Philadelphia vs. Baltimore: An oral history

When Philly native Tom Pierce of Classic 5 Golf dropped by our WNST 25th Anniversary kickoff at Costas Inn, it gave Nestor a chance to finally do a deep dive on the shallow history of meaningful – and memorably meaningless – competition between two cities less than 100 miles apart and driven by deep sports passion and loyalty.

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

philadelphia, game, years, eagles, baltimore, love, play, philly, bad, great, sixers, tickets, people, hated, pretzels, stadium, stories, dad, crab soup, team

SPEAKERS

Nestor Aparicio, Tom Pierce

Nestor Aparicio  00:00

Looking back wn S T, Towson, Baltimore and Baltimore positive we are celebrating 25 years beginning now even though it’ll have the new logo under Tom, we are working on the new logo to be up at Baltimore positive. Some things are getting to the finish line on this 25th anniversary. One thing we certainly have scratch offs in the mirror lottery, you’re still gonna get 001 Tom Pierce, sitting a lingering longer thinking that there might be like a Philly cheesesteak guy in the back here at Costas, we’re gonna be over drug city. On Friday of you’re hearing this next week, August 3 1998 statement went into business. I’ve been sharing lots of old school social media stuff and fun stuff and you order a bowl of Maryland crab soup, and it’s almost like being in Japan where you, you swipe your credit card in the machine to spits it out. Because there’s like a level of efficiency here. I don’t even know where it came from. Like my wife just brought me a bowl of Maryland crab soup. It’s the Maryland crab cake tour. It’s also presented by our friends at winter nation. In conjunction with Raskin global Leonard is so sorry, he couldn’t be here today. He’s going to join me next week. And already to 25 years we had Kenny Albert on I’ve got all these copies of Purple Rain and free the birds stuff and forget nasty stuff. Tom Pierce is here. And he walked in and he gave up a beautiful day on the golf course a classic five to be your lay. And he started like bending my ear about the Eagles and the Phillies and all of this stuff and sort of like you had this air that I wouldn’t know anything about being a Philadelphia sports fan. And let me just say this. I saw Rocky in 7778 79. Rocky two then and the 1980. Phillies did what the 79 Orioles couldn’t do. And they had the Philly fanatic and they played on pretty green grass. And the only time you saw them was when Mel Allen said how about that. So I didn’t know Philadelphia was even close to I got a Rand McNally map and figure you could get there in a couple of hours. And the first time I went to Philadelphia was in 1981 with my paternal father Nestor, who was Venezuelan and an Aparicio and had at baseball connections. And the next thing I know we’re at the stadium Hilton, and he’s getting the Met he knew Manny TREO. Okay, it was Venezuela. And he also knew Bucha Bo Diaz, who was Venezuelan, so I have all these autographs on stadium Hilton letterhead from Dick Ruth and Gary Matic scary Matthew. So I got to know his son, which is a great guy, Sarge baboon, just down the line, man. I mean, I’m old school, right? So and I fell in love with that bubble P and the fanatic and I came back to Baltimore and my whole life had been Memorial Stadium. And it was boring. Eddie Murray was boring to me in Cal Ripken. And when I was 1314. I was feeling rambunctious feeling so National League at that time, you American League was so the junior circuit, and I collected a lot of baseball cards. I was a big Mike Schmidt fan. I had Mike Schmidt stuff everywhere. I went to the vet on Richie Ashburn day and night at one and a half to daddio, Richie Ashburn I still have it to this day with a bubble pee while I was not worth 100 bucks on the internet. So that’s how Philly I am. Then I fell in love with the spectrum and going up there to events games, wrestling matches, concerts, my god Geddy Lee all that stuff. And and I love hockey so hate in the flyers was an awesome thing to be a part of Prop Kerr heck stole hating them all. And then we lost the Colts. And I didn’t have football. I was a Houston Oiler fan. Big time. Big. You know, honestly, in my when Bob Muscat gets here, I’m gonna wear my Dan Passerini jersey that I happen to have. So I was an oiler fan in the mid 80s. We lost the football team. The Oilers were the last team to play the Colts Memorial Stadium, row Campbell. And in 1986 My friend Russ lettra said to me, Look man, we’ve had two years without football is killing me. And Ross is from Dundalk. Ross is like I’m gonna get season tickets up in Philadelphia, do you want to go to a couple games? And I said I’ll go to any of the games that don’t conflict with the Oilers and the Oilers were really good. Warren Moon Oilers. So they played Monday night a lot. So I went to five Eagles games a year during all the Randall Cunningham rich code tight era gangrene. I mean, I was in the upper deck. So like, I probably went to 40 Eagles games during that era. preseason games I went I like all of that. So like I like I can’t wait to hear your Philadelphia stories.

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Tom Pierce  04:44

So what do you want to hear about?

Nestor Aparicio  04:46

Pretzels right? Oh, they started on the pretzels in your like they used to sell them out of the out of the grocery cart. Yeah. And I used to eat them and every memory I have in the 1980s of every game. I got name nasty. Nestor because I lost the bet that had to do with Eddie Murray hitting home runs off the Todd fro worth at the vet as a Dodger because I went up there and every one of those games and they would meet parking my car, including the World Series, game five with my dad and buying pretzels for a buck or two two for $3. Whatever was funny accents like Howard asking, and that pretzel would be glued to the top of the roof of my mouth. From the minute you went over to poop bridge where they were burning the stuff past the Airport Plaza blue ball avenue into Claymont Delaware if you didn’t stop and get a cheesesteak at the Claymont around the bend where the water and the train tracks are you then you the Delaware Memorial Bridge and you get to Elkton and it’s still be in your teeth. Gotta love those pretzels.

