eury

July 31st, 2009 at 10:09 PM ^

The Nats are the worse team in baseball and have a much worse farm system than the Pirates. I think they have a much longer road back to respectability and it is funny that Sean Burnett is the one talking. That guy only gets to pitch during mop up time.

Joined: 07/02/2008

MGoPoints: 317

Blue Durham

July 31st, 2009 at 10:33 PM ^

the Expos. They move the organization to Washington and I am not sure that that solved anything. Washington is problematic as a baseball town. As the saying went during the previous franchise's stay in that town regarding the old Senators: First in war, fist in peace, last in the American League East.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 6082

eury

August 1st, 2009 at 12:04 AM ^

The Nats didn't have much of a chance as Omar Minaya traded away the likes of Cliff Lee, Grady Sizemore, and Orlando Cabrera at the end of the Expos existence. I still remember the year they were in the hunt for the wildcard and wanted to bring up Terrmel Sledge (who was dominating AAA) but since that would increase payroll the other MLB teams (that owned the Expos) blocked the move.

Joined: 07/02/2008

MGoPoints: 317

10th yr Senior

August 1st, 2009 at 12:27 AM ^

I can't find the quote right now, but Minaya has gone on the record saying that he operated the Expos that last year under the assumption they were getting contracted. He decided they had the one chance for glory and gave up on the farm system to try to acheive it. Oops.

Joined: 12/10/2008

MGoPoints: 173

jmblue

August 1st, 2009 at 1:20 AM ^

The Expos' big problem in Montreal was some really cheap ownership. They consistently developed good players but kept letting them go them to other teams (most notably in a post-strike fire sale, which dismantled their excellent '94 team). Every time one of their top players became a free agent, they'd let him walk. By the late '90s, the fans had thrown in the towel and attendance fell into the toilet. The owner (Jeff Loria) was rewarded for his incompetence by somehow being handed the Marlins' franchise (which he has also nickel-and-dimed) while MLB took over the Expos. I was a fan of the Expos but haven't followed them since the move. Don't they have a regular owner now? They also have a new stadium (something they badly needed in Montreal but couldn't get as Loria refused to contribute any money to it). I don't know what their problem is now but their situation is very different.

Joined: 11/07/2008

MGoPoints: 102861