Sunday Night Baseball‘s season finale scored another increase in viewership. In other news, FS1 and TBS had mixed results for MLB over the weekend, and NBCSN had a rare decline for Formula 1 coverage.
Sunday Night Baseball Ends With Another Increase
- The Pirates/Cubs Sunday Night Baseball finale drew 1.5 million viewers on ESPN, up 33% from Reds/Cardinals last year (1.1M) and up 45% from Cardinals/Brewers in 2013 (1.0M). Excluding Royals/Orioles two weeks earlier, which was bumped to ESPN2 to accommodate U.S. Open coverage, the past six SNB telecasts have had a double or triple-digit increase in viewership. Pirates/Cardinals scored 778,000 the following night; there was no comparable game last year. (via ShowBuzz Daily [1], [2])
FS1 Sees Bump, TBS Hits Low, For Weekend MLB
- Saturday’s Brewers/Cardinals Major League Baseball game drew 381,000 viewers on Fox Sports 1, up 6% from Reds/Cardinals last year (358K). On Sunday, TBS scored 168,000 for Rangers/Astros — the network’s smallest audience of the season. (via Sports TV Ratings, TV Media Insights)
Rare Decline For F1 on NBCSN
- Formula 1 racing from Japan drew 221,000 viewers on NBCSN early Sunday morning, down 9% from last year (242K) but up 36% from 2013 (162K). The race was just the second of NBCSN’s ten F1 telecasts this season to decline, joining the Chinese Grand Prix in April (-30%). (via Sports TV Ratings)