Tom Pierce  05:50

Somebody some soup you tell some stories. All right. Well, it’s they don’t have this in Philly Maryland credit. Well, the positive for the oil. Price. Yeah, ridiculous that I was at the storm Davis game. sad when we lost to the Orioles in 83.

Nestor Aparicio  06:05

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It was a betting Ayala game. Yep. Palmer started that game. But

Tom Pierce  06:08

I gotta say your stories of the vet. That was my 15th birthday. That was probably that’s probably the worst stadium ever built. It was a dump when they built it. It was the worst place to see many games. I remember the preseason game for everything. When When, when they were playing the ravens and they canceled the preseason game because the turf was so bad before they opened the link. I had a

Nestor Aparicio  06:25

bus trip up there with 150 people. And I had a watch party at a Rundle Mills Mall. At what was it was a dewclaw hurry. And I’m in the brewery and Steve Hennessy got all of our listeners at a freaking preseason game in August. And Billick and goose goose came out and did the show with me at the barn. And he said I’m walking around out there we’re gonna get killed

Tom Pierce  06:52

man, you know, it was you know, I didn’t go to that game but it went to that game. My bus trip right but I mean that stadium was a dump when they probably Rundle Mills Mall me that night right? No No but I helped I was part of that I used to work for Mills I open to run the mills as Americans their

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Nestor Aparicio  07:06

hard knocks year so that was August of Oh 131

Tom Pierce  07:10

But other things about I mean when you think of the Philadelphia sports all the years I’ve been in Baltimore since 90 Baltimore Philadelphia sports are very similar. Similar I’ve gotten to enough my family that through my wife side the family have season tickets the Ravens I’m actually going to the preseason game against the roof of the

Nestor Aparicio  07:25

ravens are you hate them? No, I like them. I mean, like as a Ravens fan. We hated the team with the R with the burgundy and gold and we’ve Yes, played it forever. And then

Tom Pierce  07:35

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on it the big star we hit

Nestor Aparicio  07:36

bad you feel Sarmiento like a poverty nation now. It’s almost like Haiti.

Tom Pierce  07:42

Would you feel that way against the Steelers? Would you think we’d ever think that way against the Steelers? Well,

Nestor Aparicio  07:46

I mean, I got a soft spot for the Steelers because they credential me last year in the Ravens now. I have a personal thing. But I I went up to Mike Tomlin in Dallas 2000 whatever year they were in the Super Bowl against the Packers. And I knew Mike pretty well, then I know, obviously better. It’s been for almost 15 years. That’s set to happen. Right. So I hadn’t had a losing season. So you give respect to their family to the Steelers. But he’s up on the podium during the morning press conference with I guess it was McCarthy then or no, it was McCarthy. McCarthy, it wasn’t hungry. So there had been an ice storm in Dallas on that Friday morning. It was three inches of ice. Nobody could get to the press conference. So there’s about 1520 people in here right now constantly just open. We’re doing the show about this many reporters that were there because you couldn’t get to it. My hotel was attached a press conference. And it was seven o’clock on Friday morning. And there’s nobody there. And I’ve attended these things before. But I attended it to see Mike do his thing. haven’t known him a little bit. And he saw me because there was nobody to see 15 people he winked at me. I ask a question or something. There’s nobody there to ask questions. 20 minutes later, they shake hands. They do the picture. It’s all on NFL Network, right? I mean, he they had NFL network then it was 2011 I guess was that year 910 11. Or whatever that year was it there was in Dallas. And I went up to him and be like, Hey, Coach, I shook his hand and like good luck. He’s like, You don’t mean that? You don’t mean? You don’t mean that? I’m like, now I don’t. I don’t never No. Never. So, um, are limitless. You know, but I mean, I you respect them.

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Tom Pierce  09:28

What you you move to your when what you’re 9090.

Nestor Aparicio  09:32

But what are we going to have a team so you’ve been off the boat with seeing us go through all the pain to get a team, correct? Well, I mean, you’re almost a Baltimorean man.

Tom Pierce  09:40

Now it’s like well, the beauty I have in Philadelphia, our sports are on the different conferences of the of the Baltimore sports. So the Orioles are my AFC

Nestor Aparicio  09:47

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and you can watch the fire sucking don’t have to worry, right? Yeah.

Tom Pierce  09:51

But then we have I mean, I’m the wizards. I don’t count as Baltimore. I mean, there’s the Washington so I don’t count that but it’s think of the ravens and the Orioles and being in different conferences. It’s great. The only time we meet is in the championship game,

