Sports logo artist Todd Radom talks brands, baseball, uniforms and the Philly Baltimore thing with Nestor
Sports logo artist Todd Radom …ly Baltimore thing with Nestor
Wed, Jul 24, 2024 5:25AM • 46:43
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
love, game, baltimore, team, nestor, uniforms, philly, baseball, orioles, philadelphia, sports, phillies, years, watched, todd, star, people, good, talking, fun
SPEAKERS
Todd Radom, Nestor J. Aparicio
Nestor J. Aparicio 00:01
Welcome home, we are W en st Towson, Baltimore. Baltimore positive we are positively into the summer months where this gets fun trading deadlines, first place baseball, all the things I’ve dreamed about my whole life including homerun riches, the Gold Rush sevens doublers are in my hands, they will be in your hands if you join us on the Maryland crab cake tours, a whole bunch of dates coming out. I don’t want to give it all away. But I’m doing this oyster thing for our 26th anniversary, which begins on August 3, a whole year already gone. I have to change my cupcake. And we’re gonna fun in this segment because it’s post all star game. Yes, we have training camp. Yes, the ravens are relevant, and they will play all sorts of meaningless football for the next couple of weeks before they play a really meaningful game on September 5. And baseball is going to be heavy here, right? Like we’re gonna have a lot of guests on, we’re gonna be talking about crochet, we’re gonna be talking about school, we’re gonna be talking about prospects and all that heavy. And we may do that in this segment. But this was meant to be light hearted Todd rate them is a long time. Like, I don’t want to be disrespectful, comma logomaker. He’s a brand taste manager in the best sense of the word and you’ll get that vibe. Once you spend a little time with him. We’re gonna spend some time with him today. I don’t know why he moved to Philadelphia. But he did. I’m gonna allow him to explain it. Maybe it was the bubble P and the throwback powder blues. Maybe it’s the Dr. J and one of the iconic uniforms that the Sixers completely bastardized again and again and again. And the flyers whom I still hate were what they’ve always worn, which could have been the Baltimore clippers uniforms back in 1965. Todd Raynham joins us now I don’t matter why express to the world what you are and what you do, because you’re sort of an art far but a real sports nerd. And you’re really like, zoned in on all this. And I I want to apologize to you, your family and all your loved ones. Anyone that’s ever loved you for even thinking that you could have had anything to do with that tragedy last Tuesday night in Texas with those uniforms. I’m gonna begin it with that for for chuckles
Todd Radom 02:03
Nestor it is first of all, it’s great to see you again. And thank you, thank you for that absolving me of any responsibility for having seen what I saw in person a week ago today in Texas. Absolutely. But you hit the tip of the iceberg with all those things I always say I’m at at at at heart a designer creator of sports logos in uniforms for 30 years. But I’m also you know I’m a writer, I’m an author I’m part of the media so we get to do a lot of different things you and I you’ve
Nestor J. Aparicio 02:34
done hockey books on jerseys I’ve had you on for Yeah, it’s not just that so we’re gonna go baseball nerdy I made and I’ll put on the flyers when Philadelphia whenever I want even want me to come in there this weekend training REO Speedwagon. I love Philly, and I love cheese steaks, and I love Philadelphia people. And I pray for Howard Esken, who’s a friend of mine forever. So I’ll say this. The Jersey thing for me is really personal because it is the gateway to everything I ever loved about sports before I knew my cousin was famous in the Hall of Fame and had a Red Sox hat on and I had a little red sox bobblehead in 1973 when I was five years old, but the jersey thing it’s and I thought it was just me being artsy fartsy about the old Astros and I’ll pull out my Tony Gwynn, this is the one I wish is my gamer. So this the only one because this is modern, and it wears well. But this is my Gwen gamer. So this would give you an idea of where you know where my tastebuds go in regard to 70s garb and all of that. But the all star games thing is an abortion that like to anyone old school, I don’t know who loves it. I don’t know what the kids are buying. And the color schemes didn’t even match. I mean, I go back to the warm ups where you know, when the Baltimore warm up be black and orange, if they play in San Francisco be that way if they’re in Kansas City, it’d be some blue and white thing. Like, I’m down with branding man. I mean, like, look at me, I’m all branded up, I got cool hair, all that right. But what are they doing wrong? And like the first thing I thought, when I saw it all come down I thought was a joke on the weekend. I’m like that they pull out the Miami colors and they’re like, like, No, this they’re wearing these things, all of the stench of February March and the players bitching about this and that and I don’t even know the names of the companies because I don’t fanatics. I don’t even care right. But I do care when it comes to my television in high def as its portrayed against old and new I see it on my social media. I don’t need a reminder what the 1975 or 78 or 87 All Star game look like are the team pictures. I collected the baseball I mean I’m down with all of that. How are they getting it this wrong? You know what I mean? Maybe that’s the question for Rob man for that nobody gave him because you’re on the inside of all this how? Who’s running that? I mean, because it’s a mess and it’s it’s the only thing we talked about on all star game that it was like oh my God, why are they not wearing their colors?
