Conspiracy theorists will continue to find evidence that the Expos are, by definition, operating under a different set of rules than the other 29 franchises.

In an effort to broaden baseball's base and, let's face it, limit the number of times the Expos have to play before crowds of less than 8,000, Major League Baseball has scheduled 22 of their games in Puerto Rico. This, too, is patently unfair.

While every other club has to play 81 games on the road, the Expos have to play 103. And what about their divisional opponents like the Mets and Phillies, who, instead of making a quick flight from the Northeast corridor to Quebec, must re-route themselves to the Caribbean?

By all accounts, baseball is moving slowly in the sale process. A certain amount of caution is necessary. If you think otherwise, just look at the NHL, which, on commissioner Gary Bettman's watch, has seen two different owners taken away in handcuffs. The last thing baseball needs are over-leveraged owners or underfunded stadium projects.

And, to be sure, there are potential problems with the two prime relocation choices. The Washington, D.C.-Northern Virginia area may be ready for its third try at a team, but is Major League Baseball ready for the resulting fallout from Baltimore Orioles owner and uber-litigator Peter Angelos? Angelos is primed to sue baseball for encroaching on his territory.

Meanwhile, Portland's economy is in a shambles, calling into question, at least for now, the wisdom of placing a second team in the Pacific Northwest.

But clearly, baseball needs to proceed with some urgency since there are more potential problems on the near horizon. As the season progresses, superstar outfielder Vladimir Guerrero, inarguably one of the half-dozen best players in the game, will be creeping toward free agency.

Do the Expos deal Guerrero at the July 31 trading deadline, knowing that they can't possibly afford to retain him? Or, do they keep him, thus making the team more attractive to a deep-pocketed owner.

For that matter, for whom does Minaya work? For the fans -- however few there may be -- of the long-suffering Expos? For Selig? For some unidentified owner, waiting in the wings?

Does Minaya try to win this year? Does he have a long-term plan in place?

There are too many questions as the Expos prepare to kick off their second season as wards of the state. It isn't so bad that they're still in Montreal; it's the fact they're still in limbo.

Sean McAdam of the Providence Journal covers baseball for ESPN.com.