The MLB League Championship Series got off to a decent start on FOX and TBS.
Game 1 of the Tigers/Red Sox American League Championship Series earned a 4.2 final rating and 6.8 million viewers on FOX Saturday night, up a tick in ratings and flat in viewership from Game 1 of the Cardinals/Giants NLCS on a Sunday night last year (4.1, 6.8M), and up 20% and 17%, respectively, from Game 1 of the Tigers/Rangers ALCS in 2011 (3.5, 5.8M).
Keep in mind that last year’s NLCS Game 1 had a direct lead-in from the NFL.
Saturday’s 4.2 rating is tied as the highest for an LCS opener on any network since Yankees/Rangers Game 1 on TBS in 2010 (5.0).
Speaking of TBS, Game 1 of the Dodgers/Cardinals National League Championship Series drew a 3.5 U.S. rating and 5.5 million viewers on Friday night — down 17% in ratings and 19% in viewership from Game 1 of the Tigers/Yankees ALCS on a Saturday night last year (4.2, 6.8M), but up 67% and 63%, respectively, from Game 1 of the Cardinals/Brewers NLCS on a Sunday afternoon in 2011 (2.1, 3.4M).
Game 2 on Saturday afternoon drew a 2.2 and 3.4 million, down 29% in ratings and 33% in viewership from Tigers/Yankees Game 2 on a Sunday afternoon last year (3.1, 5.0M), but up 16% and 13%, respectively, from Cardinals/Brewers Game 2 on a Monday night in ’11 (1.9, 3.0M).
Overall, the first two games of the Dodgers/Cardinals series averaged a 3.0 and 4.7 million viewers on TBS — down 21% in ratings and 23% in viewership from last year’s ALCS (3.8, 6.1M), but up 50% and 47%, respectively, from 2011 NLCS (2.0, 3.2M). The two-game average is the third-lowest for an LCS on TBS, but also the second-highest for an NLCS on the network.
(Friday/Saturday numbers from Turner Sports, Fox Sports)