Todd Radom 04:56
Yeah, the uniforms got a lot of attention to your point now. out there. And it always strikes me that about when uniforms get attention from people that don’t normally think about the uniforms. It’s not necessarily a good thing. And we’ve seen this come up time and time again over the years. But with all of the uniform issues this year, holding the sweat as they are the small lettering, the lack of, I don’t know, thoughtful details. It’s it’s not a good look. And the reason is, and I need to be diplomatic here because I work in a lot of different spaces, as you just mentioned. It’s really a Nike initiative. Nike has a 10 year contract with major major league baseball to supply uniforms. And they want to utilize the all star game as kind of a a laboratory of experiment, in the same way that they have done this really in the NBA, which doesn’t get as much attention. Listen, I talked about this all the time Nestor. Think about the fact that if you’re watching an NBA game, or even better yet, if you’re catching a little bite sized piece of an NBA game on your mobile device, a highlight in a game, you don’t know who’s playing anymore, and I’m going to be that old guy who says Get off my lawn. But there’s no home or road designations. You’ve got the Milwaukee Bucks, sometimes in blue, I just, you know, I’m a Brand Builder. And when you start to chip away at this kind of equity that you’ve accrued over the years, it’s a problem. Now listen, the All Star game is an exhibition. We know that and you and I are of a generation from way before interleague play, which started in 1997. But I felt like there’s always something very special about seeing those national American League teams line up along the base paths. And you see these guys in their uniforms. And here’s something that even in recent times, always struck me, the San Francisco Giants home uniforms that that beautiful cream color. They stood out among a sea of white uniforms in the National League. So we’ve lost something special. And it’s all about marketing, right? This is the world and it’s kind of you know, they can go they can change the they can flip the script necessary they can, they can move this narrative into a totally different place. And just use those uniforms for BP and for the Home Run Derby like they did traditionally, from about 1997 Up until a few years ago, and nobody’s gonna nobody’s gonna be yapping about
Nestor J. Aparicio 07:32
it. You said I’m a Brand Builder. You know, that goes way beyond you and me loving sports or loving baseball or idolizing Mickey Mantle or whatever it goes back to your first team you loved. I was an oiler fan. I grew up with the Baltimore Colts and my Baltimore Colts belt buckle over here, but I fell in love with the baby blue in 1973. I’ve talked about this forever. And even more so like the bubble pea in Philadelphia when Pete Rose the 83 World Series I was torn because I had become a Mike Schmidt Phillies fan and the Philly fanatic and nationally baseball was exotic to an 11 year old kid from from East Baltimore. And then I think about like one of a conversation like Ben McDonald, he grew up middle Louisiana didn’t have like a home team. I got to go to games all the time. I got on the bus and I went and saw Mike Flanagan pitcher Jim Palmer pitcher Steve stone pitch and I saw you know Eddie and Cal and like, you know, Brooks, all of that. So, the Orioles logo and all of the Orioles logos of the Angry Bird and 79 and the orange theologically correct. We went through those cycles of Rick Dempsey with the you know, the white paneled cartoon bird that still is the iconic part of winning a championship in my generation. Maybe people with Frank Robinson are the 66 Orioles, which still look cool to me even though the Louis jerseys 66 is awesome. I never saw the team wear that except on a throwback once again. But there’s something about brand building and who is your home team who’s your like your childhood team?
Todd Radom 08:56
So I’m a New Yorker who is a Boston Red Sox fan?
Nestor J. Aparicio 09:00
Okay. You’re never at Yankee Stadium. The new one are the old one and the new ones a big mall. It is what it is. Everybody in there looks like they’re a church. They’re all wearing the same thing. They all like and it doesn’t we go through the retired single digit numbers and you know, they’re all gone and like who’s wearing this and I’m looking for the nasty Nestor Cortez. I’m looking for some of that gear and half price now that is the RAS tank maybe over at Stan’s or someplace you know across the street. But for me, there’s something about that the Tigers cubs you know I mean some baseball teams. The Orioles are one of those teams where like they never marched around in green and gold and I love the Astros and I love well before they cheated, and I love the Padres and but what the Diamondbacks and the Marlins and the rays these newest teams have done to your point. They’ve never really established any of the mariners a little bit like that, but really establish anything and there’s something About the iconic brands, Lakers Celtics, you know, Knicks, they don’t need to do anything. They don’t need to play games. And they can sell all boatload of ends and wise on navy blue caps. And it always works. And it’s iconic. And these other people sort of paddle around, including the whole NBA sort of looking for. I’m selling a $99 jersey that no one thinks is cool. Like there’s jailbird things that the Steelers were. Yeah,
Todd Radom 10:29
yeah. I mean, listen, to your point, markets are different. You and I both know this, and fans know this, too. So if you are the Tampa Bay Rays, for example, you can go nuts with a city connect jersey that, you know, has kind of a skateboard theme or whatever they’ve got going on. And if you’re the New York Yankees who have literally opted out of that program said we’re not doing this. I mean, as much as I hate the Yankees, and I grew up six miles north of Yankee Stadium, use take the subway there. Um, you know, I It’s on brand for them. And being a brand guy. Not only do I totally get it, I kind of applaud it in certain ways. But listen, necessary. You know, the baseball season is a long one. I always say there’s a lot of inventory. There’s a lot of room for introspection, we’re looking at guys who are quite often static. But yeah, I mean, you know, I think you can have alternate uniforms and I think the Orioles do a pretty good job. I’m not a huge fan of the Orioles city connects. I like that cap. I love going to Baltimore not too long ago, and seeing the back of the scoreboard at Camden Yards with all those different colors and everything. It’s kind of a cool, ancillary piece of art, if you look at it that way, but the Orioles are going to always be the smiling bird. And all of that equity. We talked about equity that was hard earned and accrued during the year that the years that the Orioles were the best team in baseball over a 1020 year span, whatever that was. You can’t shake that history is destiny. Do you
