WNST Drew blogs about the Hangout

[gtown]

Then is it in their best interest to declare war on the Orioles?? Like I said, it is a disgrace the way both sides act. I have no doubt that Angelos has frozen them out. He is a small man in regards to dealing with people who disagree with him. (No doubt, look at the way he handled situations like John Miller, Davey Johnson, Brooksie etc.) All that said WNST has acted very poorly in covering, or not, the team. Nestor and Drew pontificate on the problems endlessly. They enjoy making fun of the team, players etc.

I listened to WNST on my drive home today. Rob Long and Ray Bachman were arguing with a caller who said the Orioles won't be exciting or young this year. Both were happy with the moves MacPhail has made. Even Drew has said he likes MacPhail's moves. At most times of the day during the week, the most likely station in town (I flip channels a lot) to be talking about the Orioles is WNST. WJFK is national most of the day and mostly football in the afternoon, except when Roch is on with Anita. Steve Davis does a nice job, but that's a small time window, and when Gerry Sandusky fills in, expect all Ravens all the time.

You brought up Miller, Johnson and Brooks--that says a lot. Anyone who has ever met Brooks Robinson knows how nice the guy is. Peter Angelos clearly has some talent if he can manage to alienate Brooks.

I love the fact that there are three stations (4 if you count WHFS) that talk sports in town. I hope they are all here to stay.

[Miller192]

Then is it in their best interest to declare war on the Orioles?? Like I said, it is a disgrace the way both sides act. I have no doubt that Angelos has frozen them out. He is a small man in regards to dealing with people who disagree with him. (No doubt, look at the way he handled situations like John Miller, Davey Johnson, Brooksie etc.) All that said WNST has acted very poorly in covering, or not, the team. Nestor and Drew pontificate on the problems endlessly. They enjoy making fun of the team, players etc.

That was my point with one of my original posts. I think they are more coming from the heart then they are about self promotion for that reason.

If they want to discredit the team then by all means they are doing it at their own risk. The Orioles certainly aren't going to welcome WNST if they think they are detrimental to their business.

I'm now a business owner, I would carry the same policy.

[Aloe]

I wasn't intending to implicate anything, however, its been noted that other representatives of WNST are given credentials ,etc and so forth. So do the Orioles have to work something out with the entire station really? Or with the several personalities they have red flagged as "undesirable," which yes, include Drew?

Why are they "undesirable"? Because they dare to be critical sometimes?

[BaltimoreTerp]

That was my point with one of my original posts. I think they are more coming from the heart then they are about self promotion for that reason.

If they want to discredit the team then by all means they are doing it at their own risk. The Orioles certainly aren't going to welcome WNST if they think they are detrimental to their business.

I'm now a business owner, I would carry the same policy.

But if they believe the fans are moved by anger towards the team, they would be using those feelings for their advantage (which has been my argument all along).

[The Wedge]

Why are they "undesirable"? Because they dare to be critical sometimes?

There's daring to be critical, and then there's appearing to exist solely to be a thorn in the side. You know what I mean? Perception is the key to understanding here, for whichever side of the fence you wish to side on.

[Miller192]

But if they believe the fans are moved by anger towards the team, they would be using those feelings for their advantage (which has been my argument all along).

I'm not sure what you mean by this exactly BTerp. Sure they may feel like they are speaking for most fans and do so because they are an outlet for the fan. It appears to me that most fans seems to share some of their resentment as they continue to stay away from the stadium. No, I don't think all of Baltimore hates the Orioles and they definately don't care about who is getting press credentials.

I'm just stating that I think it is more of a calculated move on their part because they are fed up with the team because they are fans themselves. I don't think it has much to do with self-promotion but I'm sure it does to some extent.

When I say this I am just speaking for Drew and Nestor. I heard Mark Unger yesterday say something to the effect that there's no Orioles bashing going on during my show.

[03tribegrad]

I sent Drew Forrester of WNST an email yesterday and told him that I thought he handled the O's Hangout controversy/issue very well and he sent something back to me which I'm including below. After I received his reply I contacted him again to ask his permission to post it here and he said "no problem" so here it is:

________________________________________________________________

Mark:

Thanks for the note.

As I wrote in my blog, I actually think O's Hangout is an outstanding web-site. These days, I use it quite often to gauge the temperature of the die-hard baseball fan in town. Also, given the unprofessional nature in which the team continues to treat me, I even occasionally refer to the Hangout for news about the team since none of those charlatans in the Communications department will ever help me (which, by the way, is their job).

I think most of the people who post on OH are probably decent people who enjoy their baseball but also understand that I have a job to do and included in that task is the unfortunate element of having to criticize the team when they deserve it. There are a handful over there who are just mean, hateful, people, but if they pay the yearly fee to belong, you can't turn them away just because they're miserable. Mean people have bank accounts too...lol

Anyway, thanks for the kind words. I'm glad you enjoy the show.

