With the news that the Baltimore Orioles have acquired ace pitcher and former NL Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes, Luke Jones and Nestor discuss the power of general manager Mike Elias to improve the team and add payroll for a World Series run this summer.
SUMMARY KEYWORDSyears, orioles, talking, elias, corbin, burns, camden yards, week, point, baseball, ravens, deal, team, baltimore, acquire, franchise, ownership, people, good, payrollSPEAKERSLuke Jones, Nestor J. Aparicio Nestor J. Aparicio 00:01Welcome home we are wn st am 1570 tastic Baltimore and Baltimore positive we are doing our big promotion all of the big week of the big game. It is a cup of Super Bowl week. It’s crabcake row. I’m wearing my cocoa shirt. This will be the Wednesday stop Monday we will be at families and I have been I’ve been incorrect about this. I need to stand corrected. We’re going to be in the old families, the original families, the one they’ve been in for 150 years. The new location a new market still getting built out. I was there earlier this week. It looks lovely. There’s lots of construction people and stuff hanging on the walls. They’re a few weeks away. We thought they would get in by February 5, but we’ll be at the old fete Lee’s on Monday, just as as an aside Tuesday, Costas Wednesday, Coco’s Thursday. We’re going to be at State Fair in Catonsville, then on Friday at Pappas in Cockeysville. Maryland lottery tickets, fun people, people doing great work, charity folks, co host you may know this guy may be one of them. Look, Jones joins us now. To recap as we tape this, it’s the end of the week. It’s heading into the weekend. And look, I’m this is my 40th year. Last week was my was 40 years ago last week that I walked into the news American with my father my father got on the bus took me downtown, we walked into the newspaper was January 23 1984. So you do the math on that. I don’t talk about that date much. But So 40 years into this. I don’t know if the city and we’re talking Mayflower is bringing the Ravens back who was here for that opening Camden Yards, Cal Ripken, 2131. Big football games. I don’t know that we’ve had tectonic plates shift, you know, underneath of the ground at Camden Yards the way we have since the last time you and I convened, but oh my god, what a week. It’s crazy for the baseball team and a football team and a football team and a baseball team and the losing and losing players and losing coaches and and then and then a new owner shows up for the baseball team. And then within 48 hours, they’re trading for ACES. i My wife came back from yoga. She was in the shower and I went in. I peeked into the shower. I said they traded for Roger Clemens. So, look, Jones joins us now what’s going on minus the you know, minus Andy Pettit in the needles, but you know what I meant? Yeah, I Luke Jones 02:19know exactly what you meant. I mean, what a week, what a night Thursday night was I think it was one of those nights that having talked to a few friends of mine seeing social media and the temperature there. I think you had Orioles fans who had had trouble sleeping Thursday night. They were that excited? I think they’re they were borderline giddy with how that played out. And it’s ironic, one of the very rare times of over the last quarter century. I think the Ravens privately are saying kind of glad the Orioles are making some good news in a week that’s been really rough for us, you know, in terms of the disappointment of Sunday and like McDonald moving on, and we’ll get to the Ravens. This is about the orange and black and Nestor J. Aparicio 03:01Oreos calm conversation since Arlington, quite frankly. Yeah. Well, there Luke Jones 03:04hasn’t been a whole lot to talk about other than other than Craig Kim, Nestor J. Aparicio 03:07what is amazing, Elias has been getting pooped upon by the fans, what are you gonna do something when he when I get a real owner, dude, how about I get a real owner? You know, like, like we we’ve been saying that for 40 years, but to get a real owner? Well, Luke Jones 03:19I mean, you figured a trade was coming at some point in time, right? I mean, we’ve talked about that for the better part of two years now considering where this farm system has been where it is now and where it will continue to go with the pipeline that even after trading DL haul and Joey Ortiz for Corbin burns remains very, very strong and should for the foreseeable future. But you have to go back and I was trying to think about this Thursday night. The last trade of this magnitude that wasn’t trading away, Manny Machado or Kevin Gasman or Jonathan scope or go down the list of the tear down five years ago. I mean, it’s been a long time since the Orioles have made a move of this magnitude and to acquire someone who’s a couple years removed from being sayang of the National League, someone who led the league and led the National League in strikeouts in 2022, who’s coming off of quote, an off year when he had an era that was still in the low threes. That speaks to what the Orioles are requiring here. And it’s terribly exciting, especially when you’re already talking about the excitement of Kyle Bradish and Grayson Rodriguez. And John means coming back healthy after Tommy John and his Nestor J. Aparicio 04:40101 wins speaks for itself. Right? Luke Jones 04:42Right. I mean, there’s so much as much as we were talking about the lease and ownership and to your point waiting for allies to make a move waiting for this organization to spend money and how ownership was tied to that. Even with all those factors in there was still a lot of excitement. Most of a 100 win Club was was returning. So you add Corbin burns to the mix now and just goes back to what I was talking about a few days ago when we were talking about the news breaking of the imminent sale and the pending sale of this franchise, the elevating of