Sports briefs for September 16, 2004

Thursday, Sept. 16, 2004 | 10:16 a.m.

Lawyers for the former limited partners of the Montreal Expos plan to ask a federal judge to block major league baseball from moving the team.

The commissioner's office told the U.S. District Court in Miami on Tuesday that it intends to relocate the Expos for 2005 but did not specify where. Washington and Northern Virginia are the leading contenders, and a decision could be announced this month.

Meanwhile, members of baseball's relocation committee met for 11 1/2 hours with District of Columbia government officials Wednesday, discussing specific details of a possible agreement that would move the franchise to the nation's capital.

"We're feeling very good," said Bill Hall, chairman of the D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission's baseball committee. "We spent 11 hours discussing any and all deal points that baseball coming to D.C. would involve."

In May 2003, U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungaro-Benages required that baseball give the court 90 days' notice of any attempt to move or sell the franchise, which was bought by the other 29 teams before the 2002 season from Jeffrey Loria, who then purchased the Florida Marlins.

"We have already informed baseball orally that it will be the intent of my clients to seek a preliminary injunction to preserve the status quo," Jeffrey Kessler, a lawyer for the limited partners, said Wednesday.

In their lawsuit, the 14 limited partners claim Loria and Marlins president David Samson conspired with baseball officials to dilute the minority partners' share of the team from 76 percent to 6-to-7 percent and never intended to keep the franchise in Montreal.

In November 2002, Ungaro-Benages put the racketeering claims against commissioner Bud Selig on hold, telling the limited partners to go to arbitration first with their case against Loria.

Cal picks female AD

Sandy Barbour was named the first female athletic director in the history of the University of California-Berkeley. She spent the past five years at Notre Dame, including two years as the top assistant to AD Kevin White. She also spent eight years at Tulane, including three years as athletic director.

Weworski rallies

Corey Weworski of Carlsbad, Calif., rallied for a 5 and 4 victory against Virginia Derby Grimes of Montgomery, Ala., in the championship match of the U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur at Knoxville, Tenn.

L.A. names Rambis VP

Former Los Angeles Lakers player and coach Kurt Rambis was appointed to the newly created position of vice president of business and basketball integration.