And getting bigger every day…

John Martin joins Nestor to discuss huge jackpots, the Ravens big contest winner and new scratchoff games

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

people, ticket, game, baseball, fun, sports wagering, win, years, lottery, baltimore, week, hits, responsibly, winner, homerun, winning ticket, state, sat, maryland, jackpot

SPEAKERS

Nestor J. Aparicio, John Martin

Nestor J. Aparicio  00:01

Welcome home, we are wn St. am 1570, Towson, Baltimore and Baltimore positive. I’m working on a whole like new script about like setting a place on your dial for us and making sure you follow us at Baltimore positive.com And click here. But I’m going to save that until, I don’t know at least till after the combine. The Miracle lottery Does sponsor our fun, fun fun crab cake tour that I’m getting back out on the road. We’re going to be doing some fade Lee’s events. As opening day gets going. I’ll be telling you more about that. As well as some new places i There are still like 20 crab cake places that are on my list that I have not any crabcake ad that I’m trying to sort of check off this year because I’m trying to do new and exciting things, our friends and wind donation at Jiffy Lube also putting that on. This guy comes on every week. Last week, we had a long chat about sports wagering and where the money goes and how January was a big sports wagering month. And then obviously the Super Bowl is in February. This week, though, I’m gonna have John Martin on and I remember when we did the sponsorship and the crabcake tour, it’s like, whatever we can’t be about jackpots. Because we’re not always giving away half a billion dollars. But when we do, it’s really big. And I love your ads on the other agents. It’s big. It’s really, really big. And you know, when I know it’s really, really big as my wife and I planned a fitness thing the other night, all sweaty, pulling into the royal farms, get a little piece of chicken to go over the salad, and we pull up. And my wife, the first she sees the blinky lights, she sees three digits and three digits. And then I know Oh, I had to talk to John about that this week, because it’s really really big, isn’t it, John?

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John Martin  01:34

It really isn’t. You know what? I just caught ourselves here on the monitor. As they say in the media world. We’re both resplendent in blue. today. We should we should be the blues, royal blue Blues Brothers. Yeah.

Nestor J. Aparicio  01:46

What do you think those songs I still listen to that alter? Why it’s crazy. You’d say that because I was telling my wife the other day that I was. I was in a bar. Imagine that. But I was in New Orleans at the Super Bowl in 1995. And I had a conversation with Dan Ackroyd that I had never told her about. Wow, told me that I’m like, was really late at night. It was in New Orleans. It took me 30 years to remember it. But I did have a conversation with Dan actually one of the real Blues Brothers. So there have that that there’s something that’s something put in the

John Martin  02:11

resume that very good for you. You know what else is good in the resume as you pointed out the three digit jackpot numbers, as we are speaking, over $500 million on Mega Millions and nearly three and a half million dollars. People are gonna get confused with that $348 million on Powerball. So yeah, combined. That’s a whole lot of money as is our multi match. You know, that little that Little Engine That Could our instant game multi match. Oh, over the million dollar mark. So it’s, it’s high tide for all three jackpot games. So please play responsibly, have some fun with it. And see if you can’t join me in the winner’s lounge with one of those big oversized checks.

Nestor J. Aparicio  02:52

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All right. So my wife has tickets. You know this because when she wants jackpot she’s she’s in you know, it’s a game changer, right? Like I keep will lay is really nice. I mean, I’m wearing my Rascon global shirt. Leonard was in wilayah, two weeks ago, I told him he said, Pick the spot I’m going to go to when my wife had a lottery. For what happens in your agency get by play play a little inside poker, you’re telling me how the sausage is made that like if someone in this state hits tonight, tomorrow night, either one of these are huge, right? You said last week, it’s not a big deal. It’s not as big as that you come on, man, somebody in golden ring over there at the wise markets hits hits $550 million next Tuesday here in the state of Maryland. And I mean, it would be blanket news coverage up it would be chaos.

