Tribe's TV ratings among best in MLB


Tribe's TV ratings among best in MLB
July 17, 2014
Author: KEVIN KLEPS

The Indians continue to languish near the bottom of Major League Baseball in attendance — at the All-Star break, the Tribe is 29th, with an average crowd of 18,402.

But the Indians have been producing big numbers for SportsTime Ohio.

According to an industry source, the Tribe’s average local TV rating this season is 5.94, a 13% increase from the same point in 2013. The Indians’ win over the White Sox on Sunday produced a 6.38 rating, which was 14% better than the local rating for the World Cup final between Germany and Argentina.

The Tribe’s local TV ratings are also among the best in MLB.

Monday, the Sports Business Journal analyzed the local ratings of baseball’s 30 teams. Through the first week of July, the Journal’s numbers showed the Indians’ average audience increase of 9,000 households (from 77,000 in 2013 to 86,000 this season) was tied for the fourth-largest in MLB.

Sports Business Journal only listed the five largest gains and drops in each category. The Brewers ranked fifth for the best average rating, at 5.91 through the first week of July. The Indians’ average rating has since risen to 5.94, which, depending on how Milwaukee’s ratings norm has changed, likely puts the Tribe among the best five or six teams in that category.

The Indians’ average audience of 86,000 households on SportsTime Ohio is significantly higher than such teams as the Rangers (71,000 households), Braves (67,000), Brewers (54,000), Nationals (46,000), Dodgers (40,000), Athletics (33,000) and Padres (32,000).

The Tigers have the best average local TV rating at 7.52, followed by the Cardinals (7.45), Pirates (6.37) and Reds (6.37).

The Reds’ TV home is Fox Sports Ohio, which purchased SportsTime Ohio from the Indians in late 2012.

In a few months, Fox Sports Ohio will be the local TV home of games featuring LeBron James.

Talk about a home run.