A Sad Farewell to Chris Rose From 'Intentional Talk'
Published Dec. 24 2020, 11:41 a.m. ET
When Major League Baseball (MLB) announced they were creating a talk show to make baseball more accessible to potential fans, the show became the first of its kind, and a huge success to boot. Now, founding member and co-host of Intentional Talk Chris Rose is leaving unexpectedly, and fans want to know why.
Chris Rose's long career in sports has left big shoes to fill.
Chris first rose to prominence in the sports community as host of the Fox Sports Net show, The Best D--n Sports Show Period. In 2007, he became a play-by-play commentator for Fox's coverage of the NFL, and presented World Series trophies for the MLB from 2009-2011. Chris has also hosted The Cheap Seats for Fox, as well as reporting for MLB on Fox.
His most prominent career moments, however, have stemmed from his transfer to the MLB Network, where he began hosting Intentional Talk with Kevin Millar in 2011. The show became one of the most popular shows on the network, and was aimed at providing accessible humor and conversation to all sports fans, even those just getting into baseball.
With all the success of Intentional Talk, why is Chris Rose leaving? The answer is tied to a very common happenstance as a result of the coronavirus pandemic: due to network cutbacks, Chris's contract is not being renewed. According to an interview with Radio.com, Chris says, "Unfortunately, COVID has really sunk its teeth into a lot of businesses and baseball is not immune... I’m not angry at MLB Network. I’m sad that I will not be able to do this show anymore. It crushes my heart."
Where is Chris headed now that he's finished with 'Intentional Talk'?
Great news, sports fans! You haven't seen the last of Chris Rose. While his last episode of Intentional Talk aired Dec. 23, 2020, he's still involved in a multitude of sports-related media. Currently, he is the commentator on an ABC show known as BattleBots, which has just moved to the Discovery Channel. This show combines creativity and strategy with, you guessed it, fighting robots.
Additionally, Chris is still involved with the National Football League (NFL) as a studio host for a flood of programming, including: NFL GameDay Highlights, NFL GameDay Final, as well as the postgame edition of NFL Total Access following the network's Thursday Night Football coverage. Talk about a loaded schedule! It doesn't seem like Chris is slowing down anytime soon.
According to his Instagram, Chris is also a dedicated father, and it seems like he's taking this opportunity to continue to spend time with his sons, who are also huge sports fans. He even recently posted about his 'daughter,' a rescue Shih Tzu named Sydney, for her birthday.
Ultimately, while Chris' presence on Intentional Talk will be missed, it sounds like he's not short on options in the future. Maybe the NFL will offer a contract with their own version of Intentional Talk? One thing is for sure: Chris will continue to shine in his role as a sports announcer no matter which organization he's with. Fans are wishing him all the best with his future endeavors.