Nestor Aparicio  10:03

right? I mean, when I think of Baltimore versus Philadelphia, ever, there’s the World Series. Like ever other than getting the flyers instead of the clippers, right? I mean, Philadelphia and St. Louis got that round of expansion. I mean, bullets, Sixers even like, you know, Dr. J was a different thing than Westlawn. So like when I think about even my childhood loving the wizards and the capitals and capitals, flyers. There was there been some wars for sure, you know, back in the 80s. I was at all those games. You know, I was there that night that Lindros got blown up against the devils in game seven. Oh, okay. Well, Scott Stevens dude, I was there when Scott Stevens blues blow people up but again you’re covering that with Brian Murray. So I mean, I’ve been asked this a long time with but but Philadelphia sports. I mean, I was at all the World Series games was Schilling. Schilling married my best friend growing up. I mean, Curley’s wife was was the person I hooked journalism class in first first period to go to Burger King or sandwich America Boulevard back in 1985. And that’s why I got a D in journalism. True story. I got a T in journalism Miss Douglas. I still give her a hard time here. But Philadelphia for me as a as a Baltimorean. I love the Phillies hated the flyers love Dr. J. I mean, like class, Dr. J was my guy. I always love Barkley because he was cool to me. And then then later in life, I went out one night with Charles Barkley and Vegas, and he’s a great guy. So I always like the Sixers because I always like Dr. J. I like Dr. J more than I like Larry Bird or magic or as Dr. J was my guy in basketball. I like George Gervin too, but when I think about that, but I didn’t have this hatred of the Eagles. Matter of fact, I hated the Redskins. The Giants were like par Scelzi in New York, and why would you like the Giants, the Cowboys? My God, I hated the Cowboys. Everybody hated cowboys. So like getting those season tickets in the 80s I mean, it was it was an easy fit. Now I never owned an Eagles anything. I was never really an Eagles fan. I went there and sat opposite Oilers fan right. I mean, this was my thing, right? So I sat there, not neutral. It was fun when he e a G and the you know the guy that would come every week and sat next to us. My seats were in Section 721 row one. All my tickets at the saying I have all the ticket stubs, and there’s corner of the endzone and you’ll love this. Russ says to me, Hey, NES we’re going to get tickets to see the Eagles at the vet in 1986 This is right around the time they boot Santa Claus the snow balls they closed the I was there the day they closed the upstairs urinals and the guys were just peeing in the alcove store to Arizona Cardinals game target it was 20 degrees Christmas week, you know 18,000 People that they stunk but so all these year it coats Idera that was true. Oh, you know, all of that. There was just something about like, I never hated those teams like growing up hating the teams in the way that there’s this rivalry with Pittsburgh or even Washington.

Tom Pierce  13:14

I don’t know I never felt that way. Well, I think it’s also been at a different rocky you know what I mean? So there was a you know, a little bit of that. Well, one thing I know when I moved down here, I mean, the the Colts were gone for what seven years by then. And just how much the Redskins then were pushed on the Baltimore market and forced on it. And I had friends that grew up with people I met here who are you know, exactly well, it’s, you know, Baltimore legs and football Eric defense Philadelphia. Same thing

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Nestor Aparicio  13:39

as I pull the crab from the crab soup it cost is out of my teeth.

Tom Pierce  13:42

I mean, we the same philosophies of how we like our teams. We love the guys that try hard they might not be the All Stars the best, but the ones that we all have deep in our hearts.

Nestor Aparicio  13:52

Give me some of your favorite Philadelphia athletes that aren’t

Tom Pierce  13:55

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Bobby Jones. Okay, Bobby Jones, could you please that was your guy. All right. I love him because Dr. J would score Yeah, Tony a cheek so like Maurice cheeks because he was quiet. Oh, go on a basketball. Hockey. I like Tommy Gordon’s Okay. Wow. Okay, go into that way and I mean, that’s more as a shell Samuelsson gotten that out why like the rat patrol. So Kenny Lin’s Ben Paul home grand and prop. They call that the rat patrol. Because you have the different animals in different three different skill sets together, which I thought was great. And in football, you know, you go through and the team was so bad when I was growing up in the 70s they were never on TV. I actually saw more Miami I saw more era you’re talking about because they wouldn’t show them on TV like now you’re gonna see this out to then sell out. They weren’t on TV when I grew up in the early 70s.

Nestor Aparicio  14:41

Who was the quarterback before Jaworski?

Tom Pierce  14:43

Oh my God,

Nestor Aparicio  14:44

I don’t even know

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Tom Pierce  14:45

I don’t remember his name either. Because they were so bad. But we would see on TV more Miami Dolphins games.

Nestor Aparicio  14:49

Bob Abilene. He spent five minutes there or something like that early. Yeah, maybe

Tom Pierce  14:53

barely. Yeah,

Nestor Aparicio  14:54

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I mean, I mean, right.

Tom Pierce  14:55

I mean, if you watch the movie with Mark Wahlberg, I mean, that’s where it is. I just don’t even remember that guy’s name because they were so bad they weren’t like a

Nestor Aparicio  15:03

Tony Danza movie whether you know the trash man Correct. He can feel gold. Exactly. Well, you know, I can profess like play that I would hate the Eagles. I’ll tell you some of the Eagles I went to all those games all those years and then they moved into the new stadium and um, I don’t think I went up there for any like an Eagles somebody else game but I saw Springsteen there what I went to soccer there that I went to a turkey soccer game there Team USA played there. So I we went to some events there. And then there’s that game where to was an eagle for five minutes after Ozzy Adele for him. He is tucked Ozzy he winds up in Philadelphia. That Halloween weekend we ran bus trips up there to the fans were just like, I’ve had two experiences at ravens Eagles games with my wife of Philadelphia, just intolerant in the modern era. Not a place that I would take my wife again. My wife would never go back to an Eagles game. It was awful. And I never I mean flyers games. I’ll hear that. Eagles games back in the 90s I as bad of a reputation and having the tickets. I never saw problems that I saw more fights in our stadium Memorial Stadium and at ravens games by far than I ever saw at the Eagles games. In the six seven years I went to Eagles games because like Cowboys fans wouldn’t wear stuff in

Tom Pierce  16:30

no you wouldn’t and if you did people would Rasm I’ve I mean all the years I when I maybe can count on one hand I’ve seen more in the probably 20 ravens games at the stadium here fights and things like that.

