Boston’s sports radio ratings are out, and the results are again very one sided with 98.5 The Sports Hub continuing to dominate the market. Former WEEI morning personality and current host of a daily podcast with Barstool, Kirk Minihane was the first to report the numbers Wednesday afternoon.
During the spring book, which spanned March 26 through June 17, The Sports Hub topped the market, posting a strong 11.5, while WEEI 93.7 was eighth with a 4.5 in the target demo of men 25-54. According to Chad Finn of The Boston Globe, both numbers include the stream and WEEI’s rating also accounts for their Providence-based simulcast WVEI.
With a global pandemic forcing the spring book to take place without the support of live sports, The Sports Hub saw a small decline from their winter number of 11.9. WEEI’s dip was more significant, dropping nearly two points from a 6.4.
Beginning with morning drive, The Sports Hub’s Toucher and Rich was first with a 12.7 and a significant lead over WEEI’s strongest performing show hosted by Greg Hill, which did a 7.3. Both shows saw declines of almost two full points from the winter book.
In middays, Zolak & Bertrand also finished first with an impressive 13.8, while WEEI’s Dale and Keefe garnered a 4.2 share for the spring book. The Sports Hub again maintained their dominance in afternoon drive as Mike Felger and Tony Massarotti were first, showing no signs of slowing despite the global pandemic with a monstrous 16.9, an increase of more than two points from their top-rated winter performance. Felger & Mazz’s Boston sports radio counterpart, OMF (Ordway, Merloni and Fauria) finished the spring book with a 4.3 for WEEI, good for fifth place.
The evening timeslot was the lone weekday window that didn’t see The Sports Hub finish first overall. The Adam Jones Show, which airs from 6 – 11p, finished third with a 6.4. WEEI’s Mut at Night with Mike Mutnansky earned a 2.9 share, tied for 13th.
Although sporting events were put on hiatus by COVID-19, Tom Brady offered a lot of content early in the spring ratings book, as the quarterback announced he was leaving the Patriots and soon after signed with Tampa Bay. When I spoke to Mike Felger for a BSM feature last month, he called creating content during the sports shutdown “challenging.” But after seeing the ratings, The Sports Hub was clearly up to the challenge and the Boston audience responded.