"See The Birds" promotion shutdown

[crowmst3k!]

Oh, I have no doubt.

But it'd look good if they were to make a statement that they're not going to "play Nestor's game" and then give twice the amount WNST was trying to raise ($2000) to Nick's charity.

In 2007, during Ripken's honoring at OPACY, in one of his first moves as GM, Andy MacPhail went out on the field and cut a million dollar check to Ripken Baseball on the spot.

This meager $2000 is pocket change compared to the real amounts that the Orioles routinely give to charities all around Baltimore.

If people only remember this as "The Orioles snubbing Markakis charity out of 2000 bucks", then they're blind to the rest of philanthropy that the in which the Orioles routinely engage.

[BaltimoreTerp]

I don't know? Show an openness? Fill some of the empty 30+ thousand seats on Tuesday?

'Cause those 100 extra seats will make a difference?

[BaltimoreTerp]

But what if I want MY group to be able to buy $1 tickets? After you set up the rules of a promotion, you can't really decide to change those rules. Everybody who has bought a $1 seat (and paid whatever charges) would have a pretty good gripe.

I think the thing that bothers me the most about this particular bit of stupidity is that WNST attaches themselves to the charity....like that's what this is all about. If the station wanted to donate, they could just, ummm, do it. If they want to encourage their listeners to donate, even better. But they won't. Because this isn't about giving to charity. Not even a little bit.

Seriously, bringing a charity into their self-promotion is low.

[MurphDogg]

I don't know? Show an openness? Fill some of the empty 30+ thousand seats on Tuesday?

At some point though, isn't it insulting to your season ticket holders who paid full price for tickets to be surrounded by people who only paid a dollar per ticket? I am not sure that it is a sound business strategy to fill all the seats for a nominal cost while season ticket holders are paying $20 or more per ticket for the same seats.

[dslats715]

At some point though, isn't it insulting to your season ticket holders who paid full price for tickets to be surrounded by people who only paid a dollar per ticket? I am not sure that it is a sound business strategy to fill all the seats for a nominal cost while season ticket holders are paying $20 or more per ticket for the same seats.

I am a season ticket holder. And I would love to be surrounded by cardboard cutouts rather than empty seats or visiting teams fans.

[SilentJames]

Moreovere how this is bullcrap:

The Orioles can not waive ticketmaster's service charge:

this is wikipedia - but its a quick and dirty explanation:

* Service Charge

This is Ticketmaster's charge for the general service they provide and maintain. You will pay this charge no matter which way you buy the tickets through Ticketmaster (Phone, online or in person at a ticket center), although the amount of the charge may be different for different channels and different payment methods.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ticketmaster

Moreover, the Orioles do not have a deal with ticketmaster - MLB has a deal with ticketmaster. So the Orioles have no real control over the service charges levied on tickets.

So basically NST walked into the store and refused to pay the sales tax because it wasn't advertised in the flier. Even though the webiste clearly states that reduced fees apply.

[crowmst3k!]

At some point though, isn't it insulting to your season ticket holders who paid full price for tickets to be surrounded by people who only paid a dollar per ticket? I am not sure that it is a sound business strategy to fill all the seats for a nominal cost while season ticket holders are paying $20 or more per ticket for the same seats.

Exactly, that's why the promotion is limited to 500 people in the nosebleed section (not that OPACY really has a nosebleed section per se, but you get the idea).

It's more of a venture to get people who weren't interested before inside the park at the low upfront investment, not snub season holders.

[Miller192]

Seriously, bringing a charity into their self-promotion is low.

Yeah, the more I'm thinking about this the more angered I am with it.

I have donated tickets to underprivledged kids in Haford County for years. I couldn't imagine using them as some sort of weapon against the team no matter what my feelings for it were.

[crowmst3k!]

Yeah, the more I'm thinking about this the more angered I am with it.

I have donated tickets to underprivledged kids in Haford County for years. I couldn't imagine using them as some sort of weapon against the team no matter what my feelings for it were.

+1

letters

[tvz1997]

Somebody needs to throw some money at Haynie or steal back whatever incriminating pictures Nestor has of him. I can't imagine being as solid as he is yet still working with such jokers.

