Fueled by a big increase for Game 2 on ABC, the Men’s College World Series Final finished just shy of last year’s ESPN-era high.
The three-game Tennessee-Texas A&M Men’s College World Series Final averaged 2.82 million viewers on the ESPN networks, marking the second-most watched MCWS Final in the ESPN era and down 1% from the record-setting LSU-Florida series last year (2.86M).
Monday’s winner-take-all Game 3 averaged 3.34 million opposite Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, the second-largest audience for an MCWS game on the ESPN networks — but down 7% from last year’s 3.59 million.
The Volunteers’ win delivered the largest baseball or softball audience on television this year, surpassing the previous high of 2.91 million for a regional MLB window on FOX that featured Dodgers-Yankees in most markets.
Game 2 on ABC — the first MCWS game on broadcast television in years — averaged 2.92 million, up a third from last year (2.20M) and the highest for a Game 2 on the ESPN networks. It also ranks second among baseball or softball games this year.
Game 1 averaged 2.26 million on ESPN Saturday night, down 12% from last year (2.58M).
All viewership figures include simulcast coverage on ESPNU.
The full Men’s College World Series averaged 1.56 million, down from last year’s 1.65 million. The MCWS Final outdrew the two-game Oklahoma-Texas Women’s College World Series earlier this month (1.98M) and the full MCWS topped the full WCWS (1.1M).
