Orioles move to FM in Baltimore

[John-Summers]

The Orioles announced late this afternoon that they've struck a deal with CBS Radio to move the O's broadcasts to 105.7 WHFS from long-time flagship WBAL. 'HFS is not receiveable in York County, and airs an odd combination of guy-talk during the day and Alternative rock at night. Do the O's have a York affiliate (can't find an affiliate list on their web site) or did WOYK take a pass?

Yes, I know WHVR carries the O's but they can't be heard in York at night.

 

[real_radioguy]

According to the York Daily Record today, there is no current affiliate station in York.

 

[yocco]

Hard to imagine that will still be the case when the season arrives. But the cost of baseball rights today are sky high and trying to sell a misreable team on the field even in a hotbed for O's baseball like York is probably getting more and more difficult.

 

[Blues Man]

No surprise on the Orioles going to another station. The relationship with WBAL was tenuous at best. Frankly, the station wasn't sure for about the last year if it would renew the rights with the club, because the team was not putting a winner on the field.

Additonally, my sources tell me the O's wanted more for rights fees in the upcoming '07 season. This is not justified since the club hasn't been in the playoffs since 1997.

The Orioles need a major shakeup starting with the front office, including ownership. More stations could follow suit unless something is done to rectifiy the problem.

 

[Blues Man]

According to the York Daily Record today, there is no current affiliate station in York.

My sources tell me the Orioles were talking with two stations in the York area and trying to "workout the figures," meaning trying to make it financially feasible for all concerned. By the way...the O's wanted more money from WSBA for rights fees for the '07 season. This comes from a team that hasn't made the playoffs since 1997.

 

[Blues Man]

The Orioles and AM 1350 WOYK have agreed to a contract that will keep in O's in York and on this station for several years. The word came recently in a news conference between the Baltimore Orioles and station personnel. ???

 

[John-Summers]

The Orioles and AM 1350 WOYK have agreed to a contract that will keep in O's in York and on this station for several years. The word came recently in a news conference between the Baltimore Orioles and station personnel. ???

Yes, saw it in the York Dispatch today. One statement in the article struck me as odd: "The Orioles were on WOYK 1350 from 1954 to 1987." From where did they pull out that piece of fiction? WORK, WOYK's predecessor, never carried the O's to the best of my knowledge. They always carried the Phils and did so for two decades in the 50s and 60s. No baseball was carried for the Top 40 years of WZIX in the 70s until we picked up a limited O's schedule, weekend games only, in 1979. I should know; I was the PD. WZIX , then WOYK carried the O's until WSBA took them away in 1988. And that's the story. Newspaper writers never know anything about broadcasting history, and are prone to making mistakes like that.

So it's probably a good deal for all concerned. Now if the Orioles can only start winning some games...

 

[Alan Criswell]

No baseball was carried for the Top 40 years of WZIX in the 70s until we picked up a limited O's schedule, weekend games only, in 1979. I should know; I was the PD.

John, can you check your stash to see if you have any red "Z," WZIX stickers?

 

[John-Summers]

No baseball was carried for the Top 40 years of WZIX in the 70s until we picked up a limited O's schedule, weekend games only, in 1979. I should know; I was the PD.

John, can you check your stash to see if you have any red "Z," WZIX stickers?

Hi Alan! Sorry it took me a while to answer you. I dug out the big box o' memorabilia and searched through it and unfortunately came up empty on the ZIX bumper sticker. I must have one somewhere, but where? I do have some materials with the big red Z logo, and scanned it thinking I could post it as an attachment, but there doesn't seem to be a way to do that. Occasionally I'll come across some ZIX promo items. I was looking through my toolbox recently and was surprised to find a WZIX pen at the bottom! I also have a few, not many, of our Top 30 music surveys we published weekly for a few years. Wish I had more of those.

Nice to know your name, by the way. I'd like to see a trend of people on this board using names instead of what a friend of mine recently called "CB handles."

 

[Alan Criswell]

John, can you check your stash to see if you have any red "Z," WZIX stickers?

Hi Alan! Sorry it took me a while to answer you.

Same here. Been messin' around in "space."

I dug out the big box o' memorabilia and searched through it and unfortunately came up empty on the ZIX bumper sticker. I must have one somewhere, but where?

There may be one on a chrome bumper, in a savage yard, somewhere around York.

I do have some materials with the big red Z logo, and scanned it thinking I could post it as an attachment, but there doesn't seem to be a way to do that.

I'll send you a personal message...

Nice to know your name, by the way.

I figured most of the regulars knew.

I'd like to see a trend of people on this board using names instead of what
a friend of mine recently called "CB handles."

I believe nyms/handles/usernames began on the UseNet (circa 1981), which is a
wonderful, ancient branch of the Internet tree.

