Punk Hits

2012 Baseball Upfronts

by Ian Miller

If you follow the entertainment industry, then you’ve heard of upfronts—the annual meeting at which broadcasters preview their fall slate for advertisers. Upfronts are a lavish affair, held at grand venues in New York City. TV networks delivered their upfront pitches this past week.

What you may not know is that Major League Baseball also holds upfronts for their prospective sponsors. This year’s event was last Friday night at the Office Suites of Bayonne in the Gateway Region of New Jersey. Baseball Prospectus’ entertainment correspondent, Ian Miller, attended this year’s event, and has these highlights of fall baseball programming. Part 2, the National League, will appear next week.

AL East
New York Yankees (Legal procedural). This venerable institution has lost a little of its luster, but its spinoffs (“Yankees: Special Jump Throw Unit,” “Yankees: Kurodal Intent,” and “Yankees: Scranton/Wilkes-Barre”) continue to perform well. Advertisers responded positively to the return of last season’s heartthrobs Curtis Granderson and Robinson Cano, as well as a dramatic storyline involving beloved stars Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte. Look for “Yankees” to pull good numbers all season long. Thursday, 9 p.m.

Boston Red Sox (Sketch comedy). After a disappointing 2011 run, executive producer Ben Cherington fired longtime show-runner

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