Record Audience for MLB Game on WatchESPN
ESPN’s American League Wild Card telecast presented by Hankook Tires– the Houston Astros defeated the New York Yankees 3-0 – delivered a 5.7 overnight rating, making it the highest-rated MLB Wild Card Game ever and the highest-rated MLB game on ESPN in 12 years, according to Nielsen. Additionally, it generated the largest audience for an MLB game ever on WatchESPN, setting records across metrics, including 445,000 unique viewers, an average minute audience of 127,000 viewers, and 25.7 million total minutes viewed across devices.
AL Wild Card on ESPN highlights:
- Up 50 percent from the 2014 AL Wild Card Game (Kansas City vs. Oakland, 3.8);
- Up 39 percent from last year’s NL Wild Card Game on ESPN (San Francisco vs. Pittsburgh, 4.1);
- Matched the highest-rated MLB game on ESPN in 12 years (Braves vs. Cubs, ALDS, 10/3/03);
- Peaked with a 6.4 rating from 10-10:15 p.m. ET;
- Generated a 14.8 rating in the Houston, making it the highest-rated MLB game ever on ESPN in the market. It drew a 12.0 rating in New York, making it the highest-rated MLB game on ESPN in the market since 2012.
AL Wild Card on WatchESPN highlights:
- The 445,000 unique viewers on WatchESPN was up 136 percent from last year’s NL Wild Card Game;
- Last night’s average minute audience – 127,000 – was up 161 percent from the 2014 NL Wild Card Game on WatchESPN;
- Last night’s 25.7 million minutes viewed for the AL Wild Card Game was up 159 percent from the NL Wild Card Game on WatchESPN last year.
Additional ESPN coverage notes:
- Jessica Mendoza made history during ESPN’s AL Wild Card telecast by becoming the first female analyst for a nationally televised MLB playoff game. After the game, her scorecard was collected for inclusion to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. She called the game alongside Dan Shulman, John Kruk and Buster Olney with Tampa Bay Rays star Chris Archer
- ESPN Radio is documenting every pitch of the 2015 MLB Postseason, which continues with the National League Wild Card Game – Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh Pirates – Wednesday, Oct. 7, at 8 p.m. ET. Jon Sciambi and analyst Chris Singleton will describe the action.
-30-
Media contact: Ben Cafardo at 860-766-3496 or ben.cafardo@espn.com (@Ben_ESPN).
-
-
-
-
-