expectations, right raising expectations, raising the bar that didn’t take much. But boy, to your point, Mike Elias didn’t waste any time here in acquiring one of the very best pitchers in the National League over the last four years. So it’s exciting. I mean, this is one of those scenarios where you dream about the possibilities you think about understanding health is always a factor and understanding you have to go out and do it. But you think about the potential of a top three in October of Corbin burns, Kyle Bradish, Grayson Rodriguez, and the elite upside that the lat the last to bring, if they can even just take a modest step forward from what they did the second half of last year. Boy, that’s a scary top three going up against just about anyone in baseball, so it’s really, really exciting. It’s a great day, a great week for the Baltimore Orioles and for a fan base that has been thrown bread crumbs at best for most of the last 30 years who’s gonna say beleaguered Nestor J. Aparicio 06:19but I believe your doesn’t even like describe where the hell I am. You know me, I’m going through just an emotional roller coaster as a reporter as well, because I’ve been on the phone for the minute this happened. I didn’t want to lay on you about what I know. You know, like literally about the deal and about the timeline of all this. But let’s stay on the field for a minute and just talk about Elias. I’m pretty convinced the lies that no he was selling the team. I’m pretty convinced he lied to Elias the way he lied. The Westmore the way he lied to Brooke Lederman, the way he lied to Derek Davies. He’s a frickin liar. I’m glad I called him that in July. And now anybody that read my stuff will know. I’ve been honest. So the part where Elias does a caravan. And they all go out. And he had to speak of it. And this speaks of how owners and baseball people and sports people have to get along behind closed doors and have to have one song they’re singing when the door opens. But Elias was sort of watering people down a little bit by saying all those things you said, we want 101 games, we’re not going to do anything dramatic. I mean, my read is this. And I don’t know this to be factual. But I think this to be factual. Elias wasn’t going to go dealing young players away while this creep on the team in the thought that he’s not going to sign burns anyway. So why are we going to deal youth away? If I have no commitment to sign him? I mean, this is the RO Quan Smith deal, right? To bring the football part in here. If if you’re Eric de Costa, and you have no confidence that you can sign the player, and you have no confidence that your your boss will pay for it. And football is different because the money is sitting there. And Eric doesn’t have to go fight with Steve shouting about money. That’s the way football is set up. But here’s the Roger says here’s the number and there’s your number and Pat Moriarty as to being counted. Right? So baseball is different, though. And if you got to Hall, right, if you got these assets, right, in your organization, now you can’t play five middle infielders, right. But when you have these assets to deal them off for a rental before the season begins, trade for burns, and for half of the July 31, if you’re going to rent him, but I would think that this, this is the precursor to real contracts here, I would think and I would also think for Elias, if, if John’s gone spiritually in regard to I don’t have to talk to him anymore. And I know this to be true, because it’s really does tie into the ownership. Rubenstein doesn’t own the team. And this could still get screwed up. I mean, every person I’ve talked to said, this is the Angelo’s family. They’re volatile, they’re dishonest. They lie. They change terms all the time. Call the people down in Vero Beach. They thought they had the Orioles at Spring training. You go look at all the headlines. They’re there. Their board of elected people voted that all that they thought they had a deal. They did not have a deal. So there is that part of it. But there’s also the part where John’s torched every bridge there is Mom wants to sell the team. This is important to mom, not John. And it’s mom’s team really, at the end of the day mom wants out. And all of these pieces. I mean allies can’t do. People aren’t writing to me on Thursday night saying is this a coincidence? No. There’s nothing coincidental about this deal happening after the announcement of the transfer of power that hasn’t been transferred. But I think everybody’s in agreement here. That Elias is going to have a new boss by the middle of the season. And whatever, he’s not spending money right now, right. And he didn’t spend any money on this deal. He just acquired a player. But the confidence level is if Mike Elias is going to keep this job, he’s not going to keep this job as a Tampa Bay. We’re just gonna like age everybody out and do what Milwaukee just did, quite frankly, which is grow a pitcher and deal a pitcher or grow a Machado and deal with Machado. That is really about confidence level of ownership to be able to spend money sign players operate, like, like, like a real team. And I feel like that this is, it’s coming out party from Mike Elias in that way, because he’s done everything but this, and he hasn’t had the ability to do this. And it does take a different boss or a different vision over the hill to say this franchise is going to be a different franchise by August 1 by the trading deadline, because everybody’s told me that I’ve talked to don’t expect this transaction to close right now. This is not happening. April 1, this isn’t happening by opening day. But but I’ve been told this, John Angeles will not be the owner appeared on opening day, he’s not coming back into the building. He’s not coming back to say goodbye to people to embarrass himself, to thank them for their service to, you know, shake