Boston posted the highest local-market rating of any area tracked by Nielsen Media Research for Fox Sports’ debut coverage of MLB this year, featuring Boston hosting the New York Yankees. The April 16 game posted a 3.6 average national rating. The Friday game was the first prime-time, regular-season national broadcast since September 1998.
| Rank | Market (market size*) | Rating/share |
| 1 | Boston (6) | 16.2/27 |
| 2 | Providence, R.I. (48) | 14.6/23 |
| 3 | Hartford, Conn. (27) | 11.0/19 |
| 4 | New York (1) | 9.6/15 |
| 5 | Fort Myers-Naples, Fla. (70) | 5.8/9 |
| 6 | Greensboro-High Point, N.C. (46) | 5.7/10 |
| 7 | Dallas-Fort Worth (7) | 5.4/9 |
| 8 | Buffalo (44) | 4.9/8 |
| 9 | Birmingham, Ala. (40) | 4.7/7 |
| 10 | Cincinnati (32) | 4.6/8 |
| 11 | Norfolk, Va. (41) | 4.5/7 |
| 12 | Portland (24) | 4.2/9 |
| 13 | Washington (8) | 4.1/7 |
| 14t | Orlando (20) | 3.9/6 |
| 14t | Tampa (13) | 3.9/6 |
| 16 | Miami (17) | 3.8/6 |
| 17t | Richmond, Va. (58) | 3.6/6 |
| 17t | West Palm Beach, Fla. (39) | 3.6/6 |
| 19t | Phoenix (15) | 3.5/7 |
| 19t | Albuquerque-Santa Fe, N.M. (49) | 3.5/6 |
| 19t | Cleveland (16) | 3.5/6 |
| 22 | Atlanta (9) | 3.4/6 |
| 23 | Austin, Texas (54) | 3.3/6 |
| 24 | Columbus (34) | 3.2/6 |
| 25t | Seattle (12) | 3.1/6 |
| 25t | Memphis (43) | 3.1/5 |
| 25t | Philadelphia (4) | 3.1/5 |
| 25t | Raleigh-Durham, N.C. (29) | 3.1/5 |
| 29 | Tulsa, Okla. (60) | 3.0/5 |
| 30t | San Francisco-Oakland (5) | 2.9/6 |
| 30t | Greenville/Spartanburg, S.C.-Asheville, N.C. (35) | 2.9/5 |
| 30t | Jacksonville (52) | 2.9/5 |
| 33 | Indianapolis (25) | 2.8/5 |
| 34t | Salt Lake City (36) | 2.7/6 |
| 34t | Baltimore (23) | 2.7/5 |
| 34t | St. Louis (21) | 2.7/5 |
| 34t | New Orleans (42) | 2.7/4 |
| 38 | Los Angeles (2) | 2.6/5 |
| 39t | Charlotte (28) | 2.5/5 |
| 39t | Nashville (30) | 2.5/4 |
| 41t | Las Vegas (51) | 2.4/5 |
| 41t | Kansas City (31) | 2.4/4 |
| 43t | Dayton, Ohio (59) | 2.2/4 |
| 43t | Oklahoma City (45) | 2.2/4 |
| 43t | Sacramento (19) | 2.2/4 |
| 46t | Louisville, Ky. (48) | 2.1/4 |
| 46t | Milwaukee (33) | 2.1/4 |
| 46t | San Antonio (37) | 2.1/3 |
| 49 | San Diego (26) | 2.0/4 |
| 50t | Chicago (3) | 1.9/3 |
| 50t | Detroit (10) | 1.9/3 |
| 50t | Houston (11) | 1.9/3 |
* Designated market areas, ranked by number of TV households in each market
Research by Alisha Puckett, The Sports Business Daily
Source: Nielsen Media Research
