MLB playoff viewership increases for Yankees Guardians and Mets Dodgers series

The Major League Baseball postseason was awesome.

Game one of the National League Championship Series between the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday was watched by an average of 8.26 million viewers fox According to Fox Sports, it is the most-watched LCS game across all networks since 2009.

Monday night's first game of the American League Championship Series between the New York Yankees and the Cleveland Guardians saw a 4% increase over 2023 and reached 3.9 million viewers, according to a TNT Sports spokesperson.

Both series competed for national attention during “Sunday Night Football” and “Monday Night Football,” in which all three New York National Football League teams played in prime time.

The championship series wins come on the heels of four successful league division series for MLB and its broadcast partners. According to TNT Sports, the American League Division Series averaged three million viewers, up more than 20% from 2023. National League Division Series viewership also increased, with the fourth game of each series increasing starting in 2022.

In recent years, fears have grown that the MLB's cultural relevance is declining, particularly as younger generations, perceived to have shorter attention spans, emerge as key audiences for media companies. Highlights and clips have become standard programming for sports broadcasters.

Last year's World Series between the Texas Rangers and Arizona Diamondbacks also posted the worst TV ratings in championship series history, although some reportedly attributed that to the teams not having much national appeal.

The 2024 regular season was also a success for the MLB. The league said it saw increases in viewership, fan engagement, streaming and viewership, which it attributes to the shorter games – helped by a pitch clock implemented last season – and rule changes that allowed for more action in the game.

“The increased enthusiasm shown by baseball fans of all ages over the past two seasons is reflected in all the ways we track fan engagement,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a news release. “Building on last year’s momentum, the 2024 season was one to remember with historic performances, rising young stars, a series of successful special events and close pennant races.”

MLB has recently implemented several rule changes aimed at increasing the action in games, such as: B. increasing the size of the bases and restricting the displacement. The league has also relied on its generational stars like Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge, who play for the Dodgers and Yankees, respectively, and would face each other in the World Series if each of their teams won their LCS.

“Major League Baseball’s two most storied franchises are coming together to play in the World Series. There couldn’t be anything better for baseball,” Eldridge Industries CEO Todd Boehly told CNBC’s Scott Wapner on “Halftime Report” on Tuesday. Boehly's company owns the Dodgers, among other professional teams.

The other two remaining teams, the Mets and Guardians, have their own draws. The Mets turned their season around in June after a winning streak that followed a McDonald's mascot, Grimace, throwing out the first pitch at a game.

The Guardians have put their season back together after surrendering their division lead to the Kansas City Royals in late August following a torrid September from their star Jose Ramirez.

The Yankees have a 2-0 game lead over the Guardians and the Mets-Dodgers series is tied 1-1.