WASHINGTON -- Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder has taken the first steps toward bringing a baseball team to the Virginia suburbs of Washington.

Snyder said Tuesday he has contacted and discussed working with the Virginia Stadium Baseball Authority, whose exclusive agreement with telecommunications executive William Collins expires at the end of the month.

Snyder announced last month that he and Black Entertainment Television founder Robert Johnson formed a group aimed at bringing a team to the Washington area.

``We're waiting and seeing like everybody else,'' Snyder said in an interview with Associated Press reporters and editors. ``I think people on the baseball front are waiting to see what happens with the union, and then ... take that journey.''

Snyder and Johnson are the third team in a race with room for only two. A group led by businessman Fred Malek recently signed an exclusive agreement to deal with the District of Columbia, while Collins has been working with the Northern Virginia authority for five years.

Time could quickly run out on Snyder and Johnson. The authority has been negotiating to extend Collins' deal for another five years, although it has been awaiting an independent review of the Collins group's finances.

Jerry Burkot, a spokesman for Collins' Virginia Baseball Club, said Tuesday an extension has been negotiated and is merely awaiting ratification by the authority.

``The authority is a government agency. There are a lot of requirements, a lot of hoops to go through. It's just part of their due diligence,'' Burkot said.

Burkot added it would be a violation of the current exclusivity agreement between Collins and the authority if the authority engaged in substantive discussions with Snyder.

Authority spokesman Brian Hannigan declined comment Tuesday about Snyder. In an interview last week, though, authority director Gabe Paul said the authority remains committed to its deal with Collins.

``I don't think that anybody else has made the effort that Bill Collins has,'' Paul said.

Snyder, who said he went to Washington Senators games before the team relocated to Texas 30 years ago, conceded he and Johnson are probably playing catch-up with Malek and Collins.

``I think they may be more advanced than us,'' Snyder said.

While baseball might be on the horizon for Snyder, the Redskins remain his passion. During the 90-minute interview, he reflected on three years of NFL ownership that have sometimes tried the patience of someone not known for having much.

``Surprising for me first, coming in, I thought my input would help a little quicker,'' Snyder said. ``I thought we could get it going a little faster, but it took a little more time. But it's coming together.''

Snyder bought the team for $800 million in July 1999 and steamrolled into Redskin Park, complaining about players' weights at the first practice he attended and firing longtime employees after saying they would be retained.

He's already on his fourth coach, Steve Spurrier, following Norv Turner, Terry Robiskie and Marty Schottenheimer. A spending spree that landed Deion Sanders, Bruce Smith and Jeff George in 2000 left the team strapped for salary cap space after back-to-back 8-8 seasons.

``If it had worked, then you wouldn't get the criticism,'' Snyder said. ``It didn't work. It didn't turn out. That's OK. Now we regroup and go in the direction that we're going in now. It's sort of a frustrating experience, but one you really think you learn and make progress.''

Snyder, 37, took a great leap of faith in January when he hired Spurrier, a college coach with no NFL coaching experience, to a record five-year, $25 million contract.

``It's not a college system; it's the Steve Spurrier system,'' Snyder said. ``Steve Spurrier's system has worked in the USFL at the pro level. It worked at Duke. It worked at Florida. It'll work in the National Football League.

``Whether it takes a little bit of time or whether it works instantaneously, I think the facts are that Spurrier is a great, great leader, competitor and an exciting coach.''

Snyder's uncompromising style has been subject to intense criticism, and the public scrutiny is much greater than he ever experienced in the marketing world, where he made his millions. He said he gets good support from fans, even though many boo him when his picture appears on the huge replay screen when he's watching a Wizards game at the MCI Center.

During the interview, Snyder's mood was lighthearted. He often cracked jokes even as he avoided answering some questions.

``You all have been laughing; I've been joking around,'' Snyder said. ``And that's never in the media because that's not fun -- that Dan Snyder's actually a lot of fun to be with. That's not as fascinating as saying, 'Jeez, look what happened with this decision.'''