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Nestor Aparicio  16:43

You know, the first thing you said to me before we even began any of this and I don’t even know all this background. We had a jail in our and it’s like the source of pride. We put a jail in our stadium overpaid and

Tom Pierce  16:54

nationally, they’re going to jail and your stadium but it’s a matter of it just saved it saved in the court costs. That’s the reason why they said it. They said that way we can process

Nestor Aparicio  17:04

that one night at a who concerts stupid. Rich Abraham’s sneaking into the bowels got thrown out by leg by like Roger Daltrey is goons, that’s true. I saw Bowie play the vet with with why was it Live Aid?

Tom Pierce  17:19

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Right then I didn’t I told you I should have gotten my friends right to the beach. Right and go and go to live he made a bad choice.

Nestor Aparicio  17:26

What alternative or poor I hope she was pretty. I mean,

Tom Pierce  17:30

now it’s just my buddies Where’s right between a high school and college? Dude, I know I shouldn’t have.

Nestor Aparicio  17:36

I’m gonna find my review of it because I wrote a review for a York, Pennsylvania magazine. That choice was the name of the magazine. And I wrote a piece for Live Aid. When I was working to news American but I just got tickets. I went over to the head company and got tickets and and bought another ticket. I somehow like through a broker locally, even then out of the newspaper. I paid $20 too much for it or whatever at the time. And I went up and I was under the second E and feed the world. I was in the shower down at the 20 yard line on the back end when Crosby Stills and Nash was playing Southern Cross. Oh man, Madonna. I mean, when I watched Live Aid, like that’s one of the great things I ever witnessed in my life. Yeah,

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Tom Pierce  18:18

I made a bad choice.

Nestor Aparicio  18:19

I got there at 830 in the morning ever seen Adam man on the TV. I was there when the Hooters open the show. Those guys were great guys. This Philadelphia music Dude,

Tom Pierce  18:28

we were Tommy calm. Well, guy only time I was at the young Rumbler. I saw him play two weeks ago doing the whole notes many times at the man Music Center. It’s like Merriweather right on right on Springsteen sail on with the times my

Nestor Aparicio  18:40

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buddy runs to me. Oh, cool. Fish was up here a couple of weeks ago. Yeah, I’ve been there since God like a wild place because I never went there in the 80s when they were shows I’ve gone to the modern are seeing John Mellencamp their recent Sir Robert Plant there recently. And it that is like the equivalents of like Druid Hill Park, right. I mean, it’s in this beautiful park on a hill, like the man is i I’m embarrassed that I haven’t spent more time now. Charming. Now it’s tough neighborhoods. It’s Philly. It is what it is. But I would say this if you go to the man, you’re going to a

Tom Pierce  19:14

place to place and it’s got good acoustics. The sounds really nice. There’s really

Nestor Aparicio  19:19

very weather on a hill overlooking. Right, right, basically. Yeah, I mean, you could see the city lights if you’re at the top of the hill. It’s a beautiful thing. So why am I waxing nice about so you got two fingers? Yes. Yeah. You can please Yeah, well,

Tom Pierce  19:33

I gotta say Pat’s as a kid my parents we got a patent you know that’s a genius so but pants because on the way Yeah,

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Nestor Aparicio  19:38

Where’d you grow up? I

Tom Pierce  19:39

mean, I grew up in montgomery county. Just outside your

Nestor Aparicio  19:41

parents would go there that was like on the way to my dad was so great

Tom Pierce  19:45

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that I would he would take me we’d go to flyers games are Sixers games that on the way in we’d stop at Pat’s on the way out we’d stop at Pat’s but it was never Geno’s. He’s I think he preferred Pat So if he’s driving he went I like jelly can both it depends on the line. Now when I go back and I take my son they’re alive.

Nestor Aparicio  20:03

To me like, what’s your favorite crab cake? Which crab soup? The one I mean, right now Costas is my favorite. It’s it’s delicious. But like, this crab soup didn’t taste like this. It Coco’s three weeks ago when everybody makes crab soup different. Everybody makes crab cakes different, right? And everybody makes cheese steaks different though. Exactly. I mean, that really is

Tom Pierce  20:22

the truth right? And it’s just remember when you say a steak with I mean with a whip, when you say with that means make a put the Cheez Whiz on course, and nothing can be cooked. Here’s the story.

Nestor Aparicio  20:34

Like it’s not even edible. It’s awesome with your people.

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Tom Pierce  20:38

It sits on the grill and it stays nice and hot. Here’s the thing where Pat steaks, been living in Baltimore, this isn’t the guy. This is the late 90s. So I’m on a work trip and a guy that’s there. Part of our group is from South Africa and he’s a bigger dude. And we’re in line. And he was joking like, oh, it’s I understand Yeah, he ordering you have the language because he said I looked it up and want to order and I said that’s fine. Woman right in front of it. You get offended, right? Well, no, he was the soup Nazi but a pad stakes. The woman says I want to have a steak with and I would like this on this in the guy goes. No. She says it again. No, he’s like, it’s got to be a little goes a no in the Philly accent. Yeah, no. Well, that was the guy sticking his head out the window. No, no. So Howard asked him. Exactly. So he basically then the

