Yankees, Red Sox, Give FOX Rare 2.0 Rating

by Jon Lewis

13 years ago

Idle Notes: NBC Sports Network to Be Renamed NBCSN (Also: Sharks, “Bristolmetrics”)

Jon Lewis

Jon Lewis has been covering the sports media industry on a daily basis since 2006 as the founder and main writer of Sports Media Watch. You can contact him here or on the social media websites X (Twitter) or Bluesky.

Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale (51) delivers against Cleveland Guardians' Chase DeLauter (24) in the first inning of a baseball game, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Solid audience for NBC’s Sunday Night Baseball debut

by Jon Lewis

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"Sunday Night Baseball" was not exactly a home run in its NBC debut, but whether on the diamond or...

Anthony Rizzo, Albert Pujols, Barry Bonds, CC Sabathia and Elle Duncan at MLB Opening Night Game: Yankees vs. Giants, Live on Netflix, Oracle Park, San Francisco, March 25, 2026. Photo by Deborah Coleman / Netflix

Netflix MLB opener just shy of three million mark

by Jon Lewis

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The debut of Major League Baseball on Netflix set an MLB Opening Night viewership mark, albeit one that lasted...

Mar 26, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; NBC Sports broadcaster Bob Costas (right) interviews Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Kyle Tucker (23) after the game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

MLB’s return to NBC hits Opening Day high

by Jon Lewis

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The new era of Major League Baseball on NBC began on strong note.

Nov 5, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers player Teoscar Hernandez, majority owner Mark Walter, minority owner Magic Johnson, Tyler Glasnow, Will Smith, Blake Snell, Mookie Betts, Alex Call and Evan Phillips pose for a photo during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The Needle: NBA vs. MLB Tale of the Tape, Part III

by Jon Lewis

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A deep dive into how the NBA and Major League Baseball compare as television draws, in the wake of...

Comments 4

ZabriskiePt says:

13 years ago

Do you know how many viewers watched Yankees/Red Sox?
Thanks for the numbers and for the great job!
- Paulsen says:
  
  13 years ago
  
  I don’t have the viewership yet for that telecast.
louis tenore says:

13 years ago

2.0 please thats nothing compared to when millions watched baseball on saturdays and futher more when fox frist started i think it had at least a 4 raiting and in somecases i think a 5 and that was daytime
- ZabriskiePt says:
  
  13 years ago
  
  Times have changed. Television has changed a lot with more and more choices available and an uncountable number of broadcast and cable channels.
  And sports on TV have changed a lot, too. Nowadays local RSNs have a bigger and bigger role and lead to huge contracts worth million of Dollars. And if Baseball had somewhat of a decline on national TV in recent years, though remaining a competitive draw in the actual landscape, it’s still king in many local markets, winning primetime in a lot of big cities, sometimes more times each week, and producing astonishing numbers (e.g.: almost 700,000 viewers watched a Regular Season Game on KCAL in LA recently; a Pirates RS game drew a 16.3 rating in Pittsburgh these days; etc…), proving it’s still popular and in great shape.
  Only big Games produce big numbers on national TV and that’s what a sport with a 162-game schedule is supposed to do, even by TV executives.