Regards,

DF

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Thought you all might want to see that.

P.S. Go get your toilet paper, milk and eggs. Weather service has just updated their forecast and they're saying we might get a foot of snow tonight.

[byrdz]

I sent Drew Forrester of WNST an email yesterday and told him that I thought he handled the O's Hangout controversy/issue very well and he sent something back to me which I'm including below. After I received his reply I contacted him again to ask his permission to post it here and he said "no problem" so here it is:

________________________________________________________________

Mark:

Thanks for the note.

As I wrote in my blog, I actually think O's Hangout is an outstanding web-site. These days, I use it quite often to gauge the temperature of the die-hard baseball fan in town. Also, given the unprofessional nature in which the team continues to treat me, I even occasionally refer to the Hangout for news about the team since none of those charlatans in the Communications department will ever help me (which, by the way, is their job).

I think most of the people who post on OH are probably decent people who enjoy their baseball but also understand that I have a job to do and included in that task is the unfortunate element of having to criticize the team when they deserve it. There are a handful over there who are just mean, hateful, people, but if they pay the yearly fee to belong, you can't turn them away just because they're miserable. Mean people have bank accounts too...lol

Anyway, thanks for the kind words. I'm glad you enjoy the show.

Regards,

DF

_______________________________________________________________

Thought you all might want to see that.

P.S. Go get your toilet paper, milk and eggs. Weather service has just updated their forecast and they're saying we might get a foot of snow tonight.

The overall temperament of this board has changed over the past year or so. "Mean" wouldn't be the word I would use...maybe harsh and sardonic at times. I can certainly take it but I can see someone new being thrown for a loop.

I kinda miss snow.

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[Oscar]

I don't get it. We have possibly the worst owner in professional sports who has ran a great franchise (ours) into the ground, but please don't be rough on him on the radio.

Spot on, sounds like you really know Trace.

[03tribegrad]

I like Drew's show. Actually I like all the shows at WNST. It's hard to hear them get on the O's sometimes but in all fairness the team has brought it all on themselves.

If they win, the jeers will turn to cheers.

We all know that.

[frankpembleton]

So, you want media that tows the line for PA? Like the Sun, WBAL, WMAR, WJZ, 1300, etc....?

I see nothing wrong with having someone in town being a pain in the ass to PA. WNST fills the role that the others don't.

If you think WNST is bad, then don't listen to sports talk in Philly, NY, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, etc....

I don't get it. We have possibly the worst owner in professional sports who has ran a great franchise (ours) into the ground, but please don't be rough on him on the radio.

This pretty much sums up my feelings. Here we have a completely locally owned and operated sports radio station dedicated to Baltimore sports discussion. The operation was built from the ground up and relies solely on local advertising and support. It's a small operation, sure, but is that any reason to bash them incessantly? They're the only media outlet in Baltimore that puts any pressure on the O's whatsoever.

On the other hand we have an owner who has torn down a once-great franchise that we all love and completely destroyed the connection between the Baltimore community and the team.

Why does the radio station receive so much vitriol? Don't we need somone out there to put pressure on this team to do the right things?

[jubbyjubb]

I like Rex Snider on Sunday and the guy who sits in with him knows his stuff.

[JoeBagadonuts]

If I have to read about the WNST pity party one more time I'm going to puke.

Un-bunch your panties and stop the whining already.

Like Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity, WNST has a very clear agenda. But unlike those hosts, the network has very few paying sponsors and even fewer listeners.

Perhaps it's because of the network's weak signal.

Perhaps it's because the owner is an anti-Semite and a bigot.

But even though WNST rips the Orioles 24-7, the team still provides them with a dozen media credentials, so that all those WNST reporters - Drew included - can attend every single Orioles home game for free.

How many O's fans would kill for the Orioles access that WNST already gets?

[66-70-83-??]

If I have to read about the WNST pity party one more time I'm going to puke.

Un-bunch your panties and stop the whining already.

Like Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity, WNST has a very clear agenda. But unlike those hosts, the network has very few paying sponsors and even fewer listeners.

Perhaps it's because of the network's weak signal.

Perhaps it's because the owner is an anti-Semite and a bigot.

But even though WNST rips the Orioles 24-7, the team still provides them with a dozen media credentials, so that all those WNST reporters - Drew included - can attend every single Orioles home game for free.

How many O's fans would kill for the Orioles access that WNST already gets?

Nestor is a anti-semite and a bigot ?

If you are going to go down that road, you better post some examples to back up your claims?

WNST rips the O's 24/7 ? Ever hear of Haynie, Long, Suchy, Nelson, etc...

Exaggerate much ?

Sounds like maybe you have an "agenda" too.

[Peace21]

I sometimes think people rip the station, just to seem cool, or they think they have a point. When they hardly know the situation that the station is in with the Orioles. People love listening to the station, but they dislike Nestor for personal reasons, so they take the O's side regardless of what the issue is.