Television industry and baseball sources say Valentine, completing his final season as manager of the Chiba Lotte Marines of Japan's Pacific League, is on the verge of signing a lucrative multi-year deal with ESPN.

Valentine, no doubt carrying his bag of disguises, will likely make his debut at the network working in its "Baseball Tonight" studio during next month's playoffs.

"It's a done deal," one source said. "And it should be announced soon."

This would mark Valentine's second tour of duty in Bristol. In 2003, he replaced Buck Showalter in ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" studio.

Valentine, who took over the Mets during the 1996 season and managed them through 2002, also once worked as an analyst on NBC's Saturday afternoon "Game of the Week."

Valentine, who pulled no punches in front of the camera, has already proven he has TV chops (sources said "The Baseball Network" also showed interest in him), but still wants to manage.

If he comes to ESPN, it may be under circumstances similar to those in 2003. That's when ESPN put a "protection" clause in Bobby V.'s contact.

Back then, ESPN suits set a precedent for hiring a manager-in-waiting. As part of the three-year offer negotiated with Valentine, network executives insisted that Valentine pay a monetary penalty if he bolted for a manager's job.

Valentine, 59, stayed at ESPN for one season before heading to Japan.

He managed the Marines (this was his second stint with the club) for six seasons, guiding them to a championship in 2005, their first title since 1974.

Ownership said it could not afford to re-sign him at the end of this season, which sparked fan protests and a petition signed by 120,000 loyalists who wanted to the Marines to keep Valentine as manager.

Valentine has one other ESPN connection.

In 2008, he was featured in an ESPN documentary titled "The Zen of Bobby V."