Nestor J. Aparicio 12:04
think the all star game will come back to like normal jerseys in some sort of in the way all of these new copes go away and things sort of come back. And to your point. What’s old is new again, like the 80s are coming back all of that. But I sense with Manfred and I sense through the fan base. Look, the game already doesn’t matter. Right. I mean, the the homerun derby is just this droning thing that you either love it or hate it. I’m a HATE IT guy. I’ve walked out on it. years when I could have sat there all night. I just thought it’d be more fun to be sitting at the mech grill in Seattle having a beer than watching the 900th Juice baseball get hit out of Safeco park, but I would say this for the game itself and for a city that now has become reinvigorated. Right, I mean, around baseball, but around it stars. We had the starting battery. We had the starting starter we had gunner Henderson, we’ve got like, well, you know, all of this stuff going on. We’re gonna get the game here. That’s pretty obvious now that Mr. Angelos has left us. Mr. Rubinstein is coming in and sort of were angling. $600 million of stadium money is going to come into this before they put on the show here. I keep wondering. And I’ve wondered this about World Cup for years. And we’re up on it now. Right? I mean, here in America, where what what will the show look like when it comes back to Baltimore and I know it’s coming to Philly too. And, and this is a chance for Utah, radium to tap your cap. You’re living being a Fishtown guy in Philly. Philly is not like everything a couple of years now like right, so as this thing evolves and changes back to the mean a little bit. The baseball All Star game is still the best of all of them. Like, I mean, I see that wailers logo behind you. And I haven’t watched the hockey All Star game in 20 years. The football I mean, enough said on that. Yeah, Pro Bowl. There’s nothing to talk about. But the in the summer when your baseball team is good. And they’re begging you to put no cowboy shit. I mean, like all these Goofy, Goofy, Goofy parts of social media and benification on engagement and all of that stuff that I see vote for me vote for me, there’s a first wave a second wave. To some point, I would like to think that you don’t need blood ceiling doing this and you don’t need the game to dictate who’s going to host the World Series. But it has such potential. I mean, it’s because he gets it. Even though every year I say I’m not gonna watch remember. And I want Chris Berman packed, I packed up and I watch and you go you get on a plane and go and if they let me go, I would go you know what I mean? If I were back in good graces of management, I would I would go and be a part of it. Luke went down to Miami. I went to Washington a couple years ago. I love the All Star Game Todd. I love it.
Todd Radom 14:52
I’m with you, Nestor. I’ve been to 28 Straight all star games because I live in that world. And one of the fun things things about being a baseball fan. Well, let’s back it up for a second. You know, it’s often been said that if you’re a baseball fan, your relationship with the game is a very different thing than if you’re a football fan, right? Because being a baseball fan is like being in a marriage, you got to work on it every single day. And it
Nestor J. Aparicio 15:19
gets harder and harder as you get older to. That’s right.
Todd Radom 15:23
If you’re with the right partner, it’s all good. Yeah, so, but the little fun diversion just for the sake of fun that the All Star Game represents. For somebody like me, who’s been lucky to have been at all of these events. It means that I’ve been able to see every great player for an entire generation play in person, whether it’s a real game or not. It means that I got to see Shohei Otani hit a home run a week ago tonight, in Arlington, right, it means that, you know, it’s a nice fun diversion, we can have fun things. And when it comes to the uniform part of it, and the evolving of the game itself, which you alluded to, you know, everything evolves, right. I can’t help these days. But think of what Andy Warhol would think about about what the world is like where trends come and go in seconds. And memes, come and go. Nestor, I was at a pirates game at PNC Park last month. And they have a Warhol cam. Because Andy Warhol famously was from Pittsburgh, right. But
Nestor J. Aparicio 16:27
he got it is sponsored by Campbell’s Soup. Probably not there. It was not sponsored
Todd Radom 16:31
by but it sure looked like that.
Nestor J. Aparicio 16:36
Farrah Fawcett cover from some girls,
Todd Radom 16:38
right? Yeah, you know, you just like you start to riff, you know, I mean, so anyway,
Nestor J. Aparicio 16:43
that should bring you back in just a whole thing on AI. I mean, I
Todd Radom 16:48
don’t even get me started. So the all star game is just pure fun. And it’s the middle of the season. And it’s at a time where hopefully, we can all as individuals step back a little bit and take a little summer break a couple of days. You know, it just fits the mentality of the moment. It’s different from the NBA All Star game in February, or, you know, I’ve been at my share of I’ve been in my share of NHL all star games, too. But anyway, it’s a fun event. And I’m gonna say this, and I have no inside knowledge on this whatsoever. I have a feeling you’re gonna see the regular uniforms back on the field of play pretty soon, because people want it. And if you’re Rob Manfred. Listen, you know, he’s Rob Manfred does a lot of things to a lot of people. But I think he’s a pretty smart guy. And he sees where the tide is, is rolling in.