rock Bakos hand and say you’re a good boy like he’s not the word is. He’s made his last decision. But that it’s not a deal yet. And Rubenstein knows that. And all the investors like these are hard, hard. Really Detailed Transactions. This is not something they could do. Even if Peter died, John died, mom said, Where do I sign? Just kidding. paperwork together at this level, this is a 60 to 90 day process. The league has to agree to it. There’s a League meeting next week where they’ll get briefed. There’s a letter of intent, I learned that but there are not opera, they’re not documents at all. None of that exists. And patience will be the word for the fans. But there was no patience for Mike Elias. He’s like I had a season to start. Let’s go get a pitcher. And I it’s it’s beyond exciting. I don’t I’ve owned the station 25 years, I can and I admitted this to you privately. I met this on the air I don’t. I can’t literally remember a time a time where I walked into Camden Yards and felt welcomed by them. And I’m talking about early on. I’m talking about 9495 96. It got bad quickly, from a morale standpoint, from even when they had Jimmy key and BJ surhoff and sit for like all those guys. It was a really dark place to be from the beginning. And I know you’ve been there 15 years. I’m going back 30 years ago, the whole time they’ve owned it. I expect completely different oxygen. Right away right away and corporate burns. Is that ops oxygen? Luke Jones 13:11Yeah, I mean, there was already good feelings about the way the team was playing. I mean, they won 101 games. But when you bring in an ace, and look, I’m not going to make any assumptions about what Corbin burns future is going to be beyond this year. I think you look at this deal, even as a rental deal haul. Look, we’ve been talking about DL haul for six or seven years now. And he’s been one of their best prospects, but time on task injuries have really stunted his development as a starting pitcher to the point where you and I the few conversations we’ve had since the end of last season. I’ve talked about Dr. Hall being in the bullpen. Does he become the Brewers next Josh hater? It’s possible. But Corbin burns. It’s possible could pitch the Orioles to the World Series this October. So I think you have to look at it through that lens. Joey Ortiz. We’ve talked about him. Look great defender. I think he’s going to be a legitimate defensive Major League shortstop. He had an excellent season at the plate at triple A Norfolk blocked. I mean, there wasn’t room for him this past year, let alone talking about Jackson Holliday being in the majors at some point in 2024. So even if this is a one year rental, even if this is a case where the Orioles look at Corbin burns and say, We really like him, but we don’t want to marry him for the next five years. Because we have we have eyes for another pitcher that might be out there that we might sign with our new ownership group next offseason or whatever it might be. Or it might just be the Kyle Bradish and Grayson Rodriguez become legit number one and number two starters for any team over the course of the 2024 season. So this isn’t for me. I don’t sign off on this deal with the caveat that they have to sign Corbin burns long term, but the sheer possibility of that being on the table which would not have been the case a week ago, let alone talking about for years and years going back under the Angelo’s regime, it’s terribly exciting. So for whatever it is, and you know, to your point, let’s face it, Mike Elias, if we know anything about him over the last five going on six years now, it’s been very methodical. So while certainly you look at the developments of earlier in the week, and you look at the timing of this, I also think Mike Elias has done groundwork with teams and had talked with Milwaukee, about the possibility of this. But again, with the news breaking earlier this week, yeah. How can it not be? Nestor J. Aparicio 15:41Like Elias was watching the football game on Sunday? I think he probably thought John was staying in for a while, like, I think he probably was like to like, everyone, I don’t think he was the one that John pulled up and said, Hey, I’m getting rid of the team, you’re gonna be operating differently. I don’t think it’s that normal. You know what I mean, like, and if anything that was brought out to me about anybody’s optimism, and I’m not gonna put a wet blanket on this at all, but they’re volatile family, they’re dysfunctional family. And for that the people involved in the deal. Expect bumps, you know what I’m saying? I’m just saying, Luke Jones 16:21usually, and I would say, in general with these, because of what you just said, it’s multi. Okay, so it’s $1.7 billion. I mean, think about the size of the Lamar Jackson contract, and then multiply that by seven, right? I mean, that’s all I can Nestor J. Aparicio 16:37think about is 1,000,000,007. is how much of the franchise does Chris Davis? Oh, yeah, I thought sale price is 10% Luke Jones 16:44of this. Right. Right. So I mean, it’s just, it’s wild to just think about this. But look, is it possible that Mike Elias had some inkling that something was going to happen at some point in the not too distant future? Sure. Is it possible he was in the dark, just like everyone else wouldn’t surprise me whatsoever? I mean, Let’s call a spade a spade. You know, the dishonesty has been obvious. So Colin Angeles in Angeles. That said, like I said, Elias also has not been someone who’s gone out there and done something on a whim. So do I think that his first conversation with the Milwaukee Brewers occurred after Tuesday’s news broke? No, I think there have been talks, maybe even going back to last offseason. But we know Elias has been very conservative for some of the reasons you stated. And because he doesn’t want to give away the farm system. And let’s face it, we’ve