ESPN MLB

For the second straight season the Montreal Expos will play 22 home games at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, the team said Thursday.

Unlike last season, Montreal will play the 22 games in Puerto Rico before the All-Star break. Last year the games were spread out during the entire season, and the added travel really paid a heavy toll on the Expos.

A recent proposed schedule for San Juan had games against the New York Mets (April 9-11), Florida (April 13-15), Milwaukee (May 18-20), San Francisco (May 21-23), Toronto (July 2-4), Atlanta (July 5-7) and Pittsburgh (July 8-11).

San Juan was the leading contender to host the 22 games, but Bob DuPuy, baseball's chief operating officer, also was considering an offer from Monterrey, Mexico.

Earlier this week, the promoter who brought the Expos to San Juan last season said the commissioner's office has agreed to give him Puerto Rican television rights for Montreal's games at Hiram Bithorn Stadium next season. The issue had been one of the last obstacles in negotiations to bring the Expos back to San Juan in 2004.

"Just as last year, we will be the ones to transmit the games," promoter Antonio Munoz said Tuesday. "The only thing I'm waiting for is the go-ahead."

That officially came Thursday.

Munoz paid baseball $6.6 million to bring 22 Expos games to Bithorn Stadium last season.

The Expos were bought by the other 29 major league teams before the 2002 season, and baseball has discussed a permanent move with groups from Northern Virginia; Portland, Ore.; and Washington, D.C.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.