Despite featuring Red Sox/Yankees in most markets, the regular season finale of MLB on FOX struggled in the ratings last week.
Regional Major League Baseball action featuring Red Sox/Yankees in 87% of TV markets earned a 1.5 final rating and 2.174 million viewers on FOX last Saturday, down 32% in ratings and 36% in viewership from the final FOX telecast last year (NYY/BOS*: 2.2, 3.385M), but up 25% in both measures compared to 2009 (KC/MIN*: 1.2, 1.741M).
The 1.5 rating is the lowest for a Red Sox/Yankees telecast on FOX over the past ten Major League seasons. The previous low was a 1.6 for Red Sox/Yankees last September.
FOX suffered through a rough end to the regular season, as the network’s final six MLB telecasts drew ratings of 1.5 or lower. Two telecasts sank to a mere 1.1 rating. Of those final six telecasts, five were down from last year.
Of the 26 MLB telecasts on FOX this season, sixteen had declines in ratings and fifteen had declines in viewership. Nineteen telecasts drew less than a 2.0 rating, compared to eighteen such telecasts last year.
Overall, FOX averaged a 1.8 final rating and 2.7 million viewers for Major League Baseball coverage this season, according to Sports Business Daily. The 1.8 ties both last year and 2009 as the lowest ever for Major League Baseball on broadcast television.
Additional details on the full MLB on FOX season are available here (including game-by-game ratings).
(Nielsen; additional information from Sports Business Daily)