talked about Dillon SES now for going, you know, going on close to a year, it’s been very apparent through various reports that the White Sox have asked for the moon, Mike Elias, just because he has the moon in prospects wasn’t going to give them the moon. So you know, you pivot and you look at all the different possibilities, including free agency, but you come back to this and you say, okay, Corbin Burns is making $15.6 million. That’s a steep investment, relative to what the Orioles have spent in recent payroll. Sure, sure. So but that said they spent $13 million on Craig Kimbrel. They have a boatload of players getting raises in arbitration. And now Corbin burns for $15.6 million dollars, this is going to be a pretty sizable increase in payroll now. I’m not saying that for as a cautionary tale or anything like that, but it just speaks to we are starting to see the ball move in that way and we’ll see if they resign Corbin burns, but if they don’t I think this is all even if it’s just one year of Corbin burns I think what the Orioles have given up as an acceptable price. I don’t think this is Oh my gosh, they gave up the stars for one year of Corbin burns Nestor J. Aparicio 18:48doesn’t smack of desperation that’s for sure. No, I Luke Jones 18:51think it’s it’s smacks of we have a 101 win team coming back. We very clearly needed a top of the rotation starter or top half of the rotation starter. And this guy absolutely checks that box not as a top half but as a number one. And now Kyle Bradish and Grayson Rodriguez as the two and three looks dynamic looks elite in terms of how you slot guys in a starting rotation for a contending ballclub. And that’s not even talking about John means or Dean Kramer is your projected number five starter right now who is pretty decent. So, I mean, this is exciting. I mean, the possibilities here. I mean, you look at the starting rotation. I don’t want to call it the 1971 Orioles, because that would be hyperbole. And disrespectful. Nestor J. Aparicio 19:36They were the orange uniforms. Luke Jones 19:39Yeah, yeah. But you look at the potential and elite upside of this rotation with Corbin burns being what he’s been for four years now. Kyle Brad is doing what he did for a full season last year. Grayson Rodriguez doing what he did in the second half last year and knowing about his pedigree, as an Elite pitching prospect over the last couple of years. Nestor, it’s been a long, long time since you could talk about the Orioles with a top three of that magnitude that caliber how it looks on paper right now already looks really good. The upside is elite. The upside is talking about it being one of the best. Top three in baseball. I mean, that’s what you’re talking about there in terms of potential. And again, you have to go out and do it. And guys have to stay healthy and look even expensive pitchers like Corbin burns break sometimes. So yeah, there’s always going to be the fingers crossed. But that’s for every team. You know, that’s every franchise in baseball, whether you have a an $80 million payroll or a $300 million payroll as the Mets can attest to last year with how things fell apart for them. So yeah, there are no guarantees. But how this looks on paper boy, it is terribly exciting. It is uncharted territory. It is the Orioles fans having the kind of thoughts that used to be with caveats. If everything went perfectly this could happen. Now this is a case of things still have to go well, right. You don’t just roll the ball out and expect to win. But you look at this thing on paper and it was wild to see national baseball reporters and analysts on social media on Thursday night, flat out saying forget about the Yankees. The Orioles are the favorites in the at least and you know, individuals draw on the comparisons with what with what the Astros did, and they got to a certain point. And they went and got Justin Verlander. And they’re comparing this moment to the Astros going and getting Justin Verlander. So look, I’m not saying Corbin Burns is destined for the Hall of Fame like Verlander. But the point is, you’re talking about a guy that is only a couple of years removed from asylum and should fit in very well at Camden Yards with a spacious left field. Oh, yeah, there’s still that, as we talk about trying to attract pitchers here in Baltimore. In addition to just be in a really good franchise, it’s coming off the division titles. So it’s got a, maybe the best cutter and all the baseball, I mean, just a nasty, nasty pitch. Oriole saw firsthand. He shut them down in June last year in Milwaukee. I mean, absolutely, completely dominated them. He pitched really well at Camden Yards in April of 2022. Ironically, it was the day that John means left with an elbow injury that for getting Tommy John, it’s a long time ago, almost two years ago at this point. But they’ve seen Corbin burns up close just a couple times. And look, look at the numbers. I mean, you’re talking about someone who his worst, and I use air quotes with worst era over the last four seasons was last year 3.39. I mean, it’s Yeah, Mrs. Bats. I mean, it’s, it’s exciting. Yeah, like I said, the era has got trended up the last couple years. So if you want to call that a red flag, I think that might be too strong, but it’s something to monitor. But at the same time, that’s where we go back to. So one year deal, see how this looks. See if you fall in love with him, see if he falls in love with you and your city that should be as enthusiastic as ever about the baseball team in 2024. And see what ownership thinks and where they are. So if it would have been impossible to imagine this happening anyway. But at the very least now with a new ownership group coming in and with all possible Nestor J. Aparicio 23:22the 15 million, right, like literally the 15 million is 18 Luke Jones 23:26million. And to your point, Elias being more reluctant