Pittsburgh Shows League-Leading Support for Pirates Pitcher
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PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh region lead the country in television ratings for the All-Star game, thanks to rookie pitcher Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates starting for the National League.
Fox Sports PR revealed that 7.6 million viewers watched this year's All-Star Game, a six percent increase over last year, and the channel's most watched telecast since Jan. 28, 2024, the NFC Championship game, which the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Detroit Lions, 34-31.
Fox Deportes also saw an increase of 36% from 2023, with 85,000 viewers to now 136,000 viewers.
Pittsburgh came on top of the regional television ratings, with a 9.9/24. Philadelpia came in second at 8.6/25, thanks to the Phillies having the best record in the MLB and a number of All-Stars. Kansas City came in third at 8.5/25, Cincinnati in fourth at 8.0/21 and Kansas City in fifth at 7.3/22.
FOX Sports' 25th presentation of the #MLBAllStarGame knocked it out of the park with 7.6 million viewers across FOX, FOX Deportes and FOX Sports streaming services. 🎆
— FOX Sports PR (@FOXSportsPR) July 17, 2024
The most-watched All-Star event in sports is up +6% over last year on FOX. pic.twitter.com/Ly46BahyXc
Skenes had a great first inning for the National League, forcing Cleveland Guadians left fielder Steven Kwan, who leads baseball with a .352 average, to pop out to the infield, and Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson, No. 3 in the MLB with 28 home runs, to hit a weak ball back to him for an easy ground out.
New York Yankees shortstop Juan Soto walked on a full count, but Skenes forced Yankees centerfielder Aaron Judge, who leads the MLB with 34 home runs and 85 RBIs, to ground out and end the inning unscathed.
Paul Skenes finishes his #AllStarGame inning and Livvy Dunne is loving it! pic.twitter.com/JDF1neLtjD
— MLB (@MLB) July 17, 2024
Skenes is the first member of the Pirates to start for the National League in the All-Star Game since Jerry Reuss did it in 1975, 49 years ago. He is also just the fifth rookie to start an All-Star game, with Hideo Nomo of the Los Angeles Dodgers doing so in 1995, en route to winning NL Rookie of the Year.
The Pirates drafted Skenes No. 1 overall out of LSU in 2023 and brought him up in May, where he's performed as one of the best pitchers in baseball.
He has a 6-0 record in 11 starts, 1.90 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 66.1 innings pitched, 89 strikeouts to just 13 walks, a 6.8 K/BB and just 14 earned runs.
Pirates left fielder Bryan Reynolds came off the bench and hit a single in the Seventh Inning for the National League, but also struck out to end the game, allowing the American League to finish as 5-3 winners.
The Pirates return to action this weekend with a series against the holders of the best record in the MLB in the rival Phillies at PNC Park, July 19-21.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.