MLB Wild Card round drew record ratings

From a ratings perspective, the postseason could not have started better for Major League Baseball or its network partners.

The four series — the Detroit Tigers’ win over the Houston Astros, Kansas City Royals’ defeat of the Baltimore Orioles, San Diego Padres’ triumph over the Atlanta Braves and the New York Mets’ victory in a thrilling series over the Milwaukee Brewers, drew record-high viewership for the Wild Card round.

“This year’s nine-game 2024 Wild Card Series averaged 2.82 million viewers across ESPN, ESPN2, and sister Disney network ABC,” Michael McCarthy of Front Office Sports reported. “That made it the most-watched wild-card series ever. It was up 25% from last year and 1% from 2022.”

Three of the four series were decided in the minimum two games. The lone exception was the Mets victory against the Brewers, which featured New York scoring four runs in the top of the ninth inning – with three coming on a Pete Alonso home run – to take a 4-2 lead, which stood as the final score.

That game, McCarthy reported, was not only the most watched of the Wild Card round but also helped ESPN to its biggest single-game rating in three years.

“The Mets’ come-from-behind win over the Brewers in Thursday night’s decisive Game 3 was a key driver of the record numbers,” McCarthy said. “New York’s 4-2 win averaged 4.02 million viewers—peaking at a hefty 5.75 million around 9:45 p.m. ET. That made it ESPN’s most-watched MLB game telecast since the Red Sox’s win-or-go-home wild-card victory over the Yankees in 2021.”

Given the remaining teams, it’s reasonable to think that the ratings will continue to do well. Both the Mets and New York Yankees are in the Division Series, as are the Los Angeles Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies. That gives MLB two teams in the league’s biggest market, another in the second and one more in the fourth.

[Front Office Sports]