I always find other things to run on the devices I deploy for these simple functions.and would agree a pi is over kill for just turning on the TV. However, the ESP devices are cheap and as mentioned above it would be a great option for building a small cheap IR blaster. If you haven’t looked at the ESP route it would be worth the effort.
You realize that you can use the same ESP to read the remotes codes.
Most remotes have a few buttons that only work in certain situations, so these buttons can work as scene selections or whatever you want.
Or you could use it to read the on/off state of the TV or any other equipment, or drive a LED(s).