• by Wayne Friedman , Yesterday

Heading into the end of the season, things have been heating up for Major League Baseball, with higher pricing for TV advertisers.

In September, the overall cost per thousand viewers (CPMs) spiked 40% versus a year ago, according to Guideline.

Guideline did not disclose specific CPM pricing details for the period.

The overall average CPMs for most of the first half of the season -- March through July -- were roughly the same as a year ago at $26.60, according to Guideline.

Viewer interest grew as the regular season came to an end, with teams competing for the playoffs and ultimately the World Series.

These post-season rounds start up in late September and extend through much of October.

Linear TV CPMs are estimated to range from $25 to $45 for the initial first-round "Wild Card," according to industry analysts. Unit prices range from $35,000 to $65,000. The following Divisional Series is priced at $45 to $75 CPMs ($60,000 to $110,000).

Guideline says that last year, looking at eCPMs -- effective cost-per-thousand-viewing pricing for broadcast networks -- pricing jumped 28% to $13.47 in the fourth quarter (the post-season, starting in October) from the third quarter (for the regular season, from July-September) price of $10.52.

eCPMs are calculated by dividing the total cost of buying commercial ad inventory from total measured impressions for a TV show.

Standard CPMs are calculated by dividing the total cost of advertising inventory by projected impressions that a program is expected to receive.

National TV advertising for Major League Baseball regular season totaled $241.0 million among over-the-air networks Fox, NBC, ESPN, MLB Network, and Yes Network, according to estimates from iSpot.