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The Ballad of Davey Johnson begins in Baltimore in 1996. All he ever did was win baseball games. He and Peter Angelos never agreed on much. And then he was gone. Here’s the whole story through the eyes of the journalists who covered it.
This Maryland Crab Cake Tour stop was long overdue but sausage led to pasta and that led to the front door of the “new” Di Pasquale’s in Canton with chef Nancy Longo joining Nestor for a full history and origin story of the city’s most famous and beloved Italian eatery. Let Joe and Domenico Di Pasquale tell you about the move from Highlandtown and the expansion of their legendary tradition.
This Maryland Crab Cake Tour stop was long overdue but sausage led to pasta and that led to the front door of the “new” Di Pasquale’s in Canton with chef Nancy Longo joining Nestor for a full history and origin story of the city’s most famous and beloved Italian eatery. Let Joe and Domenico Di Pasquale tell you about the move from Highlandtown and the expansion of their legendary tradition.
A six-game winning streak this week and the re-emergence of Adley Rutschman – and better pitching – all have the Orioles pointed in the right direction. Luke Jones and Nestor discuss the current state of the Birds and the bizarre first-time appearance in rented Sacramento to play the scuffling former Oakland Athletics in a minor-league stadium.
A six-game winning streak this week and the re-emergence of Adley Rutschman – and better pitching – all have the Orioles pointed in the right direction. Luke Jones and Nestor discuss the current state of the Birds and the bizarre first-time appearance in rented Sacramento to play the scuffling former Oakland Athletics in a minor-league stadium.
With the trading deadline ahead and the first measurement of ownership’s strategy on the field coming into focus, our business insider Eric Fisher from Front Office Sports gives Nestor the economic realities of MLB, local media issues and the hurdles and growth needed from Team David Rubenstein moving forward as Catie Griggs takes over the business of Birdland
Covering the business of sports and moonlighting in two rock and roll tribute bands, we only track down Maury Brown of Forbes when we’re ready to get serious about baseball and money. Rocking the trading deadline like a hurricane without a holiday and letting the money talk. @BizBallMaury
Sports business insider Eric Fisher gives Nestor economic realties of MLB and Orioles hurdles moving forward
Covering the business of sports and moonlighting in two rock and roll tribute bands, we only track down Maury Brown of Forbes when we’re ready to get serious about baseball and money. Rocking the trading deadline like a hurricane without a holiday…
It’s been three decades since Baltimore went “all in” on the promise of sports to revitalize a downtown community. Neil deMause of Field of Schemes tells Nestor that this Angelos family money grab and its parity clause benefit to Steve Bisciotti is the same in every city for American sports franchise owners. Socialize the debt; privatize the profit.
Comparing Jacksonville and Baltimore as NFL franchises and cities three decades after expansion and the Tagliabue museum
Dennis Koulatsos joins Nestor to discuss emerging Ravens defense and sudden woes on offense
Nestor Aparicio tells Dennis Koulatsos about his aborted Jacksonville trip to cover the Ravens and Jaguars as a media professional and what is wrong about how franchises treat their communities. This one is spicy.
Dennis Koulatsos joins Nestor to discuss the emerging, old-school Ravens defense and sudden woes on offense as Lamar Jackson battles a hip injury.
The news reports came fast and furious on the Monday before the Super Bowl. Just a day into the biggest week of my life, and the reporters couldn’t wait to track me down with the latest news. One of the Ravens’ team buses, leaving a downtown pep rally for BWI Airport and a charter flight to Tampa, had been involved in an accident, hitting a police cruiser.
The minute Tony Siragusa landed on Rich Gannon, it was all over for the Oakland Raiders in the AFC Championship Game. Let @NestorAparicio take you back to The Black Hole and experience the day the Ravens went to their first Super Bowl.
The loss of John Steadman. The epic appearance at The Barn with Trent Dilfer. And the win over the Denver Broncos that took the upstart Baltimore Ravens to Nashville seeking revenge.
“Next time we play the Tennessee Titans, we’ll kick their ass.” Sam Adams at The Barn in Oct. 2000 to @NestorAparicio during Ravens Super Bowl XXXV run. And then January happened! Remember the Titans? We do… #RavensFlock
Two things were pretty obvious to everyone who watched the 2000 Baltimore Ravens during the first half of the season. When they passed the ball, they made mistakes and were ineffective. But each time they tried to run the football with any consistency, they succeeded.
The Ravens came to Miami on Sept. 17, 2000, for the first time in their five-year existence and the fans from Baltimore were out in force. It was the first time a Baltimore football franchise had played in South Florida since Dan Marino’s rookie season. A lot had changed from that day in 1983.
It has been said that you need to crawl before you can walk. For the 2000 Baltimore Ravens, much of that crawling was done during the end of the 1999 season. Before Shannon Sharpe came to play. While Trent Dilfer was still sitting on the bench in Tampa Bay, waiting for redemption. While Jamal Lewis and Travis Taylor were still attending college classes and hoping to become first-round draft picks in the NFL.
While the 2000 Baltimore Ravens will always receive credit from fans and foes alike for being the team that allowed the fewest points in NFL history – and punctuated that task with a defensive unit shutout in Super Bowl XXXV – only four men can properly put into perspective the pain, the growth and the joy of a group that ultimately captured greatness.
From Ozzie Newsome and Phil Savage, the Ravens dominance began on their first draft day in 1996. Nestor takes you inside that inaugural War Room that netted Jonathan Ogden and Ray Lewis.
Purple Reign, Chapter 5: “Canton Comes to Baltimore” Nestor recounts what an outpost franchise the Ravens were when Rod Woodson and Shannon Sharpe showed up in Owings Mills
Purple Reign, Chapter 1: “The Boss Arrives” “Hi, Coach Billick? My name is Nestor Aparicio. I own the all-sports radio station in Baltimore and I’m about to become your new best friend.”
Purple Reign, Chapter 2: “A Silver Trophy But Not a Silver Spoon” The legacy of Art and David Modell and how they came to Baltimore from Cleveland and built a Super Bowl XXXV championship operation
Purple Reign, Chapter 4: “Slapdicks, Quarterbacks, and Pranks”. Nestor chronicles the room of Dilfer, Banks and Redman and the Super Bowl XXXV champs that went a month without a TD
Purple Reign, Chapter 3: “The Original Birds and the Mean Machine” Nestor chronicles the very beginning and April 1996 draft with a new name, no colors and no logo – but two future Hall of Famers coming to Baltimore.
To honor the Super Bowl XXXV champions and the upcoming ESPN 30-For-30 on the Baltimore Ravens title, Nestor Aparicio is re-releasing the original “Purple Reign: Diary of a Raven Maniac” here. This is the prologue.
A three-part holiday series evaluating the ghosts of professional football past, present and future for Baltimore by veteran local sports journalist and WNST.net & AM 1570 founder Nestor Aparicio