Nestor Aparicio  21:23

sarcasm to it. Exactly. It’s so sarcastic that I think you’re

Tom Pierce  21:27

hitting. It is. So the third time she asked it again. He goes get out of line. So this six five South African next to me goes, Can you order like a little girl? He’s like, can you order for me the order of how to order that way. But back in the stories of going back in there. My father, a bow you think is a Burger King. Right? He was a great man that knowing what’s important in life, the things that I’ve always tried to do with my son that the Sixers were in the first round and he was the 80 playoffs. I’m in grade school. All of a sudden I get this call to the office. I’m gonna Catholic grade school just outside of Philly is just going to call it Yeah, the Sixers are playing like a day game. They were doing some weird like Friday day game like a four o’clock five o’clock store. And I get this call to the office to come to the office and my dad’s and I’m like, Oh, my God, what? What’s happened? And he’s like, Well, thank you doesn’t say anything to me. He’s like, thank you. I’m glad we could get him. I can do this. We go out to the car and he’s like, I got tickets to the game or go to the Sixers game playoff game. He took me out of school to go to the game who didn’t play. I think they’re playing the Hawks. I think Dominique Wilkins, when he was started with chocolate thunder there, right? Yep, no, Dawkins. Well, we are friends. We went. Have you seen the movie life

Nestor Aparicio  22:37

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was a fan like my wife doesn’t talk any ish about the 75 Red Sox, or never the 86. So she just she didn’t talk about that. But she does have all of this Robert Parrish. And you know, that era of the parquet floor, I mean, it was Larry frickin bird, right. I mean, that was phenomenal. But she loves that era of Celtics her dad took her. When they sat near the floor at the garden. She has this great memory of that. So like, my dad and I never went to an NBA game. My dad was really sour about the bullets leave there. My dad loved the bullets. My dad never drove my dad worked at the point right down here. We lived. I grew up two miles that way. And my dad worked two miles that way. And this was his whole life, went back and forth and Memorial Stadium and a civic center. And he loved the bullets. He just loved their older person loved all of that. And then it was taken away and he didn’t have a car and they played in Largo and they were the capital bullets in the Washington Bullets. And I would watch Kevin greevey and Elvin Hayes. And in 7778, up late tape delay, Golden State I was eight 910 years old. I used to pretend to dunk like, you know, like all of that stuff. I was such an NBA fan. But my dad hated the bullets. And so when we finally went to the capital center, I dragged my father. It was for wrestling matches, because we love the wrestling match. And he did go to a hockey game and my dad never really I loved hockey and I dragged them to clippers games because he loved me and he wanted me but he preferred the blast. And he didn’t like soccer buddy some bet to blast in the uniforms. And my dad liked the action of soccer. He thought that was cool. But he never loved hockey but but I took him to see the islanders. The great Islanders.

Tom Pierce  24:22

Oh gosh. 82 Yeah,

Nestor Aparicio  24:25

so the first Cavs game I ever went to Sky Blue Ice. We sat up in 207 and red seats, and we went down there my my stepbrothers. 76 Malibu and bossy Traci like the whole

Tom Pierce  24:42

deal you know because they beat us in Stanley Cup at that was horrible.

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Nestor Aparicio  24:46

Yeah, thank God for that. So I you know, I mean, sports brings people together. Of course, you had no idea me sitting here talking to told me about those greasy ASG steaks. Well, I’m having a delicious bowl of milk Early crab soup. Tom Pierce is here. He’s a classic five he does golf. Tell me what you really have your day job because he would talk to Philadelphia sports where were people out now? aversary And all you’re doing is talking about Philadelphia?

Tom Pierce  25:11

No, the combination. I’ve been filming in Baltimore, it’s just like, well, here’s the thing. Have you seen the movie air? About Michael Jordan? Oh god you see on Netflix, no guy, no treatment? Well, one thing in that movie, I had told my wife and friends that they made it like nobody knew Michael Jordan was good. We were in high school. We had saved up money me and my friends. We bought like second row seats to watch the Sixers blowout Chicago because they were horrible. We wanted to see Michael Jordan. That’s the only reason we drove down to watch him drop 43 No, yeah, it is a rookie. Yeah, so they were horrible. And But Michael Jordan, you knew that that guy had ability and I mean, it’s a great story and what he did and how he changed the industry. But the beauty of going down to the spectrum and see and be able to do that and have that experience. It’s a thing that I’m ashamed you’re sorry your father wasn’t able to enter the basketball and speed to be able to do that having to go to the bullets for the move, but I totally understand I would be I mean, it just couldn’t get there right? But then see having that I mean my wife’s father I mean, when he was still alive I remember bad my hated the cult, you know, when he was all that he just had to have this

Nestor Aparicio  26:15

dream play. You know what I mean? Like literally, you know? I mean, I love that click the basketball cars and I love the NBA during that year.

Tom Pierce  26:22

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I really did. I mean, it’s amazing that watching like I got to go to a couple games when they played the Celtics and McHale how good he was and Dennis Johnson, Dennis Johnson on those championship teams with them. I think he’s underrated. He did a lot with they could talk about Danny Ainge with Dennis Johnson did a lot of ball control and what they did and how they ran their offense is in the Celtics, when they were really good with him McHale, Parrish and bird. I always liked Dennis Johnson on that team. Well, and

Nestor Aparicio  26:46

then came the bad boys and all that good stuff. So classified up the elevator speech about golf and this time of year as our classified partners well,

Tom Pierce  26:55

okay, well, this time of the year it’s actually we’re enjoy it, enjoy the weather, get out and play this this time of year that I think many people who, like golfer want to get into golf, the fall golf is probably the best time of the year to play the seat. The weather’s getting cooler, it’s comfortable. It’s a great time to get out. Try the sport, but also get out and you know, enjoy yourselves. We’re all about fun. We like to put fun and promote golf supposed to be fun. It’s an activity. It’s a sport, but you’re supposed to have fun with the friends enjoy the outside.

