Despite hefty competition, the ‘Subway Series’ lifted ‘Baseball Night in America’ past last year’s comparable afternoon window.
Regional Major League Baseball action featuring Mets/Yankees in 48% of markets drew a 2.0 final rating on FOX last Saturday night, up 25% from afternoon action featuring Cubs/Cardinals in the comparable week last year (1.6), and up 18% from afternoon coverage featuring Phillies/Red Sox in 2010 (1.7).
The 2.0 is the third-lowest ever for a primetime Major League Baseball telecast on FOX (eleven telecasts), ahead of only a 1.9 for coverage on May 19 and a 1.7 for coverage on May 26.
This is the third straight year that the ‘Subway Series’ has aired on FOX in primetime. The previous two telecasts drew ratings of 2.8 (2011) and 2.7 (2010).
Keep in mind last week’s telecast aired opposite Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on NBC (2.0) and Game 7 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals on ESPN (7.7).
(Last week’s numbers from Sports Business Daily)
