NEW YORK - Major League Baseball asked players Thursday to shift about a quarter of the Expos' home games next year from Montreal to San Juan or Monterrey.
Baseball officials spent much of the past eight months discussing a permanent move of the Expos to Northern Virginia; Portland, Ore.; or Washington, D.C. Despite baseball's intention to decide by the end of the regular season, it appears no long-term solution will be made for the 2004 season.
"The handwriting on the wall is pretty stark," said Gene Orza, the No. 2 official of the players' association.
BRAVES: Atlanta closer John Smoltz is expected to throw off a mound today for the first time in nearly two weeks. Smoltz, on the disabled list since Aug. 27 with tendinitis in his right elbow, didn't travel with the team on its road trip.
