As expected, ESPN announced today that Bobby Valentine will be returning to the network as an analyst. In an e-mail from Japan, Valentine said he will make his debut next month, working the league championship series from the studio and on site at the World Series.
Valentine said he has a four-year contract, but there is an out clause if a major league team offers him a contract to manage.
“It is a deal I could not refuse,” Valentine said. “I really like the team there. It will be a lot of fun.”
The 59-year-old Stamford native previously worked at ESPN in 2003 as a studio analyst.
Valentine, who is due back in town sometime during the week before his ESPN debut, is completing his sixth season with the Chiba Lotte Marines of Japan’s Pacific League. In 2005 he led the team to the championship, its first since 1974.
Valentine is believed to still be interested in managing. He has had previous stints with the Rangers and Mets.