Nestor J. Aparicio 17:40
Todd, right, um, is our artistic guests. He is a man of brands and he resides in the city of brotherly love. And Philadelphia. Don’t hold that against them. He’s not even from there as we’ve gotten. So give me your Philadelphia thing, because we’re social media pals. And you come down here once in a while for a game. I know when you move there a couple years ago, I’m like, man, yeah. All right, coming to Baltimore for baseball game. Philadelphia is the place and you haven’t been there long enough. But I’ve been going in and out like you’ve been going in and out your whole life and seen it evolve and change. And I mean, I was there for Live Aid, right? You know what I mean? I’m talking about seeing the whole stadium and everything around it. Whether it’s Def Leppard playing there on Tuesday night or whatever, that that the vibe of sports and Philadelphia, the importance of those four teams, there sort of ebbs and flows. And really, I don’t say the great American sports town, maybe unfair to New York or, or Boston or Chicago, but you moved into a place where like, there’s plenty of action, I would say, yeah,
Todd Radom 18:43
yeah, I think it’s very fair to say and listen to Ana. I was born in Manhattan. I went to college there. This is the furthest I’ve ever lived from New York. I’ve got a New York City subway token tattoo on me. Okay. There. So, you know, there’s a little bit of a loss of identity. In some respects,
Nestor J. Aparicio 19:03
you ride for free for life if you do that.
Todd Radom 19:05
Alright. It’s better than a metro card. Right? I should be shipped. I should be. I’ll be there tomorrow. I’m going to tell them that when I’m in the subway, but anyway, so the story is this. You know, like a lot of people youngest is out of the house. Empty Nesters in effect. My wife is a Texan. So, you know, she has lived in a number of different places. So what we’re we moved
Nestor J. Aparicio 19:29
to a swing state to help thanks so thank you. We’ve got we
Todd Radom 19:33
might have been talking about this but 15 minutes before we before I got on with you Nestor but anyway, yeah, so what we were looking for a place that’s easy to get around. There’s an international airport you got to Amtrak, right. It’s not too far from anything not too far from our friends in New York. We have friends and Philly already. We wanted walkable. We live in this really dynamic neighborhood with great bars and restaurants and music and young people. All around creative people, we’re both creatives. So Philly checked a lot of boxes. So to be in the the beating heart of the city, every single day is such a cool thing. And Philly is easy. But the sports part of it is kind of astounding, coming from New York and growing up where I grew up. And you know this, you’ve got friends with divided loyalties. People who are traditionally Yankees fans, we’re also Giants fans, it’s kind of like the old, the old school nets, or, you know, we’ll forget the nets, but Mets and jets fans, well, maybe their parents grew up in Queens and moved out to Long Island. And you know, we’re part of this new wave, if you want to look at it that way that really wanted to make a statement in the early 60s, here in Philly. I’m, I’m telling you what I moved here in the middle of the 2022 World Series. So I went to game four. And then the movers came the next day, and took all the stuff down here. So to walk out of my house and see people clad in green, on any given Sunday, between the months of probably August to February, right. I don’t care who they are, they could be young, old, black, white people with kids. Everybody’s wearing the Unity that’s connected with these teams is just it’s crazy to see. And it’s very infectious. I have a friend of mine here in my neighborhood, who said last year, we got to get you to an Eagles game. And I was like, Yeah, I’d love to go. He’s got season tickets. He’s like, but we got to do the four hour all you can drink tailgate before, and like just do the whole cultural experience. And it was really, it was really eye opening. So I’m right in the eye of the hurricane here.
