Bumped to ESPN2 for U.S. Open tennis, Sunday Night Baseball plunged to a season-low. In other news, TBS also hit a season-low for MLB coverage over the weekend, and NASCAR’s Xfinity Series hit a season-low on NBCSN.
Moved From ESPN to ESPN2, Sunday Night Baseball Hits Low
- The Royals/Orioles Sunday Night Baseball game, which was pushed from ESPN to ESPN2 to accommodate the delayed U.S. Open men’s final, drew just 442,000 viewers — down 61% from Reds/Cardinals last year (1.1M), down 57% from Cardinals/Brewers in 2013 (1.0M), and easily the smallest audience for a Sunday night game this season. The Orioles’ win trailed the tennis match by a whopping 613% (3.2M). In other action, a special Tuesday night Astros/Rangers game drew 653,000. (via ShowBuzz Daily [1], [2])
TBS Hits MLB Low, But Season Up Big
- Sunday’s Blue Jays/Yankees Major League Baseball game drew 207,000 viewers on TBS, the network’s smallest audience of the season (10 telecasts). Despite the season-low, TBS’ MLB viewership is trending 40% ahead of last season according to Turner Sports (the actual figures were not disclosed in a Tuesday press release). In other weekend action, FS1 drew 121,000 for rainout coverage of Tigers/Indians Saturday night. (Turner Sports, TV Media Insights, Sports TV Ratings)
NASCAR Hits Yet Another Season-Low For Xfinity Series
- NASCAR Xfinity Series racing from Richmond drew 933,000 viewers on NBCSN Friday night, down 29% from last year on ESPN2 (1.3M) and down 49% from 2013 on ESPN (1.8M). The race ranks as the least-watched of the season on any network, falling below the previous mark of 993,000 for racing from Elkhart Lake (WI) in late August. (via Sports TV Ratings)
