D.C. Baseball needs nostalgia

Now that Major League Baseball has decided to move the Montreal Expos to Washington, D.C. in 2005, baseball should consider more changes concerning the Expos.

First of all, the Expos should become the Washington Senators in 2005. Of course that revive some of the tradition of baseball in the nation's capital. A name change would allow baseball to pay tribute to forgotten stars of D.C. baseball.

Walter Johnson (who played for the original Senators that later became the Minnesota Twins from 1907-1927) and Frank Howard (who played for the second Senators team that later became the Texas Rangers from 1965-1971). Johnson is considered by many experts to be the best pitcher in baseball history and Frank Howard was among the most feared hitters in the American League during his years with the Senators, yet they are largely forgotten because Washington has been without baseball since '71. And Ted Williams, yes that Ted Williams, actually managed the second Senators from '69-'71.

Not that the team couldn't pay tribute to former Senators without changing the name, but nostalgia is always a fun part of baseball and the nostalgia of the old name could spark some extra fan interest in the current team and baseball history.

The new team will play in RFK Stadium for three years and then move into a new park on the Anacostia River 12 blocks from the Capitol. The new stadium could feature statues and retired numbers of Walter Johnson and Frank Howard and the souvenir shops could sell old-time Senators memorabilia. And the team could also include a Washington Senators museum in the new stadium.

Also, baseball should move third installment of the Washington Senators where the old ones were, into the American League. Tampa Bay wanted to be in the National League to begin with, and there's not much tradition there, so the Devil Rays could just move to the senior circuit. The Rays would move to the NL East, which might spark a much-needed rivalry with the Florida Marlins. Washington would move to the AL East with original, tradition-rich teams like the Yankees, Red Sox and Orioles.

A move to the American League might ease some of the concerns about revenue expressed by Orioles owner Peter Angelos because of the fan interest a Baltimore-Washington series would likely create. They would play each other 19 times, if the current schedule format stays in place, which could mean lots of revenue for Angelos. A Baltimore-Washington rivalry could become much like a Red Sox-Yankees or Cardinals-Cubs rivalry, given the proximity of the cities. Baseball hasn't had a intra-city, intra-league rivalry since the Dodgers and Giants, and that rivalry has stayed strong even though the two teams play 379 miles from each other now.

Sure, a rivalry between the new Washington franchise and the Orioles may not happen over night, but baseball should be willing to think about the distant future, something it has rarely done since Bud Selig took over as commissioner. The powers that be should think about a future where Washington and Baltimore are in a pennant race and where fans in Virginia and Maryland and Delaware must choose allegiances.

Baseball has finally done what they needed to do, get the Expos out of Montreal and into Washington, D.C. The move is great for baseball no matter what happens next as far as the name of the team or in which league they're located. But it sure would be fun to see some revived nostalgia of D.C. baseball.

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