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This is what I‘m thinking:
* Fox announcers Joe Buck and Tim McCarver repeatedly (and accurately) said Thursday how great the first two games of the World Series had been.
If so, Western New Yorkers weren’t paying much attention to the series between the St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers.
The local rating for Game 2 – which Texas won in the ninth inning to tie the series – actually was lower than the opener, which slipped about 30 percent from a year ago here.
Game 2 had only a 5.1 rating on WUTV Thursday, which is the kind of rating that some marginal prime time shows receive in this market. Marginal shows actually are beating the Series head-to-head.
Game 3, which featured three home runs by St. Louis star Albert Pujols in a big Cardinal win, dropped to a 4.0 local rating Saturday. Texas’ 4-0 win Sunday had a 5.7 rating.
How bad are the Series ratings here? Here is one revealing comparison. New Orleans’ 62-7 rout over Indianapolis Sunday on NBC affiliate Channel 2 beat Game 4 on Fox affiliate Channel 29 with an 8.1 rating.
After four games, it looks like the combined rating for the Series — even if it reaches seven games –won’t equal the rating annually here for a Super Bowl.
You can’t blame lack of local coverage for the low Series ratings. The Buffalo News has given the series a massive amount of interesting coverage by baseball writer Mike Harrington.
The low ratings for baseball here come despite the fact that there are so many ways to watch the prime time entertainment competition these days at a viewers’ convenience (via Prime Time on Demand and the internet), while the games lose most of their appeal unless they are seen live.
Fox is fortunate that the Series is guaranteed at least six games, which will add to its profitability and could help the ratings increase. The longer series go generally the higher the ratings.
* During the Green Bay-Minnesota NFL game Sunday, Fox announcer Marty Brennaman announced that he and Troy Aikman will work the Bills game against Washington Sunday in Toronto. Aikman (see above) normally works on the No.1 team with Buck, who is busy during the World Series.
* The millions that the Buffalo Bills will have to pay quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick shouldn’t be much of a surprise to anybody who heard CBS insider Charley Casserly speculate four weeks ago how much Fitz was worth. Back then, Casserly said the Bills would have to pay Fitz $14 million or more to make him a franchise player next season. The former NFL executive for Washington and Houston added that Arizona’s Kevin Kolb was making $11 million a year and he thinks Fitz is better.
* It was surprising to see a Channel 4 promo for “Wake Up” during Sunday night’s episode of “The Good Wife” that included meteorologist Mike Cejka now that he’s been at least temporarily moved to weekends. A little editing of that promo is needed.
* The “60 Minutes” interview by Steve Kroft of Steve Jobs’ biographer, William Isaacson, was so fascinating I imagine that book sales will skyrocket when it is released today. Jobs came off in the interview to be as difficult as he was brilliant.
* Former Bill Ross Tucker is one of the most honest NFL analysts I’ve ever heard. While listening to him work the New York Jet game with San Diego Sunday on radio for 10 minutes, Tucker sharply criticized the play of Jet quarterback Mark Sanchez in a way you’d probably never hear on TV. He used words like horrible to describe the play of Sanchez on a few pass plays. I didn’t hear Tucker in the second half when Sanchez redeemed himself in a Jet win.
* Back to the World Series. In the seventh inning of Texas’ win Sunday, Buck playfully noted that the stadium seat of Zooey Deschannel of “New Girl” was empty, indicating that she had left the game prematurely. I’m not sure I would have embarrassed her like that. I’m also not sure I would have embarrassed baseball, which can’t even get someone paid to watch a Series game for promotional purposes to stay until the end.
pergament@msn.com

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