GAME five of the American League Divisional Series may have been a bomb for the Bronx Bombers, but it was a ratings bonanza for Fox.

The decisive game of the ALDS, in which the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim quashed the Yankees’ pursuit of a another fall classic, was watched by about 13.7 million viewers.

It was Fox’s most-watched division series featuring the Yankees since the network began carrying post-season games in 1996.

While its audience was huge, it still didn’t come close to Fox’s most-watched division series, when 15.4 million tuned in to see 2003’s Game Five between the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta Braves.

Meanwhile, Fox Sports officials are quietly rooting for a 2005 World Series battle between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago White Sox.

In the hyper-competitive world of TV sports, out of the four MLB teams left in the post season, a match-up between St. Louis and Chicago is likely to generate the best ratings, industry sources say.

Their logic is that because Chicago hasn’t won a world series since 1917, that could draw more viewers.

And as a contender, St. Louis is considered by many to be a nationally popular team.