John Martin  03:43

For you, right? It would be a lot of fun. And you know, first and foremost, any any person who has a winning ticket of that magnitude, you do have 182 days to come in and claim. So as we say, when we can and calm even measure tones. You know, take your time, seek the appropriate advice of someone from a financial planning from a legal standpoint, so that you can take the best advantage of weather because you have a choice, whether you want that in a lump sum, or you want it annuitized over nearly 30 years. So depending on where you want to be financially, will determine how you need to do that. Sign the back of the ticket, secure it, because it is what we call a bearer instrument. Which means if you happen to be walking on your way to row flow to celebrate and get some of that chicken and you dropped your ticket and you didn’t sign it and somebody else comes along picks it up. They are now holding that winning ticket. So you never want to be in that situation. That’s not a good place to be. So if you have a winning ticket, sign it secure it. Make the calls you need to make to find out how to best claim that ticket. You still have 182 days on the clock. When it’s ready. Give us a call. Come on in We’ll we’ll set it through the paces, make sure everything’s put together because it is going to be life changing clearly, and I’ve had the pleasure sit in front of people, and just watch their faces change as just

Nestor J. Aparicio  05:13

a long time, right? I mean, you had experience in other lotteries. Can you almost me as a young man, the first time you sat in a room with somebody who had their life, because you know what happened for me, and this, I’ll give you a little insight poker for me. I’ve been doing sports a long, long time, right? There would be many times as a young man, I mean, a very, like, early 90s, where I literally would see a baseball player come to their press conference with their parents in a suit, like the day they get drafted, or whatever it is. But more than that, the day they sign, whatever their contract is, right? Whatever the day that and I’ve been in hundreds and hundreds of people, it feels like a lottery right when Adley rutschman sitting there, and he’s got a $12 million dollar or this or that it feels like that’s sort of cash for life as you as you would in your vernacular. But I’ve seen that, that look on the parents faces. I had a young man in my neighborhood who bought a house for his mother, who was an NFL draft pick 25 years ago, and how it changes their life for athletes. I think we were all maybe we’re a little adult to that because we watch ESPN and see press conferences and all that. But in real life, when someone in real life has a ticket, and they have a real life job and real problems and you get to see that ease. That’s something that I don’t there’s anywhere else in life. You ever get to see that really right.

John Martin  06:31

It is fun. And when when I remember vividly was a guest several years ago, and I hope I’m not jinxing them. I’m not going to obviously reveal them. But I hope that in the passage of time they have done well, which is what their intent was obviously it was a young couple, they had young children. He was a blubbering idiot. I mean, not not, he just was like totally overcome, he had no idea what to do next. She was rock solid. She knew exactly what to do. She had a plan, right down the line, and God bless her because it was up to him. I wasn’t aware they’d be but but it’s an extremely interesting dynamic to see again, a young family, you hope they’ve invested wisely. You hope their children now have their college paid for and then some. But again, at the end of the day, that’s it’s personal responsibility. You know, they have to, they have to step

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Nestor J. Aparicio  07:27

how many athletes that I ever see, over the course of time, who signed the big contract, and then six years later, the money’s gone, right? Like, like that happens as well. And we tell everybody be responsible and all that you do in volve. Gaming, but I would say this, when you when I give these tickets out to people, they sense the potentiality in it, right? And I think when you sit don’t lose your ticket on the way to rural farms, get more chicken or whatever it would be I when I give these out to people at our events, they all take them pretty soon, they don’t get left on the table and people understand it’s a serious item, don’t dump something on it because it might be worth 10 bucks. 50 bucks. I did have a 10 times the cash or somebody said that to me two weeks ago, they gave 120 bucks, it was two times 10. So John Martin is here He is the executive director. Well, thanks, Mayor, the lottery game. He comes on each and every week with us when he doesn’t send Ross or Doug, with some winners for some fun to try to sort of tell us more about the lottery and educate us a little bit more. One thing you’ve definitely educated me about, and certainly was scratch offs, and I’ve given them away we have homerun riches coming up on the baseball side. On the football side. We do months and months of football. It was a sad ending for most of us here a couple of weeks ago. We haven’t talked much about that. We’re talking about coaching and combine and all that but you’re really wrapping up the biggest promotion you had even in your 50th anniversary year. The most popular thing that you do with the lotteries, the Ravens scratch offs, and you’re about to anoint the big winner right and I thought the big winner went to Jacksonville but you know that they all feel like big winners to me. It’s

John Martin  08:55

a That’s right. So they’re all winners. And today as we speak, they’re they’re prepping the castle. For an event. Normally we do it at m&t Stadium, but as you are well aware, and I’m sure you’ve made your listeners and viewers aware there’s some changes going on down there. So we’re going to be away from the construction zone. We’re going to be out in Owings Mills. We’re going to invite the six semi finalists, these are people throughout the season, who on our second chance contest have won $10,000 cash and a place in the final round, where we will reveal which one of those six lucky fans who is going to win season tickets for the next 20 years

Nestor J. Aparicio  09:35

so hold on they don’t have to throw a football because we were all familiar with the games you know with fast fashion like all that. This is and we were familiar we had the winners on a few weeks ago that went to Jacksonville and Ro Quan Smith game cheesecake. We talked about all this. This is a different pool of people. This is second chance. 10,000 bucks, and you’re in the kitty for the big the big banana.