to give up on prospects, knowing the ownership situation and the long term vision being unclear on that front. I mean, it’s just it’s not something the Orioles have done. I mean, think about it, you know, even going back they Nestor J. Aparicio 23:42haven’t been good enough to deal into getting an ace that is that could come where there’d been a division winner. They haven’t been a division winner that you know, that’s part but you’re you’re right back into 12, the 16 they gave up on the Machado they’re doing what the Brewers did. They were waiting for rutschman to get ripe and then dealing him and 2026 or whatever right Luke Jones 24:01and even in 2014 Okay, they would have been right to to acquire an ace then but one you’d always have the question of the cost even though their payroll was much higher than and was more competitive at that point in time in terms of where it ranked in baseball, but didn’t have the prospects to acquire. He didn’t have the guys to go out and get a Corbin burns or it would have been like okay, you’re given up Dylan Bundy who at the time was viewed as one of the very best prospects in baseball and then oh, your systems pick clean then. So this is a case of they look, I don’t like giving up to yell Hall just in isolation in a vacuum. I do look at the bullpen and still say I’d still like to see them and it doesn’t have to be by by opening day I’d still like to see them get another late inning high leverage arm because you know Felix Batista is not pitching this year Nestor J. Aparicio 24:49you believe to some degree DL Hawk could have been Kimbrough Right? Like do Hawk could have been the closer on the if they’re on the cheap, and they’re gonna win 78 games this year and they’re just figuring it out. out, they would say to do all the closer to Oh, yeah. Because we because we’re getting away on the cheap, right. So that if they had a player like that they would have utilized that play. I mean, I’m going back Brady Anderson era, whatever. That’s how they would have utilized that protect separate and who they didn’t pay, right. I mean, like literally, Luke Jones 25:16I mean, it’s just you know, DL haul is someone that I certainly identified at this point. I think the ship was really starting to sail as far as him as a starter and maybe Milwaukee as they’re entering this, rebuild, reload whatever, retool whatever they’re doing, Nestor J. Aparicio 25:30you know, they’re trying to get a stadium built is what they’re trying to do. But the point is, maybe Luke Jones 25:35they revisit him as a starter because it makes sense. For the time being. I mean, he’s 25, but he’s still only 25. But I think for the Orioles. For me, I was looking at TL Hall as okay, you have Craig Kimbrel. He certainly brings experience. I’m not saying that he’s not going to be the closer but is he the dominant guy? He was five or 10 years ago? No, he’s not. I mean, that’s, that’s been evident the last couple years, but he’s still good. But you still need some other guys. We saw that down the stretch, right? I mean, especially when Batista went down. You’re you’re looking at the back end of that bullpen. And how many times did you hear me say, not missing enough? That’s not missing enough bats do haul Miss bats. So, you know, I definitely think they’re going to have to add someone I think this move with the rotation looking the way it does right now I think increases the likelihood of Tyler wells being in the bullpen. And we’ve seen him including late last year look promising in that kind of a roll. So I still think you need not a closer per se. I mean, Craig Kimbrel is going to be the closer at least to begin the season. I mean, they’re paying him $13 million. But I think you need another arm to fit into that eighth ninth inning depending on the night depending on the matchup, depending on who’s fresh and who needs a night off and all that. But that is a relative concern compared to what the Orioles and what Michaelides just pulled off which is acquiring a legitimate nice, I mean, this isn’t with no disrespect to someone like Chris Tillman, who had a really good run as a top half of the Orioles rotation and their de facto ace when they re up Nestor J. Aparicio 27:11radishes at this point, right. Bradish is is sort of kind of an ace, but we’re not really I get get kind Luke Jones 27:17of rattled a little bit. What he did last year was way better than anything Chris Tillman did I mean, he’s, he was very legitimate when you Nestor J. Aparicio 27:25thought Well, we already have an ace and Bradish and we already have Rodriguez you could become our Jim Palmer. And these are the two guys we’re gonna there are McDonald and Messina or whatever you’re gonna say. They just to your point, they trumped their two starter and now he is a two starter and that’s a good place for him to be having been sort of a one year wonder so far. And Bradish. Yeah, well, Luke Jones 27:47I mean, I’d say one and a half. I mean, go back and look at how he pitched you know, in 20 tube from like July late July on but your points well taken. And look, a year from now, it might be Bradish and Grayson Rodriguez, one two or Grayson Rodriguez Bradish, one, two and Corbin burns, leaves and they go acquire someone else or sign someone else at some point at some point in time. That’s why I said I love this move without even knowing if Corbin Burns is here beyond 2024. I love the fact that he’s here in 2024 because it puts less pressure on Bradish and Grayson Rodriguez, the pressure that last October Let’s call a spade a spade they weren’t quite ready for it. That doesn’t mean they won’t be ready for it this October. But I mean that top three and then factor in John means who when he’s been healthy, it’s been really good. Now he’s your number four and now Dean Kramer is your number five and, you know, you’re you’re still gonna have you have some depth in terms