This year’s World Series between the Washington Nationals and Houston Astros went the distance but finished as the third-least viewed series ever.
The series averaged 13.91 million viewers according to national numbers from Nielsen, which is down 1.3% from last year, when the Boston Red Sox defeated the Dodgers in five games (14.1 million average). The Nationals’ first title had an 8.1 overall rating and 16 market share. Including streaming, the series average is 14.01 million.
The lowest-rated series remains 2012, when the San Francisco Giants swept the Detroit Tigers (12.64 million) followed by the Philadelphia Phillies win over the Tampa Bay Rays in six games (13.19 million). Wednesday’s game saved Fox from having the lowest-rated series ever as it was averaging 12.39 million over the first six games.
The Nationals 6-2 victory on Wednesday averaged 23,013,000 according to Nielsen. That’s down 18.5% from the 28.42 million average for the 2017 Game 7 between the Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Wednesday’s viewership peaked at 27.1 million during the final inning (11-11:15 p.m. EDT). That’s viewership numbers are on par with the 23.52 million that watched San Francisco’s Game 7 victory Kansas City in 2014.
Fox said in a release that its postseason games on Fox and FS1 averaged 7.84 million, a 12% increase from last year. Fox and FS1 had the American League Division and Championship Series, which is traditionally the stronger viewed of the two leagues.
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