John Martin  09:57

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Right right and they we had drawings all through the sea So we have six people, they’ll show up at the castle today, one of those lucky six will win season tickets for the next 20 years.

Nestor J. Aparicio  10:07

So they don’t have to pocket or anything right? There’s no,

John Martin  10:10

right you do not have to go one on one with. With Justin Matt, aka, there’s, there’s no physical effort involved with this point. So, yeah, should be a lot of fun. And by the time people actually hear this, we will have known that. So visit MD lottery.com. When you’re hearing this on the air and find out who the lucky winner is.

Nestor J. Aparicio  10:31

All right, well, from from your perspective, the sports wagering news last week, I don’t want to get to be reiterative on it. But we always tell people responsible gaming, all that I tell you what baseball is something now as we’re getting ready for this and March Madness, we’re getting ready for this. How do you how do you gauge in a state where we’ve had this for five minutes, literally a year, month, a month, you always make me very wise with what projections are and what you’re telling the state’s going to happen and what actually happens. But March and April and May I feel like baseball is about to take off here. And I feel like the sports wagering side of just people I know and friends, having fun with it, doing it the way it’s intended to be, which is hey, I think mountcastle is good for homeruns tonight, instead the one let’s have a little fun with it for five bucks, you know, and and cheer a little bit. There’s a part of that baseball engagement that I didn’t understand. And I’m gonna be talking about it a lot. Because I didn’t come from a gambling family. We’ve talked about this. I had a press pass for 30 years. I didn’t bet on sports. Still don’t really bet on sports. But lots of people do. And people love it. And I think March Madness and baseball coming up in a world where two years ago it wasn’t on your phone. It wasn’t mobile. It wasn’t active. It was literally fill out a bracket it we’ve gone beyond that now for sure. Here.

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John Martin  11:51

Oh, yeah. Well, you can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube at this point. Yeah, we’re past some of those things. And you’re right. I mean, people will be consumed very, very soon with, with with their brackets and with March Madness. And and that will be, again, a little bit of a bump throughout the sports wagering landscape. And then right in the baseball season, and quite frankly, in terms of baseball, we’re in somewhat unchartered waters. I mean, expectations are really high as they should be. And, you know, as we saw with the ravens, in the playoffs, expectations are high, people tend to bet more maybe with their heart than their heads. And when, when the sudden thud happened in the football season, a lot of that money came to the state, thank you very much into the casino partners unless to the fans. So we hope that people look at it, like you said, Hey, you got a prop bet or are bad for that game. Be smart about it. It’s a lot. It’s 162 game season. So manage your expectations, play responsibly, have a plan, stick with it, make it social, have some fun with it. But come back again, to have some more fun the next time.

Nestor J. Aparicio  13:00

Well, I mean, the the entry being available on your phone is one thing, but I think it’s sort of invisible to me to some degree. Even I sat up in Hollywood casino watch football, watch the Super Bowl two years ago, a year and a half ago when it opened just two years ago, when it opened in Casino only and we didn’t have it mobile. I went to a casino and you know, there was a line. And there were lines for the kiosk, you know, and you physically could see people like in line queued up like a concert would be. Now it’s not there. And I think the visible part of this literally, is what you do here on this program what we do, which is here’s the money show, it was a Rod Tidwell. All right, show me the money, show me the money, that that that is the real gauge of what’s going on here. And this is money that literally did not exist for the last 100 years in the State of Maryland that now exist for blueprint for education. And and it’s something I think y’all crow about a little bit we talked about, but I start to see this as sort of like, oh is another March is a baseball season. There’s other ways that this is going to grow and maybe ways that you didn’t project to three years ago when the state came and said, Hey, John, you’re the executive director of lottery and gaming. And, and here we go, we’re gonna do this. I don’t know where those projections were in 1920 21. But the reality of 24 and a better baseball team here would seem to be like, I have a feeling more people be betting on baseball in our state. I just do.

