Hard to believe it has been 10 years since the Montreal Expos were getting set to begin their final spring training at Space Coast Stadium at Viera, Florida before relocating in Washington as the Nationals in 2005. There are actually eight - possibly nine - players still active who played on that final Montreal team in 2004. Five of those had ties to the Blue Jays, including lefty reliever Scott Downs, righty reliever Jon Rauch, Tomo Ohka whos trying a comeback this year with the Blue Jays as a knuckleballer, shortstop Alex Gonzalez (the first one) who was a contemporary of Carlos Delgado and Shawn Green and current Jays utility infielder Maicer Izturis. The others include reliever Luis Ayala, infielder Jamey Carroll and outfielder Endy Chavez, and Canadian-born pitcher Shawn Hill who pitched last season and may still be active. The Expos knew they were in trouble going into that final season. Major League Baseball was running the team, and rumours were running rampant they were either going to be relocated or contracted, folded if you will. The Expos played 22 of their games in Puerto Rico at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, either to try and make more money for MLB, or expose the game on a more international level, or kill off the Expos even faster. Take your pick. In any event their attendance in 2004 was the worst in the Majors at 748,550. The Expos dropped their final five home games at Stad Olympique and went 2-7 on their final homestand ever. The Expos final home game ever was on September 29 against the Florida Marlins. Before the game they were presented with a banner by MLB, that proclaimed them as the best team in baseball in 1994. That of course was the year of the players strike that stretched into early 2005. The Expos had the best record in the Majors when play was halted in August of 1994 and most pundits felt they would have won the World Series that year. That banner was raised in centre field during that final game in Montreal. But mere hours later, word leaked out that the Expos would be relocating to Washington for the next season as the Nationals. To complete that washout of a day, Florida won the final game played in Montreal, 9-1. Korean-born pitcher Sun-Woo Kim, who finished with an appropriate career record of 13-13 took the loss giving up five runs on five hits in just two innings. Veteran catcher Todd Zeile hit the final home run at Olympic Stadium, a three-run shot off Claudio Vargas in the 6th inning. But it wasnt quite over from the Expos as they had to go to Shea Stadium in New York to play out the season in the very park where they played their first-ever game in 1969. After dropping the first game, Montreal won its final game under the Expos banner on Saturday, October 2. It had plenty of drama too. Brad Wilkerson, who spent some time with the Blue Jays in 2008, slammed a three-run tie-breaking homer in the top of the 9th off Braden Looper to propel Montreal to a 6-3 victory. On the Sunday, they didnt fare as well. The Mets crushed them 8-1. Jamey Carroll scored the final run in Expos history and Endy Chavez made the final out. Five players who had ties to the Blue Jays were involved in that game: Jose Reyes, Wilkerson, Tony Bautista, Jon Rauch and Maicer Izturis. Not only that, Randy St. Claire, Montreals pitching coach on that day, is now the Blue Jays Triple-A pitching coach at Buffalo. Also of note, the winning pitcher that day for the Mets was Tom Glavine, winding down his Hall of Fame career, who climbed to 11-14 with the victory. Montreal finished that final season at 67-95. A couple of more notes on that final Expos season. They were involved in one of the biggest trades of the year at the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. It was a nine-player, four-team swap that involved Montreal, Boston, the Cubs and Minnesota. The Expos sent shortstop Orlando Cabrera to Boston. The Red Sox sent one of their all-time greats, Nomar Garciaparra, to the Cubs as part of the package and Alex Gonzalez was one of the three players that went from the Cubs to Montreal. Strangely enough, Gonzalez, the ex-Jay, was the final Expos player ever dealt. He was sent to San Diego as part of a conditional deal on September 16. The Expos left us with some great memories, and there are many who believe a team will return to Montreal, including a group fronted by former Expos left fielder Warren Cromartie. For that to happen though, a new downtown stadium has to be built, and that is nowhere near happening yet. For now Montreal fans will have to be content with two pre-season games at the Olympic Stadium in late March between the Blue Jays and the New York Mets. Midsummer Plans This years