The Yankees and Red Sox meet tonight at Fenway Park with a trip to the Division Series on the line, and it may be the biggest game in the history of MLB on ESPN, according to the network’s lead producer for the game. Mark Gross, ESPN’s Senior VP/Production & Remote Events, says the AL Wild Card is the biggest baseball tilt he can remember in the network’s 30-plus years of covering games. “It’s as good as it gets in sports,” Gross told SBJ this afternoon.

ESPN is pulling out all the stops for the game, which has a first pitch at 8:09pm ET and will mark the net's seventh Yankees-Red Sox telecast of the season. ESPN will have aerial drone coverage from across the Massachusetts Turnpike, super slow-motion replays and also will bring back its popular “Corner Cam,” which debuted at the College World Series this summer. “At Fenway, it plays so well because the outfield is unique,” Gross said after a meeting-filled day that began at 5:00am. “Depending on the play, we have some different things that can really enhance the coverage.” ESPN’s StatCast will also be simulcast on ESPN2.

With Yankees-Red Sox being one of the premier rivalries in sports, what was Gross thinking Sunday afternoon when Boston was trailing the Nationals 5-2 in the 7th inning? “It didn’t look good. I was thinking alright, we may very well have Blue Jays-Red Sox on Monday afternoon and then the Wild Card game on Tuesday,” Gross said. “But I know the Red Sox are capable of scoring runs in bunches.”

Ticket demand continues to be strong for tonight's Yankees-Red Sox winner-take-all AL Wild Card game at Fenway Park. The matchup is trending to be the most in-demand MLB Wild Card contest ever tracked by secondary market aggregator SeatGeek. The average resale price is $292, topping the previous high of $252 for Giants-Mets in '16 (Preston Bounds, SBJ).

Earlier today, TicketIQ was tracking the average ticket price even higher at $533. Per TicketIQ's data, that would be "far beyond the next most expensive, a 2018 game also involving the Yankees where tickets went for an average of $403" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 10/5).

Yankees regular-season telecasts on YES Network this season averaged 290,000 total viewers, up 7% from the last full MLB season in '19 (271,000). Primetime viewership on YES was 306,000, out-performing the primetime schedules of all broadcast and cable networks in the New York market during the '21 MLB season, while live streaming consumption of Yankees games on the YES App grew 156% from '19. Seven of the top 10 games streamed on the YES App this season occurred since Aug. 1. Sunday's regular-season finale against the Rays averaged 449,000 total viewers, the net’s third most-viewed game of the season despite going up against both the NFL Jets and Giants telecasts (YES Network).

Minnesota United will host the '22 MLS All-Star Game at "still shiny Allianz Field in St. Paul next summer." The Aug. 10 match will mark the culmination of a week of "concerts, parties, community initiatives and the MLS All-Star Skills Challenge." The MLS All-Star Game was played in "new-ish stadiums in Atlanta in 2018, Orlando in 2019 and Los Angeles this season after the originally scheduled 2020 game was postponed a year because of the coronavirus pandemic." Allianz Field opened in '19 (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 10/5). The MLS opponent is "yet to be determined." The format for the All-Star Game this summer in L.A. featured all-stars from Liga MX. For the previous 15 years, MLS "faced a major European club in the U.S. on a preseason trip" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 10/5).

Tom Brady's return to Foxboro finished with 28 million viewers on NBC, marking the network’s second-best viewership for its “Sunday Night Football” package since acquiring rights prior to the '06 season. The audience is second only to Cowboys-WFT in Week 17 in ’12 (30.3 million). Bucs-Patriots on Sunday was NBC’s best regular-season audience with Brady, passing the '15 NFL Kickoff game between the Steelers and Patriots (27.4 million).

The local market numbers throughout New England were extraordinarily high. Providence led all markets with a 45.1 local rating, an all-time high for an NBC "SNF" telecast in that market and just a shade lower than the 45.6 that Providence drew for the '19 Patriots-Chiefs AFC Championship on CBS (Brady's last AFC title game in New England). Boston was No. 2 last night with a 43.8 local rating, followed by Tampa-St. Pete with a 27.1. Rounding out the top five were Hartford (23.9) and Cincinnati (21.2).

NBC's “Football Night in America” also averaged 12 million viewers from 7:29-8:11pm ET, marking the pregame show’s second-best figure on record. The top spot for “FNIA” still belongs to the Week 1 in ’15 leading into Giants-Cowboys (12.3 million). “FNIA” is now averaging 8.3 million viewers after Week 4, marking the show’s best start in five years (8.6 million in ’16).

ESPN's Sage Steele today issued an apology "after she made comments ripping her company vaccine mandate" last week on the “Uncut with Jay Cutler” podcast. The statement read in part, "I know my recent comments created controversy for the company, and I apologize." ESPN "did not say in an adjoining statement whether Steele was disciplined for her comments." The outlet did say, "We embrace different points of view," adding, "We expect that those points of view be expressed respectfully, in a manner consistent with our values, and in line with our internal policies. We are having direct conversations with Sage and those conversations will remain private" (USA TODAY, 10/5).

