Longest All-Star Game Gives Fox Increased Overnight Ratings

Fox Earns Increase In Overnight Rating For Longest MLB All-Star Game In History

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITIES: On Long Island, Neil Best writes the "historic pregame ceremonies were deftly staged by [MLB], or was it Chevy?" Chevy, which sponsored the pregame show, "had its name superimposed in the upper-right corner, even during Sheryl Crow's singing of the national anthem ... which was purely tacky or purely American, or both." Best also writes "the Taco Bell AL lineup pre-empted [Yankees SS Derek] Jeter being announced and walking to the plate for his first at-bat," while Fox later missed Yankees 3B Alex Rodriguez being pulled in the top of the fifth inning "because it was busy with an Aquafina promo." A video tribute to late Yankees announcer Bobby Murcer, who died Saturday, aired inside Yankee Stadium after the second inning, but Fox "did not show it" (NEWSDAY, 7/16). Fox aired a tribute to Murcer during the 11th inning, and in N.Y., Bob Raissman writes, "If you were asleep by then (it was after midnight) we can report Fox did a good job, but should have done it earlier in the telecast" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 7/16). DEADSPIN's Matt Sussman: "So they keep the Bobby Murcer tribute clip in reserve until the 11th? What if this had gone regulation?" (DEADSPIN.com, 7/15).

LONG NIGHT: AWFUL ANNOUNCING's Brian Powell writes the game was "borderline torture and for once it wasn't because of the announcers. While they had a few hiccups here and there, and seemed ready to fall asleep at any moment, they weren't all that bad. Fifteen innings is enough to make anyone go insane and they should be happy they just made it through." Meanwhile, Baseball HOFer Yogi Berra's appearance in the booth during the third inning, which included an ambivalent reaction to actress Sarah Jessica Parker, was "just about the only exciting moment" of the game (AWFULANNOUNCING.BLOGSPOT.com, 7/16). 

MLB Balks At Putting Live Microphones On HOFers During Pregame Ceremony

HARD-EARNED BUCK: SI.com's Richard Deitsch was in Fox' booth while Joe Buck was reading the pregame introductions. Deitsch, on Buck: "He paused when needed, allowing the crowd to honor the Hall of Famers while moving the show along. I'm on the record: I think he's a good broadcaster. ... Getting the keys to the Yankee Stadium public address system is a difficult gig. He handled it well. And, no, I didn't see him sneaking a peek at The Bachelorette during breaks" (FANNATION.com, 7/15).

JOSHING AROUND: ESPN’s telecast of the State Farm Home Run Derby from Yankee Stadium on Monday night earned a 6.4 coverage area rating and 9.2 million viewers, making it the most-viewed telecast on ad-supported cable in ’08 to date, ahead of the January 31 Democratic Debate on CNN, which earned 8.4 million viewers. The 6.4 coverage rating is up 25.5% from a 5.1 last year, and marks the highest-rated Home Run Derby since ’99, when the contest earned a 7.5 rating from Fenway Park. The Derby was also ESPN’s highest-rated non-NFL telecast since a 6.9 coverage rating for the Florida State-Miami college football game in September ’06 (THE DAILY).

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