooled">{{citation |last=Ross |first=Matthew |url=http://news.nationalpost.com/sports/mlb/i-was-fooled-by-jeffrey-loria-former-expos-owner |title='I was fooled' by Jeffrey Loria: former Expos owner |work=The National Post |date=2011-08-18 |access-date=2015-07-24}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|pp=362–363}}</ref> Speaking in retrospect, one of the minority partners, Mark Routtenberg, said that he was both "fooled" and "used" by Loria, and called him a [[carpetbagger]].<ref>{{harvtxt|Gallagher|Young|2013}} Ch. 52; "He used me. Once he had taken possession, I ceased to be important to him. To his face I would now call him a [[carpetbagger]]."</ref>

The team payroll for 2000 increased to $33 million, nearly double the $17.9 million from the previous season. However, Loria's options for rebuilding the team were somewhat limited. Even with the team's renewed willingness to spend more on talent, most elite players were reluctant to play in Montreal, given the franchise's uncertain future and Olympic Stadium's poor playing conditions. As a result, most of the increased payroll came from the signings of free agent pitchers [[Graeme Lloyd]] and [[Hideki Irabu]], as well as a three-way trade with the Rangers and Blue Jays that brought Rangers first baseman [[Lee Stevens]] to Montreal. These moves failed to translate into on-field success: Lloyd missed the entire season due to [[arthroscopic surgery]], Irabu posted a 7.24 ERA, and Stevens only batted .265. The Expos lost 95 games. Interest in the team continued to decline, as both fans and businesses were unwilling to lend their support to a noncompetitive team.<ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|pp=345–348}}</ref>

Loria continued to pursue the construction of a new ballpark. He sought support from Major League Baseball, the Quebec government, and architectural firm [[Populous (company)|HOK Sport]] for a cheaper and re-designed version of Labatt Park that eschewed the retro-classic concept in favour of a more modern design with curved contours and glass. HOK and MLB both thought Loria's proposed design was structurally unsound. More seriously, although Loria had been led to believe that Ménard had convinced the provincial government to contribute funding, in reality no agreement had been reached.<ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|pp=349–350}}</ref>

To bolster the team's finances, Loria tried to renegotiate the Expos' broadcasting deals, which were far less valuable than that of any other team. He broke off negotiations with [[The Sports Network]], the largest English-language cable sports network in Canada, when it only offered the Expos $5,000 per game. Even allowing for the Expos' greatly reduced home territory compared to that of the Blue Jays (see below), TSN's offer was still a pittance compared to the $200,000 it paid the Blue Jays at the time. Loria had similar issues with prospective radio partners; the only interested parties would only air Expos games as part of a [[brokered programming|brokerage agreement]] in which the team paid for the airtime. The Alouettes and Canadiens had similar arrangements, which was considered highly unusual for the time.<ref name=Keri351>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|p=351}}</ref>

Although the team continued its French radio coverage on the Telemedia network—whose flagship, [[CKAC]], had carried the Expos since 1973—the Expos were unable to reach an agreement for English radio broadcasts. This resulted in the end of the Expos' longtime run on [[CINW|CIQC]] (formerly CFCF), which had been the Expos' English radio outlet for all but four years of their existence. No television coverage was available in either language. This left English-speaking fans relying on Internet audiocasts. Local fans accused Loria and his stepson, [[David Samson (baseball)|David Samson]], of sabotage. In truth, though, according to longtime Montreal sportscaster [[Mitch Melnick]], there was no anglophone radio for the 2000 season "because nobody wanted to pay for it."<ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|p=352}}</ref> Years later, Samson said that he had initially hoped that if the Expos got off to a hot start, local broadcasters would initiate new negotiations, but further discussions never materialized.<ref name=Keri351/> [[Dave Van Horne]], the team's English-language play-by-play announcer since the team's inception, left at the season's end to work for the [[Florida Marlins]].<ref name="Internet-broadcast">{{Citation
 | last = Shea
 | first = Stuart
 | title = Calling the Game: Baseball Broadcasting from 1920 to the Present
 | place = Phoenix, Arizona
 | publisher = The Society for American Baseball Research
 | year = 2015
 | page = 350
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=p5QcCgAAQBAJ&q=expos+baseball+first+MLB+internet+broadcast+2000&pg=PA350
 | isbn = 978-1-933599-40-3
}}</ref>

