After near-record numbers for Part 1, ESPN’s O.J. Simpson documentary was less of a draw in parts two and three. In other news, ESPN’s Major League Baseball coverage posted gains this week, and the MLB Draft had a modest decline from last year.
O.J. Doc Drops to 1.7 Million
- Parts 2 and 3 of the ESPN 30 For 30 documentary O.J.: Made in America had 1.7 million viewers Tuesday and Wednesday night, about half of what Part 1 earned on ABC Saturday night (3.4M). Neither episode ranks among ESPN’s ten most-watched 30 For 30 premieres. Even so, the telecasts won their respective night on cable in adults 18-49.
Week of Gains For MLB on ESPN
- Dodgers/Giants scored 1.7 million viewers on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball last weekend, up 14% from Reds/Cubs last year (1.5M) but down 6% from Red Sox/Tigers in 2014 (1.8M). It was the second half of a special Sunday doubleheader, with Cardinals/Pirates earning 992,000 earlier in the day. In other action, Cubs/Nationals drew 870,000 on Monday (+43%) and Orioles/Red Sox 417,000 on ESPN2 Wednesday (+64%).
MLB Draft Posts Modest Decline
- The first day of the Major League Baseball draft earned 279,000 viewers on MLB Network last Thursday, down 9% from last year (306K) but up 20% from 2014, when coverage aired opposite the NBA Finals (232K). The remaining days of the event were not televised. As one would expect, the MLB Draft was no match for its NFL counterpart, which averaged about 4.3 million over three days on ESPN and NFL Network. Nor was it close to last year’s NBA Draft, which had 3.7 million on ESPN alone. It did top last year’s NHL Draft on NBCSN (252K) and April’s WNBA Draft (254K).
(Numbers via ShowBuzz Daily [1], [2], [3], [4], Sports TV Ratings)