 

[tube man]

From where did they pull out that piece of fiction? WORK, WOYK's predecessor, never carried the O's to the best of my knowledge. They always carried the Phils and did so for two decades in the 50s and 60s.

Setting the record straight, WORK DID, in fact, carry the Orioles as a primary, from the Bird's debut in Baltimore in 1954 until the fall of 1974, when, as WZIX, figured baseball wouldn't be a good fit as the station was giving up their middle of the road automation to go live top 40 in the spring of 1975. From 1975 to 1978, there was no baseball of any type in York at all. Then, as John stated, WZIX carried a limited schedule in 1979. In the 1980 season, it went full schedule and remained on the station through the 1987 season. In 1988, it went to WSBA, after a bidding war on the rights fees, when Susquehanna pulled out all the stops, as they wanted it so bad because WOYK was only about a point behind them in that year's ratings book and solidly beat WSBA at night when the O's were on. WSBA felt they HAD to have the O's. WORK did carry Phillies games as a secondary, when they the O's were not on. WORK was the ONLY Steinman station not to carry the Phillies fulltime. I CLEARLY remember the 1966 and 1969 World Series and hearing the games on WORK. Prior to 1954, WORK carried the Phills fulltime, probably going back to the earliest days of the Phill's radio network.

 

[John-Summers]

From where did they pull out that piece of fiction? WORK, WOYK's predecessor, never carried the O's to the best of my knowledge. They always carried the Phils and did so for two decades in the 50s and 60s.

Setting the record straight, WORK DID, in fact, carry the Orioles as a primary, from the Bird's debut in Baltimore in 1954 until the fall of 1974, when, as WZIX, figured baseball wouldn't be a good fit as the station was giving up their middle of the road automation to go live top 40 in the spring of 1975. From 1975 to 1978, there was no baseball of any type in York at all. Then, as John stated, WZIX carried a limited schedule in 1979. In the 1980 season, it went full schedule and remained on the station through the 1987 season. In 1988, it went to WSBA, after a bidding war on the rights fees, when Susquehanna pulled out all the stops, as they wanted it so bad because WOYK was only about a point behind them in that year's ratings book and solidly beat WSBA at night when the O's were on. WSBA felt they HAD to have the O's. WORK did carry Phillies games as a secondary, when they the O's were not on. WORK was the ONLY Steinman station not to carry the Phillies fulltime. I CLEARLY remember the 1966 and 1969 World Series and hearing the games on WORK. Prior to 1954, WORK carried the Phills fulltime, probably going back to the earliest days of the Phill's radio network.

Tube Man: Thanks for the clarification. I did say “to the best of my knowledge,” based on actually hearing the Phils on WORK, and seeing newspaper ads and radio schedules from the time period. The O’s would have always made more sense for WORK, and I assumed it was a Steinman thing for all of their stations to carry the Phils. If WORK was able to carry both, they really had the best of both worlds and must have really made some serious money on those games!

George Trout, former WORK/WZIX GM, is a great story-teller and related this one to us. One season in the early 60s, the Phils looked like they had the pennant wrapped up, way out ahead of everyone else. WORK did a contest based on people guessing on what date the Phils would clinch. George voiced a promo that said “We all know the Phillies are going to win the pennant. The question is when?” The Phils proceeded to go on a losing streak and blow their lead. George said that for years afterwards, he would be walking down the street and someone would roll their car window down as they were driving by and shout at him “We all know the Phillies are going to win the pennant. The question is when?”

Both the Orioles and the Phillies courted WSBA in the 70s, but Susquehanna had no interest. I was told that the reason was that WSBA was successfully selling the 18-minute-an-hour-legal spot load at least 19 hours a day at premium rates and would actually have lost money by giving up air time for baseball. Of course, times and attitude changed in the 80s. I was working there when they started running the O’s, and typical of WSBA, once they committed to the O’s they really made the Orioles and WSBA synonymous, to the benefit of the ball club and the station.

You must be a native Yorker. Have any stories you can share with the rest of us?

 

[Blues Man]

The year of which you speak was 1964. As a teenager I remember it well. The Phillies that year had great names such as Bobby Wine, Johnny Callison, Clay Dalrymple, Jim Bunning, Dallas Green, Cookie Rojas and more! In early July of that season the Phils had a three-game lead in the National League but finished the month 8-14.

However, the storm wasn't over. Down the stretch drive the Phillies were swept by the Reds, Milwaukee (Braves), and the St. Louis Cardinals. That losing streak amounted to 10 games and cost the Phils the pennant. The St. Louis Cardinals would go on to beat the Yankees in seven games in the World Series. It was also the last big push for a Yankees team, which featured names like Mantle, Berra, Maris and Ford. The announcers in the World Series: Curt Gowdy and Harry Caray.

Now you know the rest of the story.

The Blues Man