Nestor J. Aparicio 21:47
I was a season ticket holder for the Philadelphia Eagles of buddy Ryan in the late 80s. So Baldinger was on the field back then as I remember Randall Cunningham rich code tight came in right after that. So I sat in Section 721 row one, Todd, you’re gonna laugh. Don’t Don’t spit your coffee out. We were in the family section. It was like a $5 discount. So we wrote it was the first row right behind home plate it literally so it’s a corner of the endzone, but like we were in the family section, so that’s when we didn’t have the Colts here. That’s when I love the Oilers in the mid 80s. So and when they were that proper silver bunting. You know with my quick back in the day Todd random series in Philly. The reason I bring up the Philly thing is I think of you as baseball first. And the whole reason I reached you is baseball jerseys and have a good time and I have a whole litany of fun, logo oriented things that I’ve been buying and sort of collecting the things I actually have in my closet the things I’m like, I want that Palmer 66 giveaway, you know, I have to have that. So, but baseball to me and it’s resurgence here in Baltimore, we’re still figuring out 30 years of destitute sort of awfulness. Cal Ripken is trying to figure it out. 20 years later, coming back, Rubinstein is trying to, you know, figure out, hey, but the one thing they don’t need to figure out is the team like Elias the team on the field, how they build back how they figure out city connect jerseys. And that’s going to be for Katie Griggs, when they’re the new president of the team, who’s coming in from Seattle, who apparently ran an all star game out there and the business in the branding and how we’re going to sell tickets, and we’re gonna do with $600 million. But Philadelphia, you flown into, and it’s great that you said, you were a game for the 22 World Series. It’s a very mature thing and Philadelphia now. And it wasn’t I mean, when they built the new stadium, it had been a long time since they won, but really the last 15 years of the Philly, Sept. 1618 years of the Phillies has been this thing that’s built into you move into it. And it’s packed every night and everybody’s engaged. And we don’t have that here. Yeah, we’re trying to find that again, whatever that 9293 94 Camden Yards elixir and that involved the whole different municipality, right? The Washington market all came to Baltimore, they all bought sky boxes, they read the Washington Post, they drank their Chardonnay, and they were a wine and cheese was so anti Baltimore wasn’t the thing changed. But it had all this money that begat Angelo’s in the late 90s. But then we’re talking 25 years ago, since it was mature. And I don’t know where the I don’t know where the money’s coming from Todd, but I do know, they’re going to try and try hard. But in Philadelphia, it’s there. It’s built. And it’s a beautiful thing to see the engagement of everybody in the community because we don’t have that yet. Yeah,
Todd Radom 24:39
well, Nestor, I can’t help but think of a very close friend of mine who I went to college with in New York 40 some odd years ago at this point, who, back in those days, a Philly guy still a dear friend, but you know, I would come down here he’s like, let’s go to a game the bet you could do that from New York to New Jersey Transit transfer. Trenton you could do it cheaply. We’d sit up in the 700 level we went to game for the 1993 World Series angriest group of people I’ve ever been around in my life
Nestor J. Aparicio 25:09
should it go into game five it went bad or shilling pitch really well that I know it I was a game through your game for was that the Madonna rain night?
Todd Radom 25:16
Or was that was 1514 Say that again? 1514 Blue Jays
Nestor J. Aparicio 25:22
Phillies game. Oh, those days but Madonna played at the spectrum and it was a really long range play. But that may be Tuesday night.
Todd Radom 25:30
I was there Tuesday night too, right? Because I look man we’ve overlapped. Yeah, the vet
Nestor J. Aparicio 25:36
was on fire. And it wasn’t that far from talking McGraw and all of that it had it had some layover, but then it kind of went away.
Todd Radom 25:43
I was gonna say so then you hit the, you know, the the the, the real trough. Let’s just put it that way. And they build the ballpark here. And it’s a great place to see a game. You know this. I do the ESPN baseball tonight podcast with buster only every week in season. So I always do. I’m on. We tape on Thursdays. I’m on on Fridays, former colleague buster only have the ball we go Baltimore, you know, yeah. So I’ll say hi, when we do our thing on Thursday, but anyway,
Nestor J. Aparicio 26:15
I’m telling you, great work covering the San Diego Sockers. Tell him this, and that’ll blow his mind. But
Todd Radom 26:23
you’re going way back now, but I knew him then. But yeah. And so anyway, you know, he asked me not too long ago, he said listen, you were there for every one of these World Series at Yankee Stadium, the old stadium, I went to the 77 World Series as a kid. I went to 96 I was there in 99. I was there in 2000 I was there and no one. He said talk to me about how the sound is in Citizens Bank Park for a playoff game relative to what that was like at Yankee Stadium in those years and I had to think about it because I didn’t think anything could would compare and you know to see that upper deck at Yankee Stadium bouncing like structurally sound having some give to it was absolutely crazy. But this does compare. It’s a madhouse here and the Phillies and you give you give, you know big props to ownership for making the investment. Nesta you know this not only are they a good team, but they’re a fun team. They’re a good bunch of guys told to well to watch. They seem to love one another. The city loves them because they reflect the spirit of the city. I see it every day. And by the way I did. I did get a selfie with Elliot Boehm at a party on Monday night in in Texas, right after Home Run Derby so that was good. Um, but anyway.
Nestor J. Aparicio 27:44
Well, the Phillies were down here last month during the week and I broadcast from Danna Cooper’s one of our sponsors shout at had the best blackened tuna wrap of my life that they haven’t had it again. But I’m five weeks out. I’m coming for you, Samantha. But so I was down there and it was Friday afternoon. And it was nothing nothing but Phillies fans. And these were people my age and older. They were traveling fans. They were there to eat and drink. They were getting crunk at two in the afternoon. And they weren’t kids, they this wasn’t 24 year old people. These were groups of adults, parents with children, like 60 year olds with 30 year old kids toting their five year old kids with them all in Philly swag running up and down the cobblestone. They took over the city in a good way in a really good way, honestly. But it also showed me how mature that fan base is, you know, just seeing them because look, this thing with Masson and you know, I watched the broadcast every night and it’s one big giant love loving. And you know, they put their cameras on the fans that are down in Tampa. And yeah, there were 800 Oriole fans in Tampa. Yeah, so yeah, I’ve been a guy running buses to these events. You know, for all my lifetime all my adulthood. I’ve run flights and buses. I know what taking over replace looks like as a Ravens fan. We’ve done it a couple of times where we took over places and there were 20,000 of us 10,000 of them because they stunk and tickets were cheap and was in Charlotte, right? You know, and they were two and nine or whatever. And we were going to the Superbowl. But the Philly thing for me to come down to Baltimore that weekend and for how much money they left behind and the taste in their mouth for my besieged city for we lost our bridge. Yeah, we got mayor’s going to jail. We had the riots. We’ve had all of this stuff in Philly. He’s no stranger to any of that. But to have those people come down here and see them having a great time. And hearing people in that I’m upset with the Baltimore accent that stupid Philly accent in the Philly accent say to me wicked Baltimore all the time, which we love it down here, we it’s great down here, you can walk through everything and, and I’m like, Wow, man, you know, they don’t say that to me when I’m up there at Eagles games or, you know, calling my wife names and you know, whatever else but the but and I say this with love for all the tasty cake eaters up there you know I love you, you cheesesteak eaters and your present leaders craving one of those pretzels right now.