In {{mlby|2001}}, the Expos drew only 642,748 fans, one of the smallest totals in MLB in decades.<ref name="2004MG6" /><ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|p=363}}</ref> The minority partners, whose interest was now reduced to a combined seven percent, became convinced that Loria had planned his moves to force them out. When pleas to Selig and MLB officials fell on deaf ears, the group became convinced that Selig and Loria had conspired to force the Expos out of Montreal.<ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|pp=363–364}}</ref> At the same time, MLB took steps to vote on [[2001 Major League Baseball contraction plan|contraction of the leagues]], with the Expos and the [[Minnesota Twins]] slated for elimination.<ref>{{citation |last=Myles |first=Stephanie |title=Baseball owners could decide fate of Expos today |work=The National Post |date=2001-11-27 |page=A17}}</ref> On November 6, 2001, MLB's owners voted 28–2 in favour of contraction, with only the Expos and Twins opposed.<ref name="Keri 2014 364">{{harvnb|Keri|2014|p=364}}</ref> Initial plans called for the Expos and Twins to play a lame-duck season in {{mlby|2002}} before their franchises were revoked. Both teams were saved following a legal challenge filed in Minnesota that forced MLB to honour the Twins' lease with the [[Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome|Metrodome]], as well as challenges by the MLBPA.<ref>{{citation |title=Expos, Twins remain in MLB lineup -- for now |work=Welland Tribune |date=2002-02-06 |page=B1}}</ref> As MLB was unable to find another candidate team to eliminate, the immediate threat for the Expos diminished, as MLB needed to keep an even number of teams to maintain its schedule.<ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|p=371}}</ref>

Shortly afterward, Loria sold the Expos to MLB and used the money he received from the sale to purchase the [[Florida Marlins]] from [[John W. Henry|John Henry]], who had recently purchased the Boston Red Sox.<ref name="IwasFooled" /> As a result of the transaction, Loria turned a significant profit on his initial $16 million investment—MLB bought the Expos from him for $120 million and gave him a $38.5 million interest free loan to complete the purchase of the Marlins.<ref name="Keri 2014 364"/> Following the sale, Loria took virtually everything of value with him to Miami, including the Expos' computers and scouting reports.<ref>{{harvtxt|Gallagher|Young|2013}} Ch. 53; When Loria made the move to Miami he took with him everything he could get his hands on...</ref> His departure also marked the final end of the proposed Labatt Park, though any realistic chance of the park being built ended when the Bouchard government repeated its previous refusal to commit any public money to the project.<ref>{{harvtxt|Gallagher|Young|2013}} Ch. 55; He surrendered the Labatt Park project to condominium builders...</ref>

MLB formed Expos Baseball L.P., a partnership of the other 29 clubs, to operate the team. It appointed former [[Anaheim Angels]] president [[Tony Tavares]] as team president to oversee business operations and oversee a future move of the team,<ref name="League-owned-teams">{{cite web | last1 = King | first1 = Bill | last2 = Lombardo | first2 = John | title = League-owned teams = headache | publisher = American City Business Journals | date = February 20, 2012 | url = http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2012/02/20/Leagues-and-Governing-Bodies/Ownership.aspx | access-date = May 4, 2015 | archive-date = September 24, 2015 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150924130301/http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2012/02/20/Leagues-and-Governing-Bodies/Ownership.aspx | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="security">{{cite web|url=http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/dallas-stars/headlines/20110119-stars-interim-president-tony-tavares-has-job-no-security.ece|title=Stars interim president Tony Tavares has job, no security|first=Mike|last=Heika|work=[[The Dallas Morning News]]|access-date=April 23, 2015|archive-date=May 5, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150505040738/http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/dallas-stars/headlines/20110119-stars-interim-president-tony-tavares-has-job-no-security.ece|url-status=live}}</ref> and Mets assistant general manager [[Omar Minaya]] as vice-president, general manager and operating head of the franchise.<ref name="League-owned-teams"/> MLB's chief disciplinarian [[Frank Robinson]] was appointed as the team's [[Manager (baseball)|manager]].

