On the lowest rated night of the week, and delayed two hours due to rain, Game 3 of the World Series was the lowest rated and least watched in history.
The Phillies’ 5-4 victory over the Rays drew a 6.1/13 final rating on FOX Saturday night, down 28% from an 8.5/16 for Game 3 of Red Sox/Rockies last year. Game 3 is easily the lowest rated World Series game ever, surpassing the previous mark of 8.0 (Cardinals/Tigers Game 1 in 2006).
Due to rain, the game did not start until 10 PM ET, which clearly impacted the ratings (though Game 3 likely would have set a record low regardless). In Tampa/St. Petersburg and Philadelphia, Game 3 drew local ratings of 21.6/44 and 28.2/49, respectively. To put that in perspective, Games 1 and 2 both averaged well over a 30+ rating in both markets.
Also indicative of the late start, ratings in some West Coast markets were well above the national average. Game 3 averaged a 9.7 in Seattle, a 9.2 in San Francisco, and a 7.9 in Los Angeles.
To put the numbers in perspective, only two NBA Finals games have drawn lower ratings than the 6.1 for Game 3. The 6.1 is well below the ratings for the final rounds of golf’s Masters (8.6) and U.S. Open (7.5) and Monday afternoon coverage of the U.S. Open playoff (6.7). It also falls below horse racing’s Kentucky Derby (8.8) and Belmont (9.0), and even the NFL Pro Bowl (6.3/12).
Through three games, the World Series on FOX is averaging an 7.8 rating, down 22% from a 10.0 for the first three games of the Red Sox/Rockies series last year.
Ominously, ratings have declined for every single game, from a 9.2 for Game 1 to an 8.1 for Game 2 to a 6.1 for Game 3. While the numbers will perk up for Sunday night’s Game 4, it appears this series is shedding viewers as opposed to gaining them.
So far, the Phillies/Rays series has accounted for three of the five lowest rated World Series games ever.
Lowest rated World Series games ever.
* delayed due to rain
6.1: Rays/Phillies Game 3 (Sat., 10/25/08, 10 PM FOX)*
8.0: Cardinals/Tigers Game 1 (Sat., 10/21/06, 8 PM FOX)
8.1: Phillies/Rays Game 2 (Thu., 10/23/08, 8 PM FOX)
8.5: Red Sox/Rockies Game 3 (Sat., 10/24/07, 8 PM FOX)
9.2: Phillies/Rays Game 1 (Wed., 10/22/08, 8 PM FOX)
