TBS Sees Gains For NLCS Clincher; Fox' ALCS Up Through Game Four

Last night's NLCS-clinching Phillies-Dodgers Game Five earned a 5.9 metered-market rating, up 7.3% from a 5.5 rating for Rays-Red Sox Game Five last year, which aired on a Thursday night. The game earned a 9.4 local rating in L.A. and a 37.0 rating in Philadelphia. Meanwhile, Fox' coverage of the Yankees-Angels ALCS is up 19.1% in final ratings and 21.7% in viewership through the same period of last year's comparable Phillies-Dodgers NLCS on the network. Yankees-Angels Game Four on Tuesday night was up 34% in final ratings and viewership from the comparable Phillies-Dodgers Game Four last year, and helped lead Fox to its highest-rated Tuesday night since the MLB All-Star Game in July. Game Four also drew a series-high 19.8 local rating in N.Y. and a 10.8 in L.A. Monday's ALCS Game Three, which was an afternoon telecast, marked the highest-rated and most-viewed weekday afternoon LCS game since a 7.0 rating and 10.3 million viewers for Astros-Cardinals Game Six in '04. The NLCS day telecast from last year was Game Two (THE DAILY).

PLAYOFF PAYOFF: DAILY VARIETY's Rick Kissell writes ratings for NBC, CBS and ABC were "on the rise Tuesday" as Yankees-Angels Game Four "preempted Fox's reality programming." Fox earned a 3.0 rating in adults 18-49 from 8:00-11:00pm ET, with the averages "expected to rise a bit in the nationals." Fox "should finish second or third on the night in most categories, and the game is expected to rate as the net's best delivery for a LCS game in two years" (DAILY VARIETY, 10/22). Meanwhile, in DC, Tim Lemke writes MLB "can thank the New York Yankees and a flurry of tense games for a postseason that could be one of the most watched in years." A Yankees-Phillies World Series "likely would garner the best possible ratings overall, though much of that viewership will be concentrated in the Northeast." Meanwhile, TBS last night concluded its third year televising the MLB Playoffs, and it "appears viewers have become more aware of the cable network as the go-to place for half the playoff coverage." There have been "complaints about the quality of announcing on TBS, but it does not appear those concerns have kept viewers away" from the Phillies-Dodgers NLCS (WASHINGTON TIMES, 10/22). However, when asked about the notion that "everybody seemed to want" the Yankees in the World Series, Angels Owner Arte Moreno said, "It is a complete fallacy that people don't want a matchup of the two best teams. And I would also bet my life on something else: that Bud Selig wants the best games for the fans" (L.A. TIMES, 10/22).

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GRADUATION DAY: The end of the NLCS marks the end of the Caray's on-air involvement in the MLB Playoffs. Chicago Sun-Times columnist Chris De Luca wrote, “Chip Caray says it best: ‘Guys, this is our last broadcast of this season.’ Thank goodness. TBS's coverage has been brutal.” MLB.com’s Tom Boorstein: “This is an elimination game for the Dodgers, but it is also an elimination game for Chip Caray. That's good.” Yahoo Sports columnist Kevin Kaduk: “Congrats to everyone! We survived Chip Caray!” Buffalo News reporter Mike Harrington: “Our long national nightmare is over. The Phillies win and TBS is done. Go back under your rock, Chip Caray.” Sporting News’ Dan Levy: “Chip Caray again proves he doesn’t understand simple baseball terms. Six up and six down. Yes, after a HOME RUN to start the 2nd.” Fox Sports’ Ben Maller: Chip Caray didn't butcher the final call... shocking.” Eau Claire Leader-Telegram’s John Casper Jr.: “Worst playoff performance goes to Chip Caray?" (TWITTER.com).

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