We know the Giants' TV ratings are down this year from what I've heard.Not just this year, either. Giants' TV ratings have been in a declining trend for a few years now. That was one of the reasons the Yomiuri TV network stopped broadcasting night games from their 6PM start time a few years back. Maybe I'm biased as an avid watcher of TV baseball coverage, but if you're not going to show the whole game from "Play ball" to the final out, don't bother showing it at all.
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Michael Westbay
(aka westbaystars)
Founder
Hoshino is just leaving the country for a television spot with Hideki Matsui (Yankees), as well as to take in some Independent League games, so he was unavailable for comment when this story broke. He will be returning to Japan in time for the Giants-Tigers match-up on August 26th at Koshien.
It was my impression that when Hoshino retired as manager for the Tigers, taking on the Special Director position, it was due to the fact that managing was detrimental to his health. And with the things that Hoshino has said in the past about Watanabe-kaicho, I just don't see this happening. There has got to be another reason for this press release - like maybe to spark interest in the Giants?
Then again, I didn't think that Nomura-kantoku would take a managerial job elsewhere as soon as he did, so my record on predicting managerial hirings isn't necessarily that good.