awfulannouncing
The final episode of 'Intentional Talk' will not be the final episode after all. According to The Athletic's Andrew Marchand, Major League Baseball has scrapped its plan to cancel the long-running MLB Network studio show.
Commissioner Rob Manfred, top lieutenant Noah Garden, and other league executives changed their minds after an outpouring of support from fans and players who lobbied aggressively to keep the program alive, The Athletic reported.
Wednesday afternoon had been scheduled as the show's send-off. Instead, hosts Kevin Millar, Ryan Dempster, and Siera Santos are expected to discuss the reversal during their regular 3 p.m. ET window on MLB Network.
The farewell had been on the calendar since Oct. 19, when MLB Network announced that 'Intentional Talk' would remain on the air through the World Series before signing off for good on Nov. 4. Millar, Dempster, and Santos opened that afternoon's broadcast by addressing the announcement, and Millar, the only remaining original cast member from the show's 2011 debut, admitted he had learned of the decision just days earlier and was still grappling with it.
"I got a call a few days ago. I'm still processing. I've cried. I've taken walks. I don't know how to handle it yet. I don't know what the future is going to hold," Millar said at the time.
Millar spent much of his monologue honoring the producers and staff behind the program, reserving his warmest words for original co-host Chris Rose, while Santos and Dempster fought to maintain their composure beside him. Dempster compared the trio to a family that communicates daily through a group text, and MLB Network's statement that afternoon called the show one of the network's institutions while thanking its three hosts for their four years together.
"Intentional Talk has been an MLB Network institution for 16 seasons, showcasing baseball's great personalities and laugh-out-loud moments to generations of fans. From The Best Interview in Baseball, to Got Heeeem, we thank every person who has contributed to the show's fantastic run, especially the real 1-5 and 04 champ Kevin Millar, who has been part of IT since day one. We share our gratitude to Siera Santos, Ryan Dempster and Kevin for the last four years and look forward to the trio and fans celebrating the show's significant success and impact on the game during the World Series and a final show on Wednesday, November 4th."
'Intentional Talk' launched in 2011 by pairing Rose, a studio veteran of 'The Best Damn Sports Show,' with Millar, who was then only a few years removed from his playing career. Millar later admitted he expected both of them to be fired within three months. Instead, their irreverent, unscripted chemistry turned a sleepy weekday slot into one of sports television's more endearing cult favorites, and the show survived several cast changes along the way.
Rose departed after a decade when MLB Network declined to renew his contract amid pandemic budget cuts following the 2020 season, and his successor, Stephen Nelson, left in 2023 when the Dodgers hired him as a broadcaster. Santos and Dempster, a fellow Red Sox champion, joined Millar for the show's most recent four-year stretch.
Key Analysis
Restoring the show solves one problem for the league office, but it does little for the larger one looming over the sport. As The New York Times-owned outlet noted, owners and players are barreling toward a potential lockout at the end of the month, a scenario Ken Rosenthal rated as quite high back in March. Manfred, for his part, pushed back against what he called a rush to negativity in media coverage of the labor talks in January, insisting his goal was a full 162-game schedule next year.
Fulfilling that pledge will demand more than the two weeks it took MLB to reverse course on 'Intentional Talk,' and whether owners and players can strike a deal before the month expires will dictate whether Millar, Dempster, and Santos return to a 162-game season or a sport idled by a lockout.
Originally reported by awfulannouncing.