Nestor Aparicio  27:25

We’re the place for everyone loved the Pine Ridge and hit that simulator, man

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Tom Pierce  27:27

toptracer toptracer

Nestor Aparicio  27:31

What is it? That’s the only name you have? That’s

Tom Pierce  27:33

one that’s the name of what it is toptracer They are the people they also own Top Golf. It’s a similar technology. But

Nestor Aparicio  27:38

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if I say top tracer, nobody knows what the hell that is. What is that? It’s, it’s

Tom Pierce  27:43

it’s a simulator. Right? Right. But you use the cameras but you don’t have to and you’re hitting light balls and they’re full flights go in the full range.

Nestor Aparicio  27:49

I say that’s a Kleenex, you know, it’s a tissue correct. But if I say and if I say that’s a Frigidaire you know, it’s a frigerator we’ll

Tom Pierce  27:54

talk next year and you know, you’re gonna know toptracer Pepsi, you know, you’re getting correct. And that’s what it’s gonna be. Well, no, it is one of the I mean, that’s a ranger is now putting into him. toptracer

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Nestor Aparicio  28:06

jet. I’m gonna have one of those wacko for Flacco signs I want to show so Flacco is like into golf. He’s one Do you claim him as he’s still Phil even though he’s in the Jersey side? Or how does that how does that work? Do you want to go away from Camden? How does that work? If you’re from Camden?

Tom Pierce  28:23

Camden. Camden is Philly. I mean, it’s a suburb. It’s just across the river. So we

Nestor Aparicio  28:27

have three signs here for you. And Flacco texted me yesterday. I love Joe. What’s the name of that? Crazy, almost like the masters course? Up in Philadelphia? That’s a very, very exclusive proteomic. No, it’s not a different name. No, give me give me It’s so underground that like you have to be invited by like,

Tom Pierce  28:50

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now that’s a New Jersey. That’s Saucon Valley. No, this is a well might be in the Jersey side of Phil. It might be on the Jersey side. I’m trying to think of what it is. But anyway, Pine Valley. Pine Valley that’s in Jersey. That’s Pine Valley. That’s yeah, that’s the again, you know? Yeah. It’s the merits to gusto. So

Nestor Aparicio  29:07

I you know, I don’t know much about golf. But Joe loves golf. And Joe is the favorite son of Philadelphia for me. So like, I don’t know how I could possibly hate Philadelphia when they gave us Joe Flacco. Right. I mean,

Tom Pierce  29:21

Joe was perfect for the team at that point. I mean, all the criticism, I was friends. Oh, we only show him like, I think it was my quarterback. I mean, it was right after Donovan. I mean, we had nobody were going through that until what we have now. I mean, I was like, I was like,

Nestor Aparicio  29:34

never come to Philadelphia other than the cheesesteak and pretzels, pretzels. I mean, I mean, the food I mean, like, what,

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Tom Pierce  29:41

Franklin? Okay, I’ll give you that. Ben Franklin,

Nestor Aparicio  29:46

anything they named the bridge.

Tom Pierce  29:48

You get to bridge, a school, a bridge, a monument anything you get an aim after? That’s the Woodrow Wilson See, I always loved my favorite line from Ben Franklin is thinking the same thing. What’s fish and a houseguest had have in common. They both get stale and stinky after three days.

Nestor Aparicio  30:04

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This is the last Philadelphia I’m gonna I’m gonna poop on Philadelphia. I finished my beer as part of our 25th anniversary brought to you by the Maryland lottery like conjunction with window nation. We’re gonna be crabcake touring like crazy the rest of the month. Check it all out of Baltimore positive.com celebrating 25 years and spiking a ball because I made it 25 years and I had Why wouldn’t I spiked the ball have made it 25 years. Man has saved my wife’s life is from Germany. I single she’s impeccable, even though you know, he doesn’t think it is but His English is perfect. It’s better than most people from Dundalk. Certainly from North Point village. So he comes here we snuck him into the country. Under the auspices she was work and we went to take him on the surprise trip all over. He loves the NBA loves the NBA. So I took him to see he loves dark divisive, so this whole thing was about him meeting Dirk Novitzky. It was almost like we could have made a mini series out of it because we went all the way to California, Dirk Divinsky turned his knee and did make the trip and Mark Cuban set this whole thing up. So Mark Cuban’s it’s a real saint and really good guy. So and he went to meet Novitsky at Madison Square Garden. But along the way, my wife got really sick because she just had a transplant with his cells and their genetic twins and it’s a whole thing. We’re driving in New York to go to Madison Square Garden to meet Dirk Levitsky. And he doesn’t know it, but they’re playing the Dallas Mavericks and Marvin Lewis was there because they were playing of giants was all this stuff that went on. We go through Philadelphia and he’s like, I want to see where Rockies movie I want to see the steps. So I’m like I’ll take it to Philly and the eagles were playing the Falcons that day and it was a year that Matt Ryan was good. They were going to Super Bowl. st man you go to NFL guy, we got to three NFL games. I would rather see the Liberty Bell. I want to say like alright, and you also take you see Liberty Bell said you know going to park was a Sunday when the eagles were playing so like the city’s a little shut down. Right like it’s a little kind of weird. We were making our way to New York to go to a Monday night. Madison Square Garden Knicks Mavericks game. Okay, that was a destination. So we’re in Philly, I take him to the west side that you know the whole street leading up to the stairs. Yeah. You know, the whole thing is what so we go down we park the car we go to the Liberty Bell and this speaks to your Cheez Whiz experience okay with the poor immigrant person that’s just looking for some meat on a bun with some cheese and not be mistreated in South Philly or get hijacked or get their car broken into it all their equipment stolen outside the Center City Mariette like one guy at the table did back in 1997 on a bender so we get up to the front of the Liberty Bell we’re Independence Hall it’s cold out as my remembers like it was November is just kind of a we weren’t dressed right in the line couple tourists here and there we get up and the guard shut down my dude. Neil’s What’s your name? Where you from? That passport, like all of this like frisk him like physically six foot six. He’s just giant guy, frisking down. And as we go in, he’s pissed. Like you could see his German getting like I could see him lose his countenance a little bit about getting like Rob down at the Liberty Bell here. That’s at two o’clock in the afternoon. And he says to me I have decided I do not like Philadelphia. We will not come back to Philadelphia. So then so there’s my you suck fliers moment?