Minaya, the first Latino general manager in baseball history, inherited a difficult situation. He was hired only 72 hours before the start of [[spring training]], and there were only six other employees in baseball operations; most of the others had either followed Loria to the Marlins or taken jobs with other clubs.<ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|p=367}}</ref> As the Expos began what many assumed at the time to be their final season in [[2002 Montreal Expos season|2002]], the mood in the Olympic Stadium for the home opener—a victory over the Marlins—was ugly. Montreal's home opener drew 34,000 fans, many of which came not only to say "goodbye" to the franchise, but also to express their disgust and anger at Loria.<ref>{{harvtxt|Gallagher|Young|2013}} Ch. 54; "An unruly mob of 34,351, thousands of whom were intent on expressing just how angry they were at former owner Jeffrey Loria..."</ref>

Loria's minority partners, who had gone from collectively owning 76 percent of the Expos to less than seven percent of the Marlins, filed a [[Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act]] (RICO) lawsuit against Major League Baseball, Selig and Loria. The partners contended that Loria and the commissioner's office had conspired to deprive them of their shares by issuing cash calls, and thus deliberately undermined the franchise's future in Montreal.<ref>{{citation |last1=Madden |first1=Bill |last2=O'Keefe |first2=Michael |title=Lawsuit targets Loria, Selig: Former Expos' minority partners allege they were bilked |work=Ottawa Citizen |date=2002-07-16 |page=B1}}</ref> The partners were ultimately unsuccessful in their suit, as it was dismissed in 2005 after an arbitration panel rejected their claims.<ref>{{Citation |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-105347751.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160224235225/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-105347751.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2016-02-24 |title=Baseball notes |work=The Record |location=Bergen County, New Jersey |date=2005-02-12 |access-date=2015-07-24}}</ref>

On the field, the 2002 Expos exceeded expectations and were in playoff contention for much of the season. As they were owned by the other teams, including their direct competitors, the Expos did not have any flexibility to increase their payroll for a last-ditch postseason drive.<ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|p=370}}</ref> Operating under the belief that the Expos were playing their last season in Montreal, Minaya completed a blockbuster trade with the [[Cleveland Guardians|Cleveland Indians]] in late June to make a final run at bringing postseason success to the city, acquiring [[Bartolo Colón]], one of baseball's top pitchers, in exchange for several star prospects and without increasing payroll. Remembering how the [[Seattle Mariners]] had revived a stalled bid for what became [[Safeco Field]] with a playoff run in 1995, Minaya believed that if the Expos made the playoffs, the renewed public and private sector support would lead to a viable owner stepping forward who would keep the team in Montreal.<ref name="Keri 2014 371-372">{{harvnb|Keri|2014|pp=371–372}}</ref> Minaya made several smaller moves, but the team lost its early-season momentum; they went seven games under .500 in July and August. The Expos finished with an 83–79 record—their first winning season since 1996—but finished second in the NL East, 19 games out of both the division lead and the wild card.<ref name="Keri 2014 371-372"/>