Steele previously "was to be prominently featured at ESPN’s upcoming espnW: Women + Sports Summit, including interviewing Halle Berry," but she is "now no longer listed on the agenda" (TWITTER.com, 10/4). Steele referred to the Disney-enforced vaccine mandate as "sick." She also "made several comments" on other issues that "ruffled some feathers" (SI.com, 10/5).

Nashville SC majority owner John Ingram and CEO Ian Ayre today were joined by local politicians and designers "for a groundbreaking ceremony" on the club's new "15-acre training facility complex" at Century Farms in Antioch. Work "has begun" at the complex, which "will feature three fields and a facility for the first team and staff." Nashville's youth academy "will remain at Currey Ingram Academy" in nearby Brentwood. Ayre in June said that the new training facility is "expected to open in late 2022." Meanwhile, Nashville SC "continues to move forward with its 30,000-seat soccer-specific stadium at the Fairgrounds, which will debut in May 2022" (Nashville TENNESSEAN, 10/5).

The NFLPA named Marshawn Lynch its first-ever Chief Brand Ambassador. The former NFLer will work with union leadership to ensure its members get the most out of football, providing strategic support and insight for athlete-driven programs, resources and revenue growth opportunities available to players. Lynch also will interface with athletes and partners through events and social media, mentor union members one-on-one and foster business opportunities through the union’s for-profit marketing and licensing arm, NFL Players Inc. Lynch's BeastMode Marketing represents NFLers including the Steelers' Najee Harris and Ravens' Marcus Peters. Lynch also launched film and TV company BeastMode Productions and is a part of the ownership group of the USL Championship Oakland Roots and the PFL. Lynch is represented by Wasserman President of Football Doug Hendrickson  (NFLPA).

The Leaders Sport Business Podcast's "Appointment to View" series brought on Sky Sports Head of Football Gary Hughes for a chat with Leaders' Jimmy Worrall. The conversation, which dovetails nicely with much of the content on offer at Leaders Week London, touches on Sky Sports' approach to match telecasts and its commitment to women's soccer as evidenced by its latest rights deal with the U.K.'s Women’s Super League. Hughes: "What's always sort of floated my boat is the thrill of the unknown and what's going to happen, and that's what live sport is. ... The Premier League being the number one league in the world, that's a thrill in itself."

Univision’s TUDN sports brand and MLB announced a multiyear agreement naming TUDN Radio the official Spanish-language radio partner of MLB in the U.S. and Puerto Rico (Univision).

Using a QR code in their cup holder, fans attending Thursday’s U.S.-Jamaica World Cup qualifier at Q2 Stadium will receive an “Only Forward” NFT from Panini America. The blockchain art was created by Austin artist Phoebe “FeeBee” Joynt in conjunction with U.S. Soccer and FootyCon. Hard-copy posters and NFTs will be created for each of the USMNT home qualifiers by local artists (SBJ).

The Mecca Sports Bar & Grill and The Beer Garden areas near Fiserv Forum will host watch parties for the Brewers-Braves NL Division Series playoff games on Oct. 8, 9 and 11, as well as 12 and 14, if necessary (Bucks).

Kraft Sports + Entertainment has agreed to a multiyear partnership with social media tech startup LifeBrand. The startup aids companies in cleaning up their digital footprint and can edit or delete potentially harmful posts from the past (LifeBrand).

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“I don’t know if it’s going to bring more black youth to that sport because that’s an expensive sport. ... It ain’t like a get a pair of gym shoes, I’m good for at least three months” – FS1’s Shannon Sharpe, on whether NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace’s first-career Cup Series victory will draw in more minority drivers and fans ( “Undisputed,” FS1, 10/5).

“He promised Adam Sandler he would do better than he did in the movie ‘Kazaam’” -- ABC’s Lara Spencer, on TNT’s Shaquille O’Neal winning $90,000 auction bid to have a walk-on role in Adam Sandler’s new film ( “GMA,” ABC, 10/5).

Don’t miss the CAA World Congress of Sports on Oct. 12-13 at the New York Marriott Marquis. Hear from Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert, MLS Commissioner Don Garber, NASCAR President Steve Phelps and many more. To register, visit www.WorldCongressofSports.com.

The 49ers Foundation celebrated the first $1M committed to the nonprofit via their new annual giving program, the Red & Gold Society. Launched in September, the Red & Gold Society established a long-term funding mechanism for the Foundation that ensures the continuation of the organization’s mission to educate and empower Bay Area youth (49ers).

$3M -- Approximate amount raised by sports tech startup Fivestar in its initial seed round. The Annapolis, Md.-based brand, spearheaded by lead investor Brendan Kelly, is preparing to launch a location-based mobile app that empowers athletes and fans to create their own highlights. Fivestar also revealed the acquisition of sports media brand Red Label Sports (Fivestar).