Tom Pierce  33:38

Well, I think they do right now too. By the way that mascot I don’t even know what to do with its I think they tried to create a fanatic. They tried to go off team socks. Yeah. And has been they needed. They hopefully have blown it up and we’ll see how it comes back. But we’re we’re at the bottom and have been for a while. One day

Nestor Aparicio  33:55

I’m going to tell the story of Zach Leone’s us and I having a 20 minute phone call that made me never watched the capitals again. So I am I am not without a team anymore. Because Trotz is back with the predators. And I have and I’ve told him this, I have all my closet full of predators gear. So she’ll tell you, even though I’m missing my pointer finger from a lawnmower accident 1973 I have Fang fingers again. So I’m back on the national predator. I like it. I love it. I want some more of it. So I have a team again. Let’s go Yeah, listen. The last hockey game I went to after a lifetime of loving hockey was literally escorting the Stanley Cup with Alex Ovechkin and Tony Robbins off the ice in Las Vegas. Literally, she and I and Tony Robbins and Alex Ovechkin taking the Stanley Cup in and then partying with the cop for four hours and watching a veteran come over and grab the cup literally where you’re sitting from my table with Barry trots and carting it out and about eight minutes later, she and I are like on social media watching him carded across the street to the MGM at the Tiesto concert that she He and I were online in the second period when we’re losing after the second period, looking for tickets to Tiesto a case we lost the game, right? And that was the end of my hockey experience. And I don’t want to say I’ve dropped the puck or given up hockey, but I shall enjoy hockey again. But I’ve just I’ve decided to go with concerts.

Tom Pierce  35:23

That makes sense. But that’s the beauty of I mean, being in a city that grown up like in Philadelphia that Baltimore wished that had also you have the four sports when one of your sports isn’t doing

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Nestor Aparicio  35:32

well. Well, you don’t watch every Sixers game.

Tom Pierce  35:35

You can’t? Well, you don’t you can’t. It’s hard when the flyers

Nestor Aparicio  35:37

think you go away. And when you’re in your state, you lose 120. Everybody goes away. And now everybody comes back at the same time. Yeah, that’s your web traffic this summer. I mean, I see what baseball represents when it’s done the right way. Which is why I did free the parks. Wherever the sign is. I did free the birds so Okay, here we go. It’s a purple for you the birds. I did free the birds because like I wanted it to be like this every day. Oh, exactly. I it pissed me off taking my kid to the first playoff game of his life. In Philadelphia. We saw them play a walker game against the Rockies. Like I was 20 years ago, right? I’m wearing my bubble pee. Baby Blue Sixto less condo, Jersey. I have a Philly jersey. I have number 3416 Less. blue jerseys are awesome. Now, man. 83 is bad, you know, autographed by Cisco. SR Lefkada was my favorite player. Milwaukee Brewers he had that little bit of Oscar gamble thing going on. 7677 hit the long ball you know with Gorman Thomas, right. But

Tom Pierce  36:39

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this, the Royals will make Sports Time I know the Royals make this playoffs and I can’t wait because I want to see I remember. This was my second town living in the 90s go on to the

Nestor Aparicio  36:52

DS. I’m glad this is a figment of my imagination. You know, I am a cow. This was this was in the 2007 cowl induction. This is I did free the birds in oh six which is now 17 years ago, right? 17 years 17 years since kind of winning the Hall of Fame. And we’re getting old and we’re finally maybe having a baseball team that can get to the World Series. And you’ve had you’ve had a handful of those now as

Tom Pierce  37:17

a Phillies fan. Yeah, I mean in my lifetime before that, it was 50 they made the playoffs that’s it. I mean the Phillies have been existence for like over 130 years. Like four World Series

Nestor Aparicio  37:26

so you had no idea I was a Phillies fan in the 80s right before an hour right and you’re giving me all this like you went to game sick I went to the found game and at when we became I remember where I was that night as a show parents house down in Lansdale