of guys that Cole Irvin and some other guys in their system that are getting closer to being ready. So it’s not as though they don’t have other options if they have an injury or two. But when you look at the upside, when you look at how this thing looks on paper, I mean, it’s been a long, long, long time since the Orioles have had a rotation with the potential of this one. And the way it looks on paper right now. Like I said, Corbin burns, really, really good. I mean, Mrs. Bats. He’s been pretty durable over the last couple of years. I mean 193 innings last year to under two in 2022. As I mentioned, he led the league and led the National League in strikeouts two years ago and a Cy Young Award winner this this isn’t the Orioles acquiring somebody wanted to say youg 12 years ago. This is the Orioles. You know like I think back to when they when they signed King Felix to be in the you know, they didn’t even make it out of spring training. But this is someone who won Nestor J. Aparicio 29:41the Cy Young and the Brewers went to war with him in arbitration right pissed them off like the whole deal, right? Sure. Luke Jones 29:46Sure. Yeah. I mean, look that bad happens places we’ve seen it advertised. You’re pissed off. That’s good. I mean, this this should be a great situation for him. Other than the obvious challenge of pitching in the Al least which is still reality. For the Orioles or any other team, you know, by the way, the rest of the Al East you know what they were saying? The Orioles got Corbin burns. I saw a number of Yankee people reacting to that. I mean Yankees fans were hoping when you consider how they’re built with Soto and some of their other rentals. There was a lot of talk about the Yankees going out and making this move. Well, the Orioles just did it. I mean, think about that. let that marinate for a moment. The Orioles just did something that Yankees fans wanted to happen. I mean, when was the last time we could say something like that? I mean, you go back to man, you have to go back. I don’t know I run our bell. Right, which obviously was not a not a move that worked out. Well. But I mean, it’s just it’s exciting, man. I mean, this is this is fun. We haven’t talked about the Orioles from an offseason standpoint, like this, which is very ravens, like, quite frankly, we’re not talking about it with caveats, or Okay, well, all this I don’t know about. No, this is a great move. And Nestor J. Aparicio 30:59it did 30 years, and I’ve never been able to talk about any of this because we’d always have to talk about the owner. And I don’t know how I’m gonna get used to that. I said, That’s my wife do that. I’m like, and I said that to you. I had a little giddy moment with you where I’ll send you some text on Thursday. And I’m like, this before the trade, by the way, before the trade literally before the trade. I’m thinking to myself, I can love the team again, like I can put a hat on and it won’t be like a joke. And I won’t have people come up to me about it and asking me about these creeps, and why I can’t get along with them because I don’t get along with liars. Well, because I have a microphone. And when they asked me to lie on their behalf, that this doesn’t, doesn’t go well. It doesn’t. It’s never gone. Well for me. Liars have never liked me. So the notion that there’s going to be some normalization of this, and new people and Greg Bader is going to be out on LinkedIn looking for his next gig. I just don’t even know how to react because I’ve never. And I mean this sincerely, I want to say this on the radio because I sent it to my wife, and she knows because she lives with me, my son would know, you may know but I don’t know you. I don’t talk about it much. I never ever, ever hoped or dreamed or wished or saw a day where I believe that somebody else would own the team. Like I just believe these people were that. And believe me, when I talked to some insiders, they were like, the deal is not done. These are the I mean, I want to keep saying this is the Angelo’s family like, like there, there has not been a scintilla of integrity or honesty or transparency or anything you can trust. They still owe me $30,000 from 20 years ago, and why do I bring it up? Because it was $30,000 That’s why I bring it up. And it wasn’t right. It was awful. so awful. You talk about if I were to get mugged on the street down here and some guy comes up takes 100 bucks from me, you you’d be shaken by that. So So for fans to say, Why are you so pissed? They’re liars? You didn’t pay their bills, right? So all of these years, you know, go down over the day, you know, I feel about the team. I mean, I feel like I can’t fully commit. I never gave them money. i How could I fully committed to thinking things that change and even we went to a playoff game 10 weeks ago, Dude, I got treated like, like a criminal. Like I don’t I don’t know what else to say. And you got treated like a criminal because you happen to be with me. That’s how awful these people are. So when that’s my last experience of Loreal baseball was being in Arlington and not flying down there not having any access. So that’s how I’m still treated. And I’m just glad I don’t deal with it five days a week because I wouldn’t want to be treated like that by someone like Greg Bader for the rest of my life. So I’ve stayed away, but in my mind and I think in the minds of a lot of people it’s very hard to see a world beyond whatever your world is right? Like, you know, you I would say it’s very, very much like being a Cuban citizen, you know, on the island and saying Fidelis you’re forever like it’s just never you know, Fidelis here forever. This is the way it is. It’s the way it’s always going to be. Just accept it. I was never ever ever willing to accept this trash. And I bet my life my business your future, my future. My family’s future on the fact that I wasn’t going to play ball with these creeps and I wasn’t gonna lie for them I wasn’t going to take a job for them I wasn’t going to you know be like rock Kobato and be a former journalist that worked for them and then denied that they were the people that like all the crap that’s going on the last 20 years even before free the birds which begat free the birds free the birds wasn’t in I think they’re jerks. Let’s go run the No no, no, this was about this cannot thrive. with these people, and it never thrived. 