The Expos franchise was saved by a new collective bargaining agreement between the owners and players that forbade contraction until at least 2006. Speculation of contraction was replaced by rumours of relocation, as it was obvious MLB did not intend to keep the team in Montreal.<ref>{{citation |last=Beacon |first=Bill |title=Expos saved, but will they stay? |work=St. John's Telegraph |date=2002-08-31 |page=C1}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Keri|2014|p=373}}</ref> While MLB was not ready to relocate the Expos right away, in {{mlby|2003}} it sought to increase revenues by having the team play 22 of its 81 home games in [[San Juan, Puerto Rico]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Blum |first=Ronald |title=San Juan to host 22 Expos games: Move necessary to bail out struggling team |work=Brantford Expositor |date=2002-11-21 |page=B4}}</ref> The Expos again found themselves in contention for the playoffs: on August 29, the team was tied with four other clubs for the National League Wild Card spot.<ref>{{harvtxt|Gallagher|Young|2013}} Ch. 55; As of the morning of August 29, the Expos found themselves in a five-way tie for the wild card position.</ref> When MLB's rosters expanded on September 1, Selig announced that the Expos would not be recalling any additional players from the minor leagues: the other owners had decided against spending a few extra thousand dollars, a small fraction of the team's $35 million payroll, to bolster the team.<ref>{{harvtxt|Gallagher|Young|2013}} Ch. 55; ...all owners of other teams, including the Marlins, concluded that there were not sufficient resources to warrant spending an extra $50,000 for the Expos to call up players from the minor leagues.</ref> Several players, including relief pitcher [[Eric Knott]], were sent back to the minors due to budget constraints. The team faded again, finishing 18 games out of first in the East and eight games out of the wild card spot.<ref name="Keri376">{{harvnb|Keri|2014|p=376}}</ref> Later, Minaya said that the denial of the September call-ups was "a message to the players" and "a momentum killer".<ref name="WashingtonPost-Minaya">{{cite news | title = Minaya Laid Foundation For Success | last = Carpenter | first = Les | url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/03/AR2005070301106.html | date = 2005-04-04 | access-date = 2008-05-11 | newspaper = The Washington Post | archive-date = October 30, 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171030161432/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/03/AR2005070301106.html | url-status = live }}</ref> Keri later wrote that MLB's refusal to authorize the September call-ups eroded what goodwill the Expos still had among the Montreal fanbase. After the season, Guerrero was lost to free agency, while staff ace [[Javier Vázquez (baseball)|Javier Vázquez]] was traded to the Yankees.<ref name="Keri376"/>

The final season of the Montreal Expos came in {{mlby|2004}}, and was again split between Montreal and San Juan.<ref name="Keri376" /> The team never recovered from an April win–loss record of 5–19, and finished the season with a 67–95 record, the second-worst record in the National League. On September 29, 2004, Major League Baseball announced that the franchise would relocate to Washington, D.C., for the {{mlby|2005}} season.<ref name="MLBSelectsDCForExpos" /> That same night, the team played its final game in Montreal: a 9–1 loss to the Florida Marlins before 31,395 fans.<ref>{{citation |title=Montreal Expos: 1969–2004; Team officially on the move to Washington |work=Kitchener Record |date=2004-09-30 |page=D1}}</ref> The team then played its final games as the Expos on the road, ending on October 3 against the New York Mets, the team they had faced in the franchise's inaugural game in 1969.<ref name="LastGame">{{citation |title=Expos' era ends where it started: Montreal won its inaugural game at Shea 35 years ago |work=Chatham Daily News |date=2004-10-04 |page=12}}</ref> In the Expos' last-ever game, the [[New York Mets]] defeated Montreal 8–1 at [[Shea Stadium]]. [[Jamey Carroll]] scored the last Expos run and [[Endy Chávez]] became the final Expos batter in history when he grounded out in the top of the ninth to end the game. The team ended their 36-year run with an all-time record of 2,753 wins, 2,943 losses and four ties.<ref name="LastGame" />

The last active former Montreal Expos player in the major leagues was [[Bartolo Colón]], who played his last MLB game with the [[Texas Rangers (baseball)|Texas Rangers]] in 2018.

The Nationals won the [[2019 World Series]], the franchise's first title in its 51 seasons, under manager [[Dave Martinez]], who had played with the Expos from 1988 to 1991.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Elliott |first1=Josh |title=Montreal Expos fans claim shaky piece of Nationals' World Series win |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/6106996/montreal-expos-world-series-washington-nationals/ |access-date=20 April 2021 |work=Global News |date=31 October 2019 |archive-date=November 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191103200019/https://globalnews.ca/news/6106996/montreal-expos-world-series-washington-nationals/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
{{Wide image|Le Stade Olympique1.jpg|800|Panoramic view taken prior to an Expos game at Olympic Stadium in 2004.|alt=A sparse crowd watches during pre-game warmups.}}