MONTREAL -- Count a former Texas Rangers executive among those who would like to see Major League Baseball return to Montreal.

Former National Baseball Hall of Fame President Dale Petroskey, who was a Rangers executive vice president from 2008-2010, said Montreal is "a natural fit" for an expansion team or relocation. Having a team in the city would help bring "an international flavor" to the league, he said.

Petroskey said the Montreal Expos' past failures -- the team left for Washington after the 2004 season -- shouldn't be held against the city any more than they should have been held against Washington after the Senators left for Arlington.

"Now that they're missing baseball, now that they don't have it, it's sort of absence makes the heart grow fonder," Petroskey said of Montreal. "If they were to bring it back, people would wrap both arms around the team and make sure they never lost it again. I really believe that. Baseball is stronger with a team in Montreal."

Petroskey is in Montreal on a trade trip led by Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings and Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price in his current role as CEO of the Dallas Regional Chamber of Commerce.

The mayors spent time Friday with Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre, who is hoping to get a team back in the metro area of more than 4.1 million people.

Coderre is a baseball fanatic. He joked about how Rawlings' name invokes baseball. He has a pair of baseball mitts, an Expos hat and now a Texas Rangers cap -- courtesy of Price and Rawlings -- on his office shelves.

Petroskey's views were welcome news to Coderre, who said in an interview with The Dallas Morning News that the city has invested in more fields for youth baseball players to play and create a fan base. And the city has hosted massive crowds for the Toronto Blue Jays exhibition games in recent years at Olympic Stadium.

"Our role is to make sure that we respect Major League Baseball's agenda, and we're doing what it takes to show that it's worth it to come back to Montreal," he said.

Coderre said the hockey-first city has enough history in baseball to be successful. Gary Carter's and Andre Dawson's Hall of Fame plaques depict them with Expos caps. Tim Raines will join them this summer, along with former Ranger Ivan Rodriguez. Vladimir Guerrero could join the hall in the future. And Jackie Robinson played in the minor leagues for the Montreal Royals.

"Baseball in Montreal, I always suggest, is not nostalgia," Coderre said. "It's DNA."

The Expos' attendance sank after the 1994 players' strike -- Montreal had baseball's best record that season -- and never recovered after many of the team's best players went elsewhere and rumors persisted that the team would relocate or even be eliminated.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has said he's interested in adding two teams to the league, which would make scheduling easier. Manfred has said he's open to the idea of returning to Montreal.

Petroskey is lukewarm on expansion, preferring to first see the Rangers' West division rivals, the Oakland Athletics, and the Tampa Bay Rays relocated to stronger baseball markets. He is also skeptical of whether having a new team in Mexico City, which has been raised as another possible location, is sustainable.

Coderre said he doesn't care whether a team comes to his city via expansion or relocation.

"I just want baseball to come back," he said.