Well, you watched Red Sox-Yankees on Sunday, but more of you watched the NFL Hall of Fame Game on NBC. But this is about ESPN which says it got a record viewership number for Sunday’s Red Sox-Yankees game.
Sunday Night Baseball’s Red Sox/Yankees Most-Viewed ESPN MLB Game Since 2007ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball telecast featuring the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees (August 9) delivered an average of 4,698,000 viewers (P2+) and 3,427,000 households to become the most-viewed MLB game on the network since June 3, 2007 (Yankees/Red Sox – 5,304,000 viewers, 3,985,000 households, based on a 4.2 rating). The corresponding 3.5 rating was the highest since the Yankees and Red Sox equaled the number September 16, 2007. ESPN’s telecast was the most viewed of the four-game series, outperforming the closest telecast by 19 percent among viewers, and the most-viewed MLB regular season game to date in 2009 (cable or broadcast).The Yankees defeated the Red Sox 5-2 to complete a four-game sweep at Yankee Stadium. The telecast generated a 12.3 metered market rating in Boston and a 10.3 in New York.
ESPN’s upcoming Sunday Night Baseball schedule (both games at 8 p.m. ET):
- N.L. East-leading Philadelphia Phillies visiting the Atlanta Braves August 16;
- Red Sox hosting the Yankees August 23.
Sunday Night Baseball games are called by Jon Miller with analysts Joe Morgan and Steve Phillips. The games are available via ESPN HD, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN360.com and ESPN Mobile TV.
John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal tweeted that NBC’s ratings for the Hall of Fame Game were 68% higher than ESPN’s. Of course, NBC is in more homes than ESPN, but the numbers for Sunday Night Baseball were higher than normal.
