Blue Jays GM Gord Ash said last Thursday that it is a
possibility the team could play regular season games in Dunedin,
FL, if replacements are used. Ontario law does not allow
companies or organizations to hire replacement workers for
striking workers (Joe Henderson, TAMPA TRIBUNE, 1/20). But Ash
said over the weekend: "I don't know how viable Dunedin is, but
it certainly is not ideal. Maybe some other city will invite us"
(USA TODAY, 1/23). Blue Jays spokesperson Howard Starkman said
that Buffalo, Syracuse, as well as Dunedin, have been mentioned
as a possible home away from home (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 1/21).
MLB General Counsel Chuck O'Connor has asked the Canadian
government for an exemption that would allow the Expos to use
players from the U.S. as replacements at Olympic Stadium. The
Canadian government said Friday that it will not issue work visas
to foreign replacements (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 1/21). In
Toronto, Tim Harper writes the Expos "appear to have been caught
off guard" by the regulation (TORONTO STAR, 1/21).
