Have you been up all night, frantically pacing around your room, unable to sleep because you are haunted by the fact that Rob Parker is without a regular nationally televised sports debate gig? If that’s you (and you actually do exist somewhere out there) then your prayers have finally been answered!

Parker has been hired by FS1, the network whose chief reason for existence right now is to give anyone who used to argue about sports on ESPN a brand new home.

Better yet, Parker will become a contributor to the First Take clone Skip and Shannon: Undisputed with former ESPN cohort Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe. Parker has shown up on FS1 in the past talking about baseball in recent months, but this brings him back home to the Embrace Debate 2.0 deathstar where he will feel right at home.

Here is the announcement from Fox Sports:

Longtime journalist Rob Parker joins FS1 as a contributor to SKIP AND SHANNON: UNDISPUTED, bringing decades of sports media experience and an inimitable perspective to America’s fastest-growing daily studio show.  The announcement was made today by Charlie Dixon, Executive Vice President of Content for FS1 and FS2.  

“Rob is a fearless and distinctive voice that is a seamless addition to the UNDISPUTED team,” Dixon said. “We are thrilled to have him join the show and look forward to the thought-provoking analysis we know he will bring to the roundtable.” 

[…]

Parker made the jump to national sports television as a contributor for ESPN in 2005. Having previously made regular appearances on ESPN’s “First Take,” Parker reunites with Skip Bayless on UNDISPUTED, and will also have three-time Super Bowl champion Shannon Sharpe and moderator Joy Taylor to contend with this time around.

If you will recall, the entire reason Parker no longer appears on ESPN airwaves is because his contract was not renewed after he controversially asked if Robert Griffin III was a “cornball brother” back at the beginning of 2013.

Parker is just the latest former ESPN personality who left Bristol, Connecticut under negative circumstances only to have the FS1 red carpet rolled out for them in Los Angeles. Jason Whitlock was hired by FS1 after his tenure leading The Undefeated at ESPN failed before launch. Colin Cowherd was hired by FS1 after his ESPN career ended early when he made ignorant comments about Dominicans. And now there’s Parker, who was quietly pushed aside after his comments about Griffin.

FS1 is over three years old and right now they are best known as the place for recycled, controversial ESPN personalities. That begs the question… how has FS1 not hired Curt Schilling yet? Heck, when do they go out and try to bring back Craig James? On second thought, that one didn’t work out so well.

[Fox Sports]

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