8

Tom Pierce  37:38

we’re just down with our baseline my dad was able to get tickets it was

Nestor Aparicio  37:41

I was a Brett fan you know because he chased 400 And like all that and I love the Royals I mean the Royals had been the Royals beat the Yankees up and 76 so if you beat the Yankees up if you beat Reggie Jackson and Billy Martin you and I were cool right? You know I mean I liked you. So I liked the Royals and I liked with drag my dad out when split off pitch because I like split or my dad and I went to see Dennis letter pitch or moose hos like we want to see starting pitchers. My dad would say we’re gonna go the night Ryan pitchers with banana pitches. So I saw all of that always right. But the at Phillies, it was tug McGraw. And you gotta believe and I was 12 years old literally that week, they won the World Series. I turned 12. And the National League was really exotic, right? I mean, it was it was a different game. It was played differently. I loved baseball, I loved everything about baseball. And so I fell in love with the Phillies and I fell in love with your Phillies like and that and there was a gateway for me to you know, go up there and eat those cheese steaks and eat those pretzels and like all of that and I I love those memories. I’m so glad I fell in love with it. You

Tom Pierce  38:48

know the biggest moment in that whole playoff run that made Pete Rose what he did in the Houston series. We were down I think two games so not that we came back in the last game. We’re losing I think 16 inning game at the Astrodome was crazy. Right but this so he’s at bat we need a base runner. And I mean nowadays, you know with replay, they might have thrown him out. You watched him you know how he hunched over. He’s hunched over and you saw that pitch come inside. And he watched it let it hit his leg to make sure we got a base runner. He scored the winning run. But the man just let you knows I don’t know base Hall of Fame. Yeah, I know. But

Nestor Aparicio  39:25

8

he’s got a hose every night. It’s crazy. No, it is

Tom Pierce  39:28

but that’s the that’s the thing is that people you think about when you make the world series but a game in a moment like that, that I have to get on base. Do whatever you can to do. He was a player. I mean when he came to Philadelphia, Philadelphia love Pete Rose.

Nestor Aparicio  39:39

I only met Pete Rose once in my life. He was always here and he was promised on the My show one year because Frank slifka knew him to Thompson sports. I think they brought people was like really like taboo, but Pete was a prick. I mean Pete was in everybody’s face like he had his sports bar down at Boca and like all that I ran into Eat at the Tampa airport with Keith milk here. I went to a playoff game in 1999 Tampa Bay Bucs were playing the Steve Young. Niners in Tampa I had RT modells tickets. Thank you Roy summer off at Baker and I was at the airport 10 o’clock at night on a Sunday night in Tampa. And there’s Pete Rose sit waiting to get on a plane probably going to wherever you park

Tom Pierce  40:25

out to sign autographs public go into

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Nestor Aparicio  40:27

the track. It was January’s Tampa. And he was nice to me. I mean he was he was pleasant. Right you know I mean I didn’t I had his autograph already. Because my dad got it on the stadium Hilton letterhead back in 1981 when he went in and met man trio and the late great Bo DS alright I don’t want to say anything about the Orioles and ravens I mean do you

Tom Pierce  40:48

yeah I’m looking for I’m going to the Ravens Eagles preseason game now but I didn’t even have an Eagles hat on Yeah, we’ll have I won’t be wearing a jersey because I’m probably been at Pfizer or

Nestor Aparicio  40:56

anything or you’ll have a radio related Oh yeah. Oh yeah. I go to the game so you were you were our colors I would never wear an Eagles had. No I would never wear a fliers anything.

Tom Pierce  41:05

8

Well, I can understand that. I would never wear a capital thing. I only I lost two bets in college.

Nestor Aparicio  41:10

I have a sister less kind of thing right? If my wife bought me a throwback Dr. J. But she bought me a throwback Dr. J jersey. I wanted to be the the team he made most famous which are the Pittsburgh Pisces.

Tom Pierce  41:21

The Pittsburgh prices Oh god. Yeah,

Nestor Aparicio  41:23

I mean efficiency. Pittsburgh. I mean, come on.

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Tom Pierce  41:25

It’s a movie.

Nestor Aparicio  41:28

I bet that movie does not stand it. I bet that a lot of rotten tomatoes. Stockard Channing was a big big part of the fish. It’s a Pittsburgh so my wife says Rizzo whoa Rizzo. Yeah. All right. Wait, merrily crap. Super celebrating 25 years. I have friends stopping by. Relatives are sick right now. But we’ll see about stopping by my wife’s relative. She’s here. Pete is on vacation. Bill calls Rachel vacation. It’s August. And if we’re not doing that for golf in the classic five, right, exactly.

Tom Pierce  41:58

Oh, I looked in our little break. I looked at our tee sheets. We’ve got about 900 people on the books for today on the five courses combined.

Nestor Aparicio  42:05

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Is that 82 degrees and sunny. Is that what that does? Oh, yeah. People come out in the afternoon. People are not aware of the day when it rains and you have a t test socks. Wow. It’s the worst. No, the worst is having Oriole tickets and being there due to rain delay. That’s the worst for me. I don’t like rain delays. Yeah, I don’t I’d rather just say I’m not golfing today and go do something else. Then like sit on the golf course and watch it rained all

Tom Pierce  42:26

day. Exactly. You don’t have to do that. No, no, not not at all. All right.

Nestor Aparicio  42:29

Tom Pierce is here classified. We appreciate their partnership sponsorship get out to their five facilities. Let’s see. I can always name them. Let’s see Clifton Park, Carroll Park Forest Park. I did I did it give I forgot. Hold on. Pleasant. A Mount Pleasant and Pine Ridge. Right. All right. It’s like I gotta pass the test or I lose the sponsorship. I am Nestor. We are wn St. Am 57 is brought to you by our friends at the America lottery. Let’s still play get involved. It’s the 50th anniversary for them. It’s sort of inspired by 25th We have a new logo coming we have things we’re doing the 25 wn st stories of glory that begin right here at Costas. Stay with us. Come grab some free stuff.