Apparently, incessantly running the “It’s the All-Star Game of All-Star Games” promotion didn’t inspire more viewers than usual to tune in to the MLB All-Star Game on Fox Tuesday night, as it drew a record-low 6.6 rating. The previous low was a 6.8 in 2012. The 7.8 overnight rating it posted was also a record low, and total viewers also dropped from 11.3 million last year to 10.9 million this year. However, this isn’t a huge decline, and those numbers are still very good in the grand scheme of things; it’s the highest Tuesday prime-time rating for Fox since Game Six of the 2014 World Series. The All-Star Game may be trending down, but not massively so, and it’s still a valuable TV property overall.
It’s worth wondering if the All-Star Game will be able to stay at this level for the long term, though, and if so, if it will be the exception. Ratings for many all-star games across sports haven’t been great recently, and baseball’s is the strongest of the bunch with the recent decline in Pro Bowl ratings. Even there, this record low shows it’s not invulnerable. There’s certainly still plenty of value in an event that can draw 10.9 million viewers, and it’s positive for MLB that the numbers didn’t drop all that much from 2014 (and its Derek Jeter sendoff), but what if they continue to drop?
The markets involved certainly play a role, as noted in Ken Fang’s overnight ratings analysis this morning. This game was strongest in Cincinnati (which hosted the game) and Kansas City (which had the most players involved), and the ratings in New York dropped a significant 31 per cent with no Jeter and no Yankees or Mets starters. The Red Sox also didn’t have a starter, and it’s notable that the Yankees and Red Sox still tend to drive national TV ratings, pulling in the best MLB on Fox ratings in two years for their matchup last Saturday. Thus, the downturn here may be about factors particular to this year rather than overall declining interest, and it’s a slight enough downturn to not go into panic mode yet. It will be worth watching to see if the All-Star Game ratings will rebound next year, though, or if this record-low is closer to the new normal.
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