30:23
Oh, they’re so good, right?
Nestor J. Aparicio 30:26
Yeah, but the Philly fans and the Phillies, forget the Eagles and the rest of it. The Phillies have captured that money, we’re gonna spend that money, we’re gonna go follow the Phillies, I’m gonna get my kid a bomb jersey, or I’m gonna get him a Schmidt, generic Carlton or whatever it’s going to be. But I’m i i love that. And I want that for the Baltimore people. And I’m trying to find the key to that. And this is where I go back to Utah random. I’m a Brand Builder, you said, I’m a Brand Builder. And this is where the Orioles and this is one of the reasons I really want to have some deep thoughts with you on it. And the Orioles have taken this resurrection project. And it is about city connect jerseys being something everybody want. And they always lose when they wear them. So it’s but but like, there is a connection point that Peter angelos, completely annihilated for a long time that the new groups trying to figure out, including me, and they haven’t figured me out yet. But there’s there’s a part of it that they started from scratch again, they burn the thing down, and it’s coming back to life. And this is where brand builders are so important, bro. Really? Well,
Todd Radom 31:29
you know, listen, a couple of things. First of all the connectivity, you’re talking about connections between Philadelphia and Baltimore, is you know, it’s real. And like I said, I can maybe speak to this in a certain way because I’m not from here, even though I live here. It’s just one giant, you know, the commonalities are so thick, it’s kind of astounding. But here’s the thing, the the the Orioles have a plan and had a plan. They clearly drafted Well, you’ve got this well of talent that the fans have watched come along, and they’ve been said just stick with us. It’s going to happen and it happened pretty quickly. They were a year ahead of schedule, I think by anybody’s estimation. But the Phillies to move back here for a moment. They’ve got to seal the deal. They came close to a World Series title just out of the blue in 2022. Last year in the postseason, of course, the wheels fell off the wagon very suddenly. And the closer Yeah, I mean, the expectations are off the charts this year. They’re the best team in baseball but right now but hey, the 92,001 Seattle Mariners are remembered for having won all those games not been able to like get get the thread the needle and make it like the whole thing happened. So the Phillies need to win a World Series title. And here’s my dream Nestor, the Phillies need to face the Baltimore Orioles in a repeat in some way shape or form of the 83 series that you talked about earlier. Because that I 95 that connectivity with all of the talent and the organic, you know, stuff and the real stuff, not the marketing or the force, you know, we’re gonna make it seem like this, the building of the sport and and the, you know, the excitement of these fan bases revolves around moments and you can’t script moments. So Bryce Harper and bed limit the bank that was so beautifully captured in our imaginations just a couple of years ago. It’s real. It’s a real thing. I hope the Orioles get there. And I hope we do it together because that would be so much fun. And it would be great for the sport of baseball writ large.
