The Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees produced massive ratings for Fox last fall, and they are doing it again for ESPN and Sunday Night Baseball this season.
The highly anticipated World Series rematch was the Sunday Night Baseball game this week, and with no NBA or NHL competition to speak of with both sets of conference finals already decided, it left the door wide open for ESPN to draw a big number.
An average of 2.7 million viewers tuned in, making it the highest Sunday Night Baseball audience in seven years.
ESPN’s most-watched #SundayNightBaseball season in 8 years 👏
’24 World Series rematch between #RepBX vs #LetsGoDodgers averaged 2.7M viewers – largest SNB audience in 7 years
⚾️ 3.1M peak
⚾️ Up 81% from last season’s avg.More: https://t.co/p8sJvIyygi pic.twitter.com/mtuDl7Sq7U
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) June 3, 2025
Currently, the Dodgers-Yankees matchup is the biggest in baseball. It arguably boasts the two biggest brands in the sport, along with the two biggest superstars in Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani. There are decades of rich rivalry and tradition between the franchises. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see them do battle once again in the Fall Classic this season.
Impressively, this matchup between the Dodgers and Yankees is the second time in the last month that ESPN has seen its highest audience since 2018. The Subway Series game between the Mets and Yankees drew 2.54 million viewers during MLB’s new rivalry weekend.
Of course, this is the last season of Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN as MLB and the Worldwide Leader in Sports are ready to go their separate ways. Already, a list of contenders is making the rounds in hopes of being the next home for MLB’s trademark regular-season package. And much to MLB’s delight, the series is going out with a bang. These matchups have helped lift ESPN to its highest SNB ratings since 2017, averaging 1.7 million viewers thus far this season.
Maybe it’s not too late for ESPN and MLB to come back to the negotiating table?
About Matt Yoder