NLDS Bet

From the home office:

Today, St. Louis Mayor Francis G. Slay and District of Columbia Mayor Vincent C. Gray announced that they had placed a friendly wager on the outcome of the National League Division Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Washington Nationals.

The Mayors have agreed that, if the Nationals win the series, a special version of the D.C. flag emblazoned with the District's "Taxation Without Representation" motto will fly over City Hall in downtown St. Louis for a day. Conversely, if the Cardinals take the series, St. Louis' "three rivers" flag will fly over the District's John A. Wilson Building (the seat of the Executive Office of the Mayor and the D.C. Council) for a day.

"The Cardinals entered the playoffs as a wild-card team last year," said Mayor Slay. "And that led to the organization's 11th World Series victory. We're no stranger to postseason play in St. Louis. So, we're thrilled to show the upstarts how to do it right. I look forward to our City's flag flying proudly over the John A. Wilson Building when our boys wrap this thing up."

"The Nationals' storybook season and our first Major League Baseball postseason play in nearly 80 years mark a momentous time for the District of Columbia, and I'm proud to be playing a great and historic team from wonderful sports city like St. Louis," Mayor Gray said. "I look forward to the citizens of the City of St. Louis getting a lesson not only on the baseball diamond when the Nats take the series, but also in the uniquely unjust situation in which the District's 618,000-plus residents find ourselves - denied voting representation in Congress and ultimate authority over our own budget and affairs - when our flag flies over Market Street in downtown St. Louis!"