Hold on to your caps Red Sox fans, the New York Yankees are coming soon to a radio near you.
Portland radio station WBAE (1490- and 1400-AM) announced Monday it will be the area’s radio affiliate for the Yankees in 2012. That means all regular-season and playoff games will be heard on the station, beginning April 6.
Cary Pahigian, president of the station’s parent Portland Radio Group, said the move is not exactly unique, as the Yankees have had affiliate radio stations in every New England state. But in asking around, Pahigian said he couldn’t find anyone who remembers the Yankees having an affiliate in Portland.
So after having the airwaves in southern Maine to themselves for years, the Red Sox suddenly will have to share.
The Yankees’ affiliation makes sense for the station for several reasons, Pahigian said.
First, there are, believe it or not, Yankees fans throughout Maine.
Second, Red Sox fans are intensely interested in what their team’s chief rival does and will likely tune in, if only to hear the team lose.
And third, WBAE had developed a baseball fan base the past several years by carrying Portland Sea Dogs games. This year the Sea Dogs games will be heard on WPEI (95.5- and 95.9-FM), so the Yankees can fill a baseball void on the station.
Pahigian said the station’s advertisers have already expressed “significant interest” in advertising during Yankees games.
“They are the second most popular team around here, and as Red Sox fans we probably talk about and watch the Yankees as much as we follow the Red Sox,” said Pahigian, himself a big Sox fan. “If you’re a baseball fan, a Yankees fan, or a Red Sox fan, the Yankees are part of the conversation every day.”
Pahigian said the station negotiated with CBS for the rights to broadcast Yankees games in Portland. The station’s signal is heard throughout Greater Portland on 1490-AM, and in York County on 1400-AM. The station’s main programming includes advice and talk shows and Boston Bruins hockey games.
Staff Writer Ray Routhier can be contacted at 791-6454 or at:
rrouthier@pressherald.com
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