18 years later, they won 101 games, still not thriving in any way for the city for business for the fan base for buying tickets for partnerships for getting an all star game, you know, doing the things that you want to do they played, you know, but a playoff games that’s and that’s it. I feel for the first time in my life, like, I’m going to be able to go down there and put a hat on and put my jersey on, and really one of the wind and wanting to do well, and they might be nice. And they might not I don’t know. But I’m willing to, to think about it in a different way than I did. Sunday, when the Ravens were losing. It’s been a hell of a week, Luke. And we mentioned that, by the way, football team doing stuff too, right, like, so. We’ll get to that. But it’s been just a hell of a week. Luke Jones 35:52It really has been just a couple things. You know, just to piggyback on what you were talking about, again, the caveat, we will continue to say it until it’s official right until the inks dry. And so it’s this transaction has been approved by Major League Baseball and want to point out most of these transactions over the years, you know, when you’re talking about the transfer of ownership, there’s two, there’s usually a snag or two. But I think also when you look at the makeup of the new investor group behind you know, behind the scenes, you know, it’s Cal Ripken it’s Grant Hill, you know, NBA great, I mean, it’s you go down the list, you know, other people with local ties and people that are invested in Baltimore to varying degrees so so you have that but there’s still a lot of work to do on the business side and we’ll talk about this you know, ranging from you have renovations of Oriole Park at Camden Yards, you have the the challenge of attracting and cultivating new business partnerships, you need to boost ticket sales, you have to figure out and this is a challenge in all major league markets, finding the sweet spot for local TV revenue, not just what happens with Masson, but whatever, however, three and they don’t have a plan for that. Nestor J. Aparicio 37:01I mean, like, nobody’s gonna figure that out long term. I Luke Jones 37:04mean, and that’s again, every year the end keys are Frick trying to figure that out, you know, as you see some of the things they’re doing beyond just, you know, yes, not worth being what it’s been for two decades. I mean, that’s a challenge. So all those things are there. But the idea of now having unbridled expectations, the idea that you can now dream, no one’s expecting that the payroll is going to balloon to the size of the Dodgers or the Yankees or the Mets? I mean, it’s Baltimore, right? It’s not a huge market, even Philadelphia or Atlanta. But and I’ve said this for a while I wrote this a Baltimore positive.com. This week, there is no reason the Orioles can’t Aspire if they are run well on the field and off the field, that they can aspire to be more like the St. Louis Cardinals who if you look at that market size bigger than Baltimore, is it dret drastically bigger? No. They have had a payroll for go back the last 1520 years go on cots baseball contract website. I mean, they they track all this stuff team, the team, they’ve had a payroll that’s been in the top half the top third of baseball, for most of the last 20 years, they have been a team that’s been very dependent and good with their farm system in terms of drafting and developing players. And then when those players get closer to free agency, keeping the ones that are the very best and the ones you want to build around. They Nestor J. Aparicio 38:24are a team dealing off Jack Flaherty to suckers like us, right since Luke Jones 38:30not necessarily Jack learning. But since the turn of the century, the Cardinals have won two World Series for National League pennants and appear they’ve appeared in the postseason 16 times. Now. I’m not saying the Orioles are going to become that overnight. Takes a lot away. Can Nestor J. Aparicio 38:44I just I don’t want to be too interruptive. But I had a I had a long phone call with a reporter on Thursday. And I think the reporter probably thinks I’m a jerk because I got I didn’t get flippant, but as my five minutes into explaining stuff, and I said, How old are you, man? He said, I’m 38 I’m like, Oh my God, you’re younger than my son. So you were seven years old. When Angeles bought the team. You don’t know anything normal about like, like it. And he was literally he’s a reporter. He’s literally asked me questions. I’m like, this is a plug for my book. I said I wrote a whole book so that no one would ever get it wrong. And he was asking me, so when did this happen? And I’m like, I don’t remember 30 years ago, I wrote a book about it, like, go check it out. But the part of the book when you mentioned the Cardinals is built a wit was going to own this team. Bill DeWitt had three different handshakes with Eli Jacobs to own the team and Angelo’s came in and mocked it all up for his own benefit. Then he went to build the Winsett bill. I’m a good guy, shake my hand, shake my hand will make a deal. And he brought Bill De Wit and Bill de WITTs money in and FM and build with any F Larry Lucchino because he said, Larry, you’re so good. be running the gym, of course, I’m going to be the key Managing Partner, but you’re gonna, they were both gone. And I said to this guy, so if you really just 38 year old Yeah, he’s a