The Expos "are running short of cash, and local members
of the ownership consortium are preparing for a showdown"
with Majority Owner Jeffrey Loria "that threatens to put the
franchise's future in Montreal in doubt," according to David
Johnston of the Montreal GAZETTE. In a move that "confirms
serious problems within the consortium," the local owners
have "broken away" from Loria and hired the city's "largest"
PR firm, National Public Relations, to represent them "as
they prepare for an important meeting with Loria sometime
next week." Local investors, who own 76% of the team, are
unhappy because Loria told them they will have to invest
C$30M this year and C$40M next year "to help the club pay
its current bills and cover its anticipated costs for next
season." Johnston reports that the investors are "balking"
at making additional payments to the team and are
"considering court action" (Montreal GAZETTE, 5/31).
LORIA, HAVE MERCY: Also in Montreal, Jack Todd wrote
that Loria has "failed spectacularly" since becoming
majority owner last year. Todd: "With stunning speed, the
entire relaunch drive of the Montreal Expos has come undone.
... If nothing else, Loria and [Exec VP David] Samson have
been guilty of extreme levels of impatience, wanting to do
overnight things that were clearly going to take years to
accomplish." Todd called Loria's hiring of his stepson
Samson as his "most significant error" (Montreal GAZETTE,
5/28). A Montreal GAZETTE editorial stated that Loria's
"magic has worn off": "While it may be too early to conclude
that the franchise's days [in Montreal] are numbered, the
signs are not good" (Montreal GAZETTE, 5/30). In Calgary,
Bruce Dowbiggin noted the possibility of the Expos
relocating to the U.S., but one problem is that markets in
Northern VA and Charlotte "are simply not ready to receive a
team for at least a couple of years" (CALGARY HERALD, 5/29).