John Martin  14:26

I think that’s a fair assumption. I mean, it’d be one thing if this was 100 last season, not 100 win season. The momentum shift is clearly in place and doozy Assam is high and again, we hope that people take all that in consideration have some fun, enjoy the games, but but play responsibly with it and understand the odds understand what it is that you’re you’re wagering on and don’t get caught up in, in chasing losses. I mean, one of the things we look at in terms of responsible gaming messages and and procedures in place for fans to enjoy the the The games responsibly is don’t don’t spend money you don’t have don’t chase a loss. If you’re making bets inning by inning pitch by pitch, may want to take a little break. And, you know, enjoy other aspects of it, you’ve got a great ballpark down there. We’ve got great food options, you know, get out of your seat walk around, even if you’re not at the ballpark, you know, get away from the activity. And and as part of a healthy plan, just just have other interests so that you’re not focused on that exclusively. Great

Nestor J. Aparicio  15:31

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advice. Great advice as we get ready for baseball. Now listen, I hear you have sort of a Grand Slam of an idea for home run. Ready? Are we ready for this? Are we not ready for because Homer britches is common? And listen everywhere I’ve been it’s been baseball fever. I did five live days. Nobody’s taught. I mean, yeah, football, but football. So eight months from now it’s not now baseball’s here and now, John, and I’m going to make fun of Luke for this and I’m gonna make fun of everybody for this. This first week, it’s like Cedric Mullins just hit a rocket homerun. I’m like, they’re playing catch. You know what I mean? Their deeds aren’t even. It’s not even like games fake games yet. It’s it’s prep, like Elena is practice. And people just want to talk baseball.

John Martin  16:14

Yeah, and that’s understandable. But that’s any fandom in any city and many conversations going on and you know, 30 plus other other cities.

Nestor J. Aparicio  16:23

It’s happened in here though, with the sale and 101 wins. Baseball town, John, it’s just been dormant. It’s like a cicada.

John Martin  16:33

Wow, hey, I hear those knuckleheads are coming back.

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Nestor J. Aparicio  16:35

I hear there’s like three or four different guides gonna be cut that happen. You might do you are you are because we like gratification.

John Martin  16:45

There’s nothing to see here. So Qeynos my wife was so freaked was three years ago. They were they were pinging off our windows. I was sitting at my desk, and it was like a hailstorm. These things are just hitting the windows and my wife. I just don’t want to go through anything like that

Nestor J. Aparicio  17:03

first time. Supposed to be that bad. I’ve only had three of these in my lifetime that like I’ve lived through. The first one was 19 years old summer 87. I remember it vividly. We went whitewater rafting up into Jakob gagne toward like Pittsburgh up Somerset area Upworthy the beautiful houses the waterfall fall water falling water is up that way. So on the way back, it was cicada season. So I’m driving down like through the mountains. And they’re just like hitting the windshield like like a hail storm. It was crazy. Yeah,

John Martin  17:36

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well, you get extra points for saying yaka gagne, a lot of people would look at that and say pass, they take a hard pass once they see it’s written out there. So good for you. Good for you. Hey, you know what else is good. Go ahead. What do you got? We had scratch games launched this week. And you know, in our usual $3 $5 or $10? Yeah, okay, fine. We had our second ever $50 scratch off ticket called $5 million cash. Spoiler alert, the top prize is $5 million, 5 million bucks, right? But no prize Bradshaw, no prize on that ticket less than $100. Now a lot of times when we have a scratch off ticket, we have the amount that you paid as the lowest entry you buy. These are two taller tickets. As an example, this is your minimum when is $2. You can buy a $5 ticket more for not minimum when is $5 up the line, but a $50 ticket where the odds of winning a prize of probability is one in 3.05. Let’s call it one and three, which began does not mean if you bought four tickets, you’re guaranteed a winner. Well, I have probabilities to

Nestor J. Aparicio  18:45

me, right? Like I had no problem playing a $25 hand of blackjack or whatever. Right? So like I’ve done this before in my lifetime. I’ve even played more than that. But I’m not like a gambler in that way. Yeah, you’re right. I mean, I’m more of a $10 hand guy or you know, $5 chips at at a craps table or whatever. When I have gone to Vegas when I play, I played some Blackjack, but Hollywood casino we had a good time. I want a little bit. It was nice. It was fun. It’s fun. It’s fun, get you know, hitting and standing and dealer. Dealer. So I have fun with these games. It’s $50 ticket. If I would have told young John Martin just getting into the old lottery and gaming business that there would be a $50 scratch off. That seems to be a price point that might not have played so well. I think maybe that’s a fallacy that scratch off games are for dollar players. Maybe you should fight that fallacy because clearly, you’re creating games here that to your point, there’s a better chance of winning, right?