baseball guy, you know, whatever. I said, count the accomplishments of Larry Lucchino and build a wit. You brought up the Cardinals, I didn’t bring up the Cardinals was a 16 posi. Like, like, you’re throwing all these numbers at all I wrote to this guy that was interviewing me. I wrote him back later. I’m like, Lucchino and To wit, he might not even know who Bill DeWitt is like, No, I mean, I don’t have any people in our audience know who Bill do it is the wi t. T. ‘s name was in the paper in 1994. He was going to be the Orioles owner, he never was. I said they got a fistful of rings. Like if you just take the World Series rings from both of their fists that they’ve been in participated in, and one in some cases in Boston, other cases for St. Louis. But when they lost to the Red Sox won them they were in together. So that’s the pedigree we’re talking about when you say we could have been the Cardinals, that’s what this city should have been the last 30 years. So the fact that I can wake up and this can be a big Bob Newhart dream. And we can have a second act. The Cardinal thing you speak of is what I think I’ve spoken up for a long time and built which names always been on my tongue. Because it’s always been the biggest I’ve called it a tragedy, civic tragedy that this family ever got involved with the team and the fact that there’s there’s an end to it, and I’m still young and in shape and on a yoga mat and breathing. Oh, my, and I got money for cold beer. Oh, this is gonna be a good time. I, I got I’ve dusted off all my oral stuff. I haven’t got my Allen, my Allen Mills jacket out with my Orthology correct bird on and I’m, I’m all ready for spring training. Lucas, let’s go to Sarasota. Luke Jones 41:46I mean, it’s terribly exciting. Just a final thought on what I was saying of what the vision of the Orioles could be. And again, that’s not going to happen overnight. There’s a lot of stuff off the field business, why that has has to happen. And you know, you don’t build a franchise like that overnight. I mean, even look at the ravens, it took them didn’t take them too long. But from 1996, to what it is today, took a lot of work. And they’ve had a lot of success. But you know, they weren’t that in 1996 or 1997 or 1998. It, it took a little while. But I’ll remind everyone, Mike Elias, we think of him as what the Astros got to start in St. Louis. So is there in the back of his mind, and I’ve never heard him say this, you know, publicly, in the back of his mind was there a thought that, boy, if if we could get ownership that knows what it’s doing, it doesn’t have to be the best in baseball, but just be competent. This is something that we could build that could sustain it and be really special and have a chance to, to win a World Series or to over the next however many years and sustain something and build a franchise that people can be proud and again, you know, proud about again, and sustain and build something that’s healthy and thriving and something that people can be proud of. Again, that’s not going to happen solely in 2024. Just because they’ve acquired Corbin burns, but it’s really fun start and it’s a really fun dream to have again, you know, it’s the kind of dream that Orioles fans have not been able to have for a really long time. So really exciting week, still a lot of work to do still potential pitfalls and snags as you pointed out and it’s fair to point that out until it’s all official but it’s hard hard not to look back Nestor J. Aparicio 43:27during the champagne saying that’s why I didn’t do what the guy did down at Camden Yards go down Papa thing and shoot a little bit I’ll say this there yet but I think a nice now see that day I see that day. I’ll Luke Jones 43:40say this. I think if an Orioles fan wanted to have a nice pour of something something as a nightcap on Thursday night. I think they were well within their right to have that. I think you can feel good about that. But yes, it’s not official. But Corbin versus Corbin burns official. I mean, I saw the tweet, I saw the release when they sent it out to my email. I’m just like, wow, this is real, you know, in the same way that we saw the the release that the Oriole sent out, you know, a couple days ago, you know, as far as the pending transactions. So really, really exciting times but to your point we’ll get to the we’ll get to the purple and the Ravens in a moment. But you know, in a few moments and another conversation on that but wow, it’s just this has been quite a week. I don’t know where it ranks in terms of the biggest weeks and Oreos history but easily one of the biggest weeks in recent Camden Yards era Orioles history no question about it. Luke Nestor J. Aparicio 44:35Jones is here we are bullied on what was shown all things Bradish and Corbin burns. You can find all this stuff out of Baltimore positive we’re doing live radio all next week nine till five each and every day. Come see us bring something nice for the Maryland Food Bank. We will give you a free cup of soup or bowl. It is crabcake row it begins on Monday at the old Lexington market vacancies on PACA Tuesday will be at cost this Wednesday at Coco’s and where my cocoa shirt. Marcela was on vacation this week she had the gear up for me next week. I’ll be there on Wednesday we’re sick is is my co host with a K on Wednesday. Coco’s pub. We’re featuring trying to feature 100 different charities next week. I’m in the 60s right now. I still have space to book more. So if you have a charity out there and you want them featured next week, throw me a note next at Baltimore positive.com. A Thursday. We’re going to be at a state fair in Catonsville and then on Friday at Pappas in Cockeysville. There’s no Super Bowl but there is a baseball season we’ll get back we’ll talk some football as well on national we are wn st am 1570, Towson Baltimore and we never stop talking Baltimore positive
