2005 Washington Nationals

Fate was not kind to the Montreal Expos baseball team. In 2003, the Expos drew over one million fans, but they still had the lowest attendance total in the Major Leagues, and 2004's total of fewer than 800,000 tickets sold seemed to prove that Major League Baseball did the right thing by moving the franchise to Washington, D.C. Now it is the Nationals era, and with a better television market and a bigger fan base, the team's fortunes could turn quickly.

When 35 years of Major League baseball in French Canada ended last September 29, the loss to baseball went beyond the withdrawal from a significant market. When Montreal was a AAA minor-league city, it showed fans in the United States how to deal with race. In 1946, Jackie Robinson played a year of high-level minor-league baseball for the Montreal Royals in preparation for breaking the Major League color line in 1947. Had Montreal not offered Robinson a warm haven from the coming controversy, the integration of the Major Leagues could have been delayed.

The 1969 Expos were the darlings of the city, called 'Our Loves' by the local press. With unique tri-color hats and such players as rookie Coco Laboy and veteran Rusty Staub (nicknamed 'Le Grand Orange'), the Expos' 52-110 record in their expansion year did not cost them the love of their fans.

Fast forward to 1994: After winning a division title in the strike-split 1981 season, the Expos had the reverse experience in 1994. With a 74-40 record, best in the Major Leagues, the Expos were eating the league alive when a strike halted play and cancelled the postseason. The result of the crushed hopes of Expos fans was an ongoing alienation from professional baseball.

Though Montreal had a superb minor-league system and developed a number of first-rate players, economic realities prior to the institution of a luxury tax meant that the Expos were often trading their stars to escape salary pressures. Pedro Martínez, Larry Walker, Andrés Gallaraga, Vladimir Guerrero and Moises Alou are all former Expos who were shipped out because of money issues. While weak attendance and poor television revenues had much to do with the bleeding, the overall economic inequity in the Major Leagues was the more entrenched culprit.

The Nationals are managed by Hall of Fame player Frank Robinson. The Nationals still have a great mix of veteran and young talent on the roster. The team is led by versatile infielders Brad Wilkerson and Jose Vidro. They also have a good, young pitching staff anchored by right-handed pitcher Tony Armas Jr.

The Nationals now play their home games at RFK Stadium in the nation's capital. The very talented 2003 Montreal Expos team blamed its late-season fade on the rigors of traveling to play many of its home games in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Perhaps the new franchise stability for these players will provide more continuity and some improved luck.