Through the first round of the 2026 NCAA Baseball Tournament, ESPN drew huge TV ratings. The network announced it scored the most-watched Regional on record.

Viewership increased 38% year-over-year as the tournament got underway late last week and through the weekend. Tennessee’s season-ending loss to VCU drew the highest viewership of the opening round with 804,000 viewers on Saturday. That made it the third-most watched Regional game on record.

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In fact, Saturday’s games led the charge for ESPN. Auburn’s 17-13 win over NC State averaged 659,000 viewers, which was the second-highest TV ratings for the 2026 Regional and Top-10 viewership for the round on record. Arkansas vs. Kansas also brought 560,000 viewers in primetime on Saturday.

According to Programming Insider, Kansas’ win over Arkansas on Sunday also averaged 473,000 viewers in primetime. On Monday, West Virginia’s walk-off victory against Kentucky in the 10th inning brought 489,000 viewers on average, as well, per Programming Insider.

ESPN’s TV ratings surge through Regionals at the 2026 NCAA Baseball Tournament followed a strong regular season. Across its networks, ESPN saw viewership increase 49% year-over-year as part of its best regular season since 2012.

Texas A&M vs. LSU held the top two spots during the regular season with 382,000 viewers on April 17 and 375,000 on April 15. Of course, it’s important to note the 2026 season is the first since Nielsen introduced its Big Data + Panel metric to measure viewership.

More on a historic NCAA Regional round

The Regional round was a historic one as the 2026 NCAA Baseball Tournament got underway. UCLA became the second No. 1 overall seed in tournament history to be eliminated before the regional final with its loss to Saint Mary’s.

No. 2 overall seed Georgia Tech also fell in the Atlanta Regional. That means the top two teams are off the board entering Super Regionals.

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The 2026 NCAA Baseball Tournament will continue with Super Regionals, which get underway Friday as the final 16 teams vie for spots in the College World Series. From there, the final eight teams will head to Omaha starting June 12.

In a letter to member schools Wednesday, NCAA president Charlie Baker shared his reaction to the Protect College Sports Act. But he also cited “several” provisions he said need to be revised.

Baker pointed out the importance of the bipartisan Senate bill, filed last week by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) in a key moment for the NCAA’s quest for federal legislation. The association has been seeking help to settle the current landscape in the NIL and transfer portal era, and the Senate bill’s filing came after the SCORE Actpublicly collapsed in the House.

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While the bill addresses key issues such as the transfer portal and coach movement, Baker said “essential” revisions must happen. He added the NCAA will work with the senators to make improvements, as well.

“At the same time, it is essential that several key provisions be refined to best safeguard the stability of college athletic opportunities. … Addressing these areas for improvement will ensure the priorities student-athlete leaders and the NCAA have been championing are comprehensively met,” Baker wrote, in part. “To do that, the NCAA will provide detailed analysis for our member schools to guide the advocacy work that will now be required.”

Baker’s letter to NCAA member schools came after a Senate hearing on the bill. Former Alabama coach Nick Saban, Notre Dame AD Pete Bevacqua and Pac-12 commissioner Pete Bevacqua were among those to testify. Additionally, the Big Ten and SEC released a joint statement Tuesday against the bill in its current form. The statement came after the Big 12 and ACC previously voiced their support.

‘College sports can cut across party lines’

Charlie Baker also pointed to his experience as governor of Massachusetts while noting the progress made in Congress. He said there’s still work necessary on the legislation, though he called college athletics a non-partisan issue as both Democrats and Republicans come together on the Protect College Sports Act.

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“As a former Governor who worked across the aisle for eight years and now as the NCAA president, I understand that getting big stuff done requires compromise,” Baker wrote. “When I started meeting with members of Congress three years ago, I could see a path to a bipartisan deal and now we are even closer. Despite hyper partisanship on so many issues, college sports can cut across party lines, as evidenced by this progress.

“There is work ahead, and I am thankful we have a bipartisan package we can work on with the exceptional student-athlete leaders who step up to advocate for permanent, positive change through Congress. We appreciate all the time the senators have dedicated to the issues in college sports and this bill in particular, and we look forward to working with them, student-athletes and all of you to get legislation adopted.”