Nestor J. Aparicio 33:42
What do you love about sports? After all these years, I mean, we got together because we didn’t like the jerseys last week, but we love sports. We love the old jerseys. We like this connection to it. We can’t stay away from it through a lifetime of talk. I mean, I talk politics, business music, I’ve done all sorts of stuff here. But it always does come back to Hey, the all star games on let’s check in. I don’t give it the time I used to I don’t give it the money I used to I don’t support these teams financially because they’ve done everything in their power to sort of mute me and mistreat me, quite frankly. But I still love them. You know what I mean? Like it’s still I want them to win. I don’t intrinsically we had an AFC Championship game at home go wrong here this year. We’ve never had one since 16. Since it’s since the Baltimore Colts. And the baseball team has this promise of potentially bringing a parade here. Todd, I’ve been on your 33 years here, right doing radio every day in my life for 33 years. This is as good as it gets for my town right now. Right for having all stars Lamar Jackson MVP. I mean, Baltimore could be by March, putting up a new bridge. You know, what, two parades I mean, you can dream a little Boston because datamine you can wait but there’s never Forever ever been a better time, or Baltimore sports on the field than right now. And I’m going to be spiking the ball on that because I’ve lived through it all. I’ve seen it all. I watched her say steal the team, I worked at the paper begging to get the team back. I, you know, like I was there for the first I want a book on the first one, I wrote a book on the second one. And meanwhile, I’ve written a book on the baseball team not having one. But there’s something about waiting for this, this moment for the city and the teams to get well, you know, get well,
Todd Radom 35:33
well, you know, you hit on a couple of really important things Nestor and the first thing I always say is that if you are a fan of a team, you’re a member of this community. And this is a really unusual thing, because this community does not ask you how old you are, doesn’t ask you what your ethnicity is, doesn’t care about if you what your income bracket is, none of this stuff, you are brought in as a full fledged member of a community and you can hug and high five people with pure joy. And you know, like that, where does that happen in life, especially right now, in this factionalized America and in a society which gets cleaved apart in so many different ways. Sports allows us to be the best versions of ourselves, I think, and also the worst at times. But that’s a whole nother thing. So a couple of things along those lines. I think baseball in particular, to me, has always represented the background of my summer. Right? If I’ve lived in a house, I remember having a little garage and puttering around the garage and having a game on on a radio in the background or driving around listening to a game. And I said it before. I’m a Boston Red Sox fan. There’s a long story before that. But I started rooting for that team in 1975. And that was a very special year. My cousin left
Nestor J. Aparicio 36:55
man I mean it was I know that Benitez and yeah,
Todd Radom 36:59
autograph on a ball about six feet to my left over here. Fred
Nestor J. Aparicio 37:03
Lynn is still one of my all time favorites. He’s somebody I’m trying to get on the show. Like it would matter to me to have Fred Lynn on. But Fred Lennon Jim rice going to Boston at 75 Man that was about seven years old. You know? The whole deal. Yeah. And I remember the uniforms
Todd Radom 37:17
and listen, you know, I grew up in a family of Yankees fans. My father was a Yankees fan. I remember sitting and watching the Bucky effing dent game with him. My first games I ever went to at Fenway as a fan were the Boston Massacre games in 1978. So talk about like stealing yourself as a fan. But here’s my point. My girlfriend in college was a Mets fan from Whitestone, Queens, we watched Game Six of the 1986 World Series together. You know, like a blunt instrument through my sternum, one of you was happy, right? You know, and that’s it. And she was great about that. And she’s still a friend today. But here’s the thing. All that faith was was rewarded, in my case, being there in 2004, and St. Louis, being at Fenway in 2007. Being at Fenway with watching them win again, in probably in 2013. And being at Dodger Stadium in 2018. And saying, Listen, I never thought this was gonna happen once in my life, much less for time. So I’m spoiled. I’m very lucky. But it really speaks to this breadth of believing. And that’s Baltimore, man, right? I mean, you guys, there’s no guarantees. We see so many instances where teams get to the precipice, and are not able to finish the deal, right? There’s this innocent climb where maybe a team can get to a finals.
Nestor J. Aparicio 38:42
And anyway, it was a lot more fun, make fun of the Eagles fans before they won, you know, then once you win, I mean, it does. It does feel like everybody’s won. Now I can lose your identity.
Todd Radom 38:52
I mean, I remember having this comment. I was in Chicago with the 2005 World Series are on the heels of having lived through 2004. And I went with my buddy Dan Bullard, who is a huge White Sox fan Chicago guy went went to games one and two in Chicago with him. And Chicago
Nestor J. Aparicio 39:09
is what you’re saying this year. That’s that team. Yeah, it’s just the Chicago Okay,
Todd Radom 39:13
outside, so and they win. They sweep the Houston Astros and the World Series. And he’s like, I can’t believe it happened. And I said where is hell wasn’t it? It was terrible right? Yeah, Scott put said Nick hitting a home run in the in the midst at US Cellular Field one of those something
Nestor J. Aparicio 39:31
that’s amazing. I had a chance to go to game one and I didn’t go the Ravens were playing the bears. The next day. I wound up watching it at that big Weber’s grill and downtown in the loop Cago with Ray Bachmann my producer went to game one out in Chicago that night it was just cold and wet. And it was hard like it was all of that right. But yeah, but that changed everything for White Sox fans forever, right? Yeah, and
Todd Radom 39:55
yeah, they’re really awful now and and one since they haven’t even come close. It’s Seems like but but your identity as a fan can be changed and it speaks to your identity is a city Baltimore, you know, I’m like listen, I went to Memorial Stadium I’m I’m not comparing myself to you in any way, shape or form. But being a creative guy, especially, this is a town that brought forth John Waters, and Babe Ruth, and outsider art and all these it’s a funky, interesting place. And the size of the place matters to right because championships get lost in New York or LA. And that that that kind of fractionalization that I talked about, in certain respects, things get diluted, but what a championship. I can only imagine what an Orioles World Series victory would mean to a city like Baltimore to Baltimore specifically would be off the charts.
