PHILADELPHIA -- This isn't exactly surprising news, but just in case you harbor secret hopes of maybe seeing even one World Series game played in the afternoon (or even late afternoon) sometime in the near future, those days are as gone as $1 a gallon gas.
Talked to Ed Goren, president of Fox Sports, on the field here at the World Series following Saturday night's rain and 1:47 a.m. Game 4 finish, and though the ratings were off comparably, he remained bullish on the late hour.
"It was probably one of the highest Saturday night ratings in the 11 p.m.-1 a.m. slot," Goren said. "It's a mistake to compare it to any other World Series game in respect to regular ratings."
Saturday night's game, of course, was an anomaly because of the driving rain that delayed the game's start to 10:07 p.m. That's the latest start for any game in World Series history.
As for the possibility of even taking a Saturday game -- traditionally the lowest-rated game during the World Series -- and bumping the time up earlier than 8 or 8:30 -- that's pretty much a non-starter, Goren said.
"Look at all the kids here," he said before Game 4 (8:29 start time), making a sweeping motion with his arm toward a flock of younger children in the stands behind the Phillies dugout. "Go to any other championship in any other sport and I'll show you a corporate audience with no kids. We pay rights fees, and you just can't sell prime time rates for day games.
"If someone wanted to compensate us (for lost revenue), we'd consider playing during the day. And why is baseball singled out? Has anybody asked CBS why they don't play the NCAA championship (basketball) game during the day? Why don't they play the NBA Finals during the day?"
The Super Bowl starts earlier but, Goren said, "the game goes past 11. Most postseason baseball games are over by 11:30 p.m."
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Personally I think FOX is singlehandedly trying to destroy the sport. If you look at when they took over, there is a steady decline in ratings.
Why can't they understand that they are trying to get the money now instead of getting a larger payday later?