[section18]

It's only a matter of time before Brian Billick buys the other half of NST and owns it outright. Watch him bring in his own guys to cover the sports scene and give a balanced opinion. He is too classy to be associated with publicity stunts. I wonder if he is asked for an opinion before the station decides on activities like this one. If they would have left out the donation to the Markakis Fund it might not have been so bad. I heard them this morning discussing this Tuesday Night event on the radio and didn't initially have a problem with it. The more I heard Nick Markakis's name mentioned in this event the more I was bothered by it because Oriole players don't go on the air with any NST announcers. The next step would have been to try and get Nick on the radio to promote even more sales if they were able to get the Orioles to increase the 500 seats available at $1 per ticket. They would have been turned down for an interview and they would have continued to hack away at the team.

It's old, stale, boring, irritating and depressing hearing constant criticism of the team. I rarely listen to more than an hour each morning and feel better when I turn it off. It's really a shame because the station could be so much better without all of the negativity and know it all attitude that daily comes out of the radio.

Why do I listen to them? I keep hoping that one day it will all change for the better and I will wake up one morning and turn on the radio to upbeat and positive entertainment. Their product does not play well during tough economic times and nobody wants to go to work hearing people complaining about our baseball team. 105.7 has the Norris show in the morning which is enjoyable but no sports until news time and 10 AM. If they ever go to sports in the early morning NST will be toast. Billick I'm sure did not buy half of NST to be part owner forever. He probably has a deal to buy out you know who in another year or two. Come on Brian.....waive some money at you know who and maybe you can take over the station sooner than planned.

[RShack]

I'm pretty sure the $1 MASN ticket offer was never intended to be a group ticket offer. If people want to go, can't they buy their ticket and give a buck (or $50) to their favorite charity?

No, it's self-promotion in the name of charity...and that's crap.

Good job on being the first one to see through the BS story from WNST.

Just in time too. It looked like some were ready to jump on Nestor's Victim Bandwagon, but you pretty much nipped it in the bud...

[Jimbo81]

Why do I listen to them? I keep hoping that one day it will all change for the better and I will wake up one morning and turn on the radio to upbeat and positive entertainment. Their product does not play well during tough economic times and nobody wants to go to work hearing people complaining about our baseball team. 105.7 has the Norris show in the morning which is enjoyable but no sports until news time and 10 AM. If they ever go to sports in the early morning NST will be toast. Billick I'm sure did not buy half of NST to be part owner forever. He probably has a deal to buy out you know who in another year or two. Come on Brian.....waive some money at you know who and maybe you can take over the station sooner than planned.

Rob Long is on 1370am from 8am-12pm. I'm on the road from 8 to 8:30 and do not listen to drew or NST any more. I still listen to Bob sometimes though when I'm out to lunch.

[TonySoprano]

Nestor puts his foot into it here

After we had already elected to cancel the “See The Birds” event next week, WNST just received an official “cease and desist” letter from some attorney at MLB telling us that we’re not allowed to help the Orioles fill a few thousand of their 40,000 empty seats next Tuesday at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

On one side of his mouth he's complaining about the needy kids who don't get to go, but from the other side, they (as in WNST) decided to cancel *before* the legal eagles got involved.

[Wadesworld35]

This was posted earlier in the day by Drew Forrester

http://wnst.net/wordpress/drewforrester/2009/09/08/if-the-os-are-selling-tix-for-100-lets-buy-them-for-next-tuesday/

Per WNST, the O's have "refused" to sell the tickets to WNST, so the promotion has been shutdown.

Obviously, the O's FO isn't the biggest fan of WNST, since the "Free The Birds" promotion of a few seasons ago. But then again, this was purportedly going to charity.

Provided you believe that the O's have "refused" to sell the tickets to WNST (and this isn't just a publicity stunt by Nestor and the bunch), do you agree or disagree with their decision.

Thoughts!?

I was under the impression that the one dollar tickets were explicitly not to be sold in large groups. If WNST's idea violates the terms of the ticket deal, then how are the Orioles in any way wrong to deny them said tickets?

Am I misunderstanding the controversy here?