Nestor J. Aparicio 40:52
What’s your all time favorite logo that you created in sports Todd? Right. Oh,
Todd Radom 40:56
it’s I get asked this a lot Nestor and and there’s favorite and kind of like meaningful and there are things about navigating a process. I’ve designed Super Bowl logos I designed Super Bowl 38 logo. Like to be able to say you design the Super Bowl logo is a pretty, I don’t know, elite,
Nestor J. Aparicio 41:14
you gotta be Googling it now. I mean, I sure I bought the program. I have the press pen because I went to all those games, which one was 38 was Hold on 35 was ours. So that was oh one it was oh, four Super Bowls for
Todd Radom 41:25
Euston. Janet Jackson, you know, unfortunately, okay, Tom Brady all have those things. So navigating that is a pretty serious thing I’ve got you know, I’ve got a couple of fun ones that I designed the Brooklyn Cyclones logo. That’s a really weird one that nobody’s gonna get. But as a New Yorker and somebody who loves history, you know, we’re having this conversation, a little ballpark from what I understand. I haven’t been there. Well, the park is great, right. And it’s real. And it’s cool. And it was the first pro sports team in Brooklyn since the Dodgers left. So it was cool to do that. But you know, I’ve got so many of them. These days, I love working with I worked with ice cube with the big three basketball league. It’s a different kind of challenge. That’s why I was down in Baltimore. Couple of weeks ago. Yeah, I
Nestor J. Aparicio 42:10
remember he was it was doing that come through town. And I think he did Ryan Ripken show on the way through cube did my show at the Houston Super Bowl. Oh, dude, he had this wristwatch. That was all ice. And he let my wife wear it during the segment, and eight, but he was keeping an eye on my wife was
Todd Radom 42:28
like, right, you know, he’s a great guy. And he loves and understands creativity. I’ve got an email I’ve got to get back to him about this morning. And that’s not a humble brag or anything. But here’s the thing, before he hit big, NWA, he’s 19 years old. He’s like, I’ve got to have a plan B in my life. If this doesn’t work out, he went to college for one semester to study architectural drafting. So when we talk design and geeking out and what things are going to look like in an arena and how color works, he totally gets it and he loves this stuff. So I really enjoy working with him. Well,
Nestor J. Aparicio 43:04
dude, I enjoy working with you and having you on the program and now you’ve moved a little closer. We got to work on one of these cheese steaks or a pretzel or ballgames somewhere in there. It won’t be a flyers game. I’m not coming back up for that, but all sorts of fun show and tell for you today. But you know, lately I’ve just been on the internet collecting just like sort of weird little things like old Houston Euler like Warren Moon and Dan Rainey. Yeah, you know, so but this is one of my all time favorite iconic 70s logos that is completely plain. And this and you say branding doesn’t matter Chico’s bailbonds Let freedom ring Let freedom ring. Absolutely. And I live with the Liberty Bell is So Todd ray to tell everybody how to find you and like I mean, you’ve written books there’s a million different things I could promote about hockey and jerseys and all that stuff. But anytime I see or fashion I have to go to the fashion doctor and try to get fixed and that’s why I came to Utah Ah
Todd Radom 44:06
don’t give it to me straight doctor that’s it. You know what I’m talking about Nestor so I’m always on the socials particularly x as we now call it and on Instagram but very different feed for a visual guy and I am at Todd radium t o DDRADOM. Man
Nestor J. Aparicio 44:24
I you know I sit here in this office and I don’t think of myself as particularly artistic I’m an art appreciator. You know more than an artist I guess it as far as I’m more of a writer but I love logos and I have all of these rock and roll belt buckles from the 70s the Pacifica belt that’s that’s those are my jam that that’s so I see your little press pins behind you and I had a whole bunch of collection of that at one point I wanted to collect them on I still think they’re cool. Super if I were gonna collect anything about really rich and just pissing money away I buy all the World Series press pins I well yeah, you
Todd Radom 44:58
get to a certain point and it gets very expensive very quickly but they’re great little pieces of art. Oh, they
Nestor J. Aparicio 45:03
you know that’s the thing about it. Oh, when the great Tommy calm while the Philadelphia saw my, my wall
45:09
of belt buckles. He’s like they’re little pieces of art. Yeah. Yeah, you
Nestor J. Aparicio 45:15
know, art appreciation for me to you from artistic Baltimore, the Charm City to the City of Brotherly Love. Todd random is our artistic friend, our artist, and one day I’m going to get you and received together for a crab cake over Coco’s. Oh man. The fireworks will explode on that. I would love it. Maybe before game three of the World Series between the Phillies and the Orioles down here in October. I’m taking the week off already. I’m tracking towards get back out on the road. We don’t know what’s going to happen down here for Coco’s crab cake or I’ll take it and Bailey’s rover to cost us they’re all different. They’re all delicious. And it’s all brought to you by our friends at the mayor in the lottery, the Gold Rush sevens doublers we will have these in our pockets for our next appearance. It’s gonna be a 13th at State Fair in Catonsville. With county executive Angela also broke she was running for State Center for Senator US senator. And we’re also gonna get larry hogan on at some point, I hope invites her out. But beginning on the 13th we reconvene with a Maryland crabcake tour. It’ll be politics and a fight and I’m gonna get I’m gonna get fined a quarter every time I say PG County instead of Prince George’s County. So I’m getting out ahead of things my friends at Jiffy Lube, multi care keeping us oiled up make sure we get all these cool concerts and ballgames and Luke gets the training camp on time and Luke gets to the ballpark this weekend for the Padres. I hope the Padres were a proper Jersey this weekend. Put the right jerseys on you put me up dressed Manny Machado the right way. We are WNS TA and 5070, Towson Baltimore. I’m cooling down. It’s just art.
