The Big Lead

ALCS ratings are in, offering potential World Series preview

By J.P. Hoornstra

Oct 19, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; The New York Yankees celebrates after beating the Cleveland Guardians during game five of the ALCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Progressive Field.
Oct 19, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; The New York Yankees celebrates after beating the Cleveland Guardians during game five of the ALCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Progressive Field. / Scott Galvin-Imagn Images
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Coverage of Games 4 and 5 of the American League Championship series on TNT delivered the network a 37 percent boost compared to Games 4 and 5 of the 2023 ALCS.

The ALCS between the New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians saw the favored Yankees win in five games.

The tension ratcheted up in a dramatic way when the Guardians outlasted the Yankees in a 10-inning thriller in Game 3. Cleveland's 7-5 victory featured home runs by Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton to give the Yankees the lead in the eighth inning. Home runs by Jhonkensy Noel and David Fry in the ninth and 10th innings, respectively, brought the Guardians back from the brink to the delight of home fans at Progressive Field.

It also set the stage for consecutive victories by New York to lift the Yankees into the World Series for the first time since 2009.

Fans were hanging on their seats. Viewership across TBS, truTV and Max was up 37 percent compared to the 2023 ALCS between the Houston Astros and eventual champion Texas Rangers, making them the most watched LCS Games 4 and 5 since 2019.

Postseason viewership overall was already up 18 percent compared to 2023 before the LCS round began. Now that the Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers have clinched the first World Series between the country's two largest media markets since 1981, expect MLB's ratings surge to continue.

NLCS ratings on Fox reported a similar boost through at least Game 3 of the series between the Dodgers and New York Mets, according to Sports Video Group.

The 2023 World Series between the Rangers and Arizona Diamondbacks was the least-watched ever. The 2024 World Series will not be.

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