Game 1 of the World Series was either a huge success or a relative disappointment.
The Boston Red Sox’ blowout victory over the Colorado Rockies drew a 10.5 final rating on Wednesday night, up 31% from the 8.0/15 for Game 1 of the 2006 World Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and Detroit Tigers.
Keep in mind that Game 1 of the ’06 World Series aired on a Saturday night, the lowest rated night of the week. There was no game on the comparable night last year, as Game 4 of the ’06 World Series was rained out.
While the 10.5 rating was good for a 31% jump in ratings, and marked the highest rated World Series Game 1 since the first game of Red Sox/Cardinals drew a 13.7/25 in 2004, the game was the ninth lowest rated World Series game of all time. When excluding Friday and Saturday nights, the two lowest rated nights of the week, Game 1 was the fourth lowest rated World Series game of all time.
Part of that is due to the fact Boston won in such an uncompetitive game. Ratings for Game 1 peaked at 12.4 at 10:00 PM ET last night, before falling to an 8.1 by the time the Red Sox broke the game open in the fifth inning.
While the 10.5 put Game 1 among the lowest rated World Series games of all time, the game did help FOX blow away its competition in prime-time, as the network won the night in total viewers and the adults 18-49 demo by a large margin.