John Martin  19:38

Well, this is our 51st year and yes, probably in the first 4045 years. The idea of a $50 ticket was just get out here even 10 years ago. That was crazy, right? That was crazy. But then some states started doing it and then you start to think about it because a lot of times you have an 18 month a two year planning cycle. Yeah People think we wake up on a Thursday and on Friday, you know, there’s a new game, and no one has a more sophisticated business than then then we make it appear. So you have to plan for something like that. And so you’re planning two years out. And obviously, when we had our 50th anniversary last year, it just made sense, if we’re gonna do a $50 ticket, do it to coincide with your 50 anniversary. And so that was a very successful launch. And that game still is in market. But then we started to think Alright, now do we come back with a second one, we thought that made sense, a lot of other states have followed a similar path. So this week, we launched our second $50 ticket, they’re both in the market, they both have top prices of $5 million. And again, people should be playing responsibly, making sure they understand the game, making sure that when it says the probability of winning is one and three, that does not mean you buy four tickets, you get a winner. It means that over the long run, that on average, as you factor that in winning tickets appear one in three times, but that’s

Nestor J. Aparicio  21:01

nothing all sell or is there a point where some of them at the end of whatever you say, on the back of the ticket, that if these don’t sell, they get destroyed, and nobody ever does win that money?

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John Martin  21:12

Well, there’s a lifecycle. And typically what we then this is industry wide. What each lottery tries to do is sell their top prizes out. So in this case, we have four $5 million top prizes in this new $50 game called $5 million dollars cash.

Nestor J. Aparicio  21:29

$5 million prize. There’s four available. Okay. All

John Martin  21:32

right. So once we have the fourth claimed, we then start a down cycle, if you will, we just say hey, last top price is claimed on X date on today’s date, in so many days lame,

Nestor J. Aparicio  21:46

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not sold. Right, right, because we have no way of knowing if if a scratch off. Right. Right. It’s unlike

John Martin  21:54

Powerball. I mean, we know a game that uses the computer and generates a ticket. We know when that winning ticket has been sold. And as you know, from experience, sometimes people don’t come forward and claim a winning Mega Millions or Powerball ticket. But we know at least it’s been sold on a scratch off you don’t know who’s purchased it, or if it’s been purchased. Or if there’s

Nestor J. Aparicio  22:14

no ticket that knows that this Oh, two out of this slot is a winner or a loser? Right? Correct. There’s no way to know that.

John Martin  22:22

Correct? Correct. So then once we know that the fourth ticket in this case has been claimed, well then wind down and say, Alright, as of this date, this ticket will no longer be in the marketplace. And for some tickets that may be

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Nestor J. Aparicio  22:35

a year, two years and that game stays in play till we get that fourth five. Well, I’ll follow this on. I love the little soap opera you give me John, you know, there’s four tickets. $5 million apiece. At some point in the next 60 days, somebody’s gonna win 5 million bucks here,

John Martin  22:49

right, literally, boy when that’d be something. Well,

Nestor J. Aparicio  22:54

that’s a lot of money. I mean, it certainly is life changing sort of money, the kind of thing that you do when you give the money away and hopefully somebody wins Powerball or Mega Millions here. They’re both big. Go to Mt. lottery.com. Learn more about that. John, sometimes I take you you know, you’re backstage. You’re trying to learn about all this but it is fascinating to me, and I hope people take advantage of the new game and win some money. Have some fun?

John Martin  23:16

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Yep, you got it, Elwood. See what I did there that Elwood reference? Yeah, he’s

Nestor J. Aparicio  23:20

wearing blue. I’m wearing blue. We’re the Blues Brothers here this week. The amount of lottery puts this thing on we call the Maryland crabcake tour. They also assisted our crabcake row. There are 78 chats right now out at Baltimore positive they’re not all there at once because I couldn’t but they’re there just hit the refresh button and learn about oh my goodness so many learn about the sisters Academy and Southwest Baltimore Learn What the Why does learn learn about the streets of hope and Essex and this beautiful church that helps people and find shelter for men. Learn about what Adam Rosenberg’s doing over there for children and for abused women so we can all these stories are there. The Maryland lottery in conjunction with window nation and our friends at Jiffy Lube. MultiCare put that on I’m gonna be doing some crab cake tour stops beginning Oh soon, like in March. We’re gonna include oysters and beer for dinner every day of the year and I’ll be fine and we got Opening Day coming up at baseball season and real good stuff. Luke is monitoring all things ravens and Orioles. Little bit of a slow time here. But it’s gonna pick up very, very quickly as we start playing baseball next week. And we have combine activity. I am Nestor we are wn st am 15 70,000 Baltimore. We always encourage you to do this stuff responsibly. And we’re gonna stay on you about that because we never stop talking Baltimore positive