ESPN drew a 2.5 overnight for last night's Yankees-Red Sox matchup, marking the net's best MLB rating of the '13 season and best for any game since Yankees-Mets on June 24, 2012. The comparable Yankees-Red Sox game from Aug. 19 last year earned a 2.0 overnight. Meanwhile, Fox earned a 2.1 overnight for its Saturday afternoon regional MLB coverage, which featured Yankees-Red Sox in 73% of the country. The last Fox telecast to feature the two teams was on July 21. That broadcast averaged a 2.5 overnight (Austin Karp, Assistant Managing Editor). In N.Y., Phil Mushnick notes when Yankees 3B Alex Rodriguez came to bat in the first inning of Friday night's Yankees-Red Sox game, the "fans in Fenway Park booed." Yankees announcer Michael Kay then said the crowd is "now trying to rub salt in the wounds, some of the Fenway faithful chanting 'Derek Jeter.'" Announcer Ken Singleton said, "No, it's 'You're a cheater.'" Singleton added, "Derek's not here" (N.Y. POST, 8/19).
AROUND THE HORN: In N.Y., Bob Raissman noted when SiriusXM host Chris Russo’s new contract begins, there "will likely be an unexpected element in the deal: television." Sources said that MLB Network is "seriously considering simulcasting all or part" of Russo's show, "which likely will be reduced to three hours." Meanwhile, the bidding for Yankees radio rights is "coming down the stretch." Previous reports put Clear Channel’s bid at $14M, "which would air on WOR-AM." Sources said that the offer now is "somewhere between" $18-20M annually (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 8/18).
ELEPHANT NOT IN THE ROOM: In S.F., Bruce Jenkins reported the A's TV contract "became an issue again Thursday when, for the fifth time in 23 days, their game wasn't televised. CSN Bay Area President & GM Ted Griggs said that the Giants "have the advantage" of 15 games on KNTV-NBC and are "generally selected more often than the A's on Fox and ESPN." Griggs said, "It's my goal to make sure every A's game is televised, and we are trying very hard to do that" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 8/17).