All-Star game is slated for Target Field in Minnesota. In 2015, the Midsummer Classic will be in Cincinnati. Commissioner Bud Selig says Washington is a front-runner for 2017. However 2016 is open and if the rotation is followed would go to an American League team. That would be the perfect fit for the Blue Jays, on the 25th anniversary of the first All-Star Classic they hosted in 1991. Heres hoping. Trysten Hill Youth Jersey .DeMarco Murray got his 20th carry late in the fourth quarter with a 10-point lead, not long after Dez Bryant made his final catch of the day.Sure enough, a 44-17 win over Washington didnt change Dallas post-season position. Michael Irvin Youth Jersey .com) - Semyon Varlamov more than earned his third shutout of the season as he made a career-high 54 saves to lift the Colorado Avalanche to a 2-0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday. http://www.shoptheofficialcowboys.com/El...Cowboys-Jersey/. Not because it was right, but because referees werent allowed to determine it was wrong. Emmitt Smith Womens Jersey . - Defensive end-linebacker Mike Neal apparently is returning to the Packers. Michael Irvin Womens Jersey . -- Packers cornerback Tramon Williams has been fined $26,250 for contact with an official, per NFL guidelines.Auburn, AL (SportsNetwork.com) - Cameron Artis-Payne ran for 129 yards and a touchdown on 29 carries as 16th-ranked Auburn posted a 31-7 win over Samford at Jordan-Hare Stadium. The Tigers overcame a sluggish start and eight penalties to pull away from the FCS-level Bulldogs and halt a two-game skid as they enter next Saturdays Iron Bowl showdown with No. 2 Alabama. Nick Marshall threw for 171 yards on 11-of-18 passing with one touchdown and an interception for Auburn (8-3), which also received rushing scores from Quan Bray and Roc Thomas. Michael Eubank completed 15-of-29 throws for 125 yards and one touchdown for Samford (7-4), but was intercepted twice during a second half in which the Bulldogs were held scoreless. The Tigers appeared to be looking ahead to next weeks rivalry game with the Crimson Tide early on, as Auburn mustered a paltry 36 yards of offense while being held scoreless over its first four drives. Those struggles enabled Samford to grab a 7-0 edge midway through the second quarter, with Eubank skillfully directing a 7-play, 74-yard series in which the Arizona State transfer completed all five of his throws and capped the trek with a 7-yard strike to Tony Philpot. The touchdown seemed to finally wake up the Tigers, as Marshall hit Sammie Coates deep for a 49-yard gain on the next snap from scrimmage. Two plays later, Bray took a jet sweep along the left side 23 yards to the end zone. Samford was then held without a first down on two straight possessions, and Auburn put up points on its next two to take a 17-7 lead into the half. Four straight running plays that totaled 39 yards had Auburn inside the Bulldogs 10-yard line, though Samford was able to limit the damage to a 29- yard Daniel Carlson field ggoal that sent the Tigers in front.dddddddddddd. A 40-yard connection from Marshall to Bray on Auburns subsequent drive had the Tigers at the Samford 16 with a minute to go in the second quarter. Shortly afterward, Artis-Payne bounced a shotgun handoff outside and followed his blocks for a 7-yard touchdown that extended the margin to 10 points. The Bulldogs had a chance to make it a one-score game after moving deep into Auburn territory on their initial drive of the second half, but Warren Handrahan misfired on a 34-yard field goal try to keep it a 17-7 differential. It was Samfords last good scoring opportunity of the night, as Auburns defense shut down Eubank and the Bulldogs attack the rest of the way and the Tigers increased their lead on the ensuing drive. Marshall hit on 3-of-4 attempts in engineering a 10-play, 80-yard sequence he kept alive with a 27-yard strike to Melvin Ray on third down, then later completed with a swing pass that Corey Grant took 13 yards into the end zone. Thomas accounted for Auburns final touchdown with a 1-yard run with 8:44 remaining, ending a 65-yard possession in which 11 of the 12 plays came on the ground. Game Notes The Tigers totaled 76 yards in penalties ... Samford is coached by Pat Sullivan, who won the 1971 Heisman Trophy as an Auburn quarterback ... Tigers wide receiver Dhaquille Williams sat out a second straight game with a knee injury ... The schools have faced one another 28 times but only four since World War II, with Auburn outscoring the Bulldogs by a 156-30 count in those games ... Samford fell to 2-75-3 all-time against current members of the Southeastern Conference, including an 0-27-1 mark versus Auburn. ' ' '