San Francisco Giants go to bat for Showtime with 'The Franchise'

Showtime will play ball with the world champion San Francisco Giants when it launches "The Franchise: A Season With the San Francisco Giants" on July 13. The documentary series, which follows the behind-the bat drama of the Bay Area team, will debut with a one-hour installment at 10 p.m., and will be followed by seven half-hour installments through Aug. 31.

The second season of "The Green Room With Paul Provenza" will return July 14. The series showcases the comedian talking with other comedians before a studio audience. Panelists include Ray Romano, Gary Shandling, Margaret Cho, Richard Lewis and Lewis Black.

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-- Greg Braxton

Photo: San Francisco Giants Aubrey Huff. The Giants are the subject of Showtime's "The Franchise." Credit: Chris Humphreys / US Presswire