In N.Y., Bob Raissman writes if FS1 wants to become the "network of buzz," it "might want to consider giving" former MLBer Pete Rose his own show. Rose "is opinionated," and "has a nefarious side." Those attributes "are a pretty good combination." For now Rose is "scheduled to be back on Fox" for its coverage of the MLB All-Star Game on July 12, and the net is "attempting to get Rose to work in the studio for a few weeks of regular season games leading into the postseason." It appears when Fox execs "look at Rose, they see him in a strict baseball role, not in a chair debating sports' latest issues and controversies" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 6/17).
NO ROOTING INTEREST: In St. Louis, Dan Caesar notes after the local market averaged a 15.1 local rating for the Sharks-Blues NHL Western Conference Finals, the market averaged just a 3.6 rating for the six-game Penguins-Sharks Stanley Cup Final. Nonetheless, St. Louis "tied for eighth in ratings for the series among the nation’s major markets" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 6/17).
FIRST TIME LONG TIME: In Houston, David Barron noted local sports radio ratings "showed a slight uptick during May but still remain down from a year ago." All four sports stations are down, "most of them by considerable margins." Some of the slump "may be that politics is more interesting this year than sports" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 6/16).
