Television ratings for All-Star Game go up by 7 percent
Television viewership for the All-Star Game ticked up slightly from last year’s record low.
The American League’s 2-1, 10-inning win at Miami on Tuesday got a 5.5 national rating, 11 share and average audience of 9.28 million on Fox. Viewership was up 7 percent from last year’s 4-2 AL win in San Diego, which received a 5.4 rating and 10 share on Fox, where its average audience was 8.71 million.
The network said Wednesday that the combined average audience of 9.44 million on Fox, Fox Deportes and the online stream Fox Sports Go was up 7 percent from last year’s 8.83 million.
Fox experimented with interviews with Bryce Harper and George Springer while they were playing the outfield, spoke with hitters as they were about to bat and had former All-Star Alex Rodriguez walk onto the field near third base to conduct interviews.
THUMBS-UP TO NEW RULES
>> The new All-Star Game rules were picture-perfect for Nelson Cruz.
Yadier Molina didn’t mind them, either.
And come Game 1 of the World Series in October, no one will be harkening back to how a play here or there at the Midsummer Classic might have ultimately played a role in deciding baseball’s champion for 2017.
World Series home-field advantage is now decided by winning percentage and no longer by the result of the All-Star Game and not coincidentally there were no shortage of hijinks at Marlins Park on Tuesday night. Cruz got a photo with plate umpire Joe West before an at-bat, Molina was high-fiving opponents after a home run and someone stuck a used piece of chewing gum on the hat of unsuspecting American League manager Brad Mills.
“I tried to do it in 2013 but I couldn’t do it,” said Cruz, who planned the stunt pregame. “This time, if I had to take a picture with someone it was Joe West. He’s the legend.”
The AL beat the NL 2-1 in 10 innings.
Odds are, the shenanigans like what Cruz pulled off will be remembered a lot longer than that score.
“That was one of the best moments in the game,” said Robinson Cano whose homer in the 10th inning gave the AL the win, exactly 50 years to the day after Tony Perez hit what had been the last extra-inning home run in All-Star history.
Cruz walked to the plate with his phone ringer on silent in his back pocket. He wanted to take a selfie with West, but his batting gloves made maneuvering the buttons impossible. So he handed the phone to Molina, the NL catcher who was wondering what was happening before he agreed to take the photo.
The loquacious West, who recently worked his 5,000th game and is nicknamed “Cowboy Joe” for singing country songs, also was caught off-guard.
“I’ve never seen that before ever,” he told The Associated Press. “That’s the first time I ever think I’ve been speechless on a field.”
JETER’S SISTER PENS BOOK
>> An upcoming book from Derek Jeter’s imprint is cowritten by someone close to the former Yankees shortstop: His sister Sharlee Jeter.
Jeter Publishing told the AP that Sharlee Jeter and Dr. Sampson Davis were collaborating on “The Stuff: Unlock Your Power to Overcome Challenges, Soar, and Succeed.” The book is scheduled for May 2018.
Drawing upon the stories of athletes and entertainers, among others, “The Stuff” will “highlight 11 core elements” essential to success.
Sharlee Jeter is president of her brother’s Turn 2 Foundation, which helps young people avoid drugs and alcohol. Davis is a physician, philanthropist and public speaker whose books include “Living and Dying in Brick City.”