After a slow start in TV ratings, World Series finishes strong in Game 7
The World Series got off to a historically slow start in TV ratings terms but finished strongly in Game 7 Wednesday night, averaging 13.7 percent of homes and 23.5 million viewers for the Giants' 3-2 victory over the Royals.
Those figures nearly doubled the ratings and viewership averages for Games 1 through 6 and kept the Series from supplanting 2012 as the lowest-rated Fall Classic on record.
Viewership Wednesday peaked at 27.8 million viewers from 11 to 11:29 p.m., a figure not commonly reached for non-football sports events in the United States.
When the Spurs and Heat met in Game 7 of the NBA Finals in 2013, they averaged 26.3 million viewers, with a peak at 32.2 million.
In New York, Game 7 of the World Series averaged 14 percent of homes, easily surpassing the Knicks' opener (4.9 on MSG and ESPN combined) and the Nets' opener (0.45 on YES).
In Kansas City, 58.3 percent of homes tuned into the game compared to 38.8 for the San Francisco area.
Fox averaged 13.8 million viewers for the entire Series, lower than last year (15.2) but higher than 2012 (12.7).