World Series Game 7 Hits Near Record Viewership For Fox & MLB – Update

UPDATE, 10:53 AM: The Houston Astros are now the World Series champions but the final game of the 2017 Fall Classic is a runner-up to last year’s historic baseball ender.

With 28.22 million viewers for the Astros 5-1 victory over the Dodgers in L.A. last night, the 2017 Game 7 fell 30% from the 2016 Game 7 when the Chicago Cubs beat the Cleveland Indians to win their first World Series in 108-years.

That huge height aside, the total audience for the 2017 Game 7 is the best this series and up 20% over the previous Game 7 of 2014’s World Series and 11% over the 2011 final game.

Taking a 35,00 feet view, last night’s first Astros World Series championship is the second most-watched baseball broadcast in over 13 years. Besides last year’s Game 7, only the 28.84 million who tuned in for the 2004 Fall Classic’s Game 4 between the Boston Red Sox and the St. Louis Cardinals topped last night.

PREVIOUSLY, 6:24 AM: First of all, congratulations to the Houston Astros in winning their first World Series last night beating the the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 7 at Chavez Ravine. It was a matchup that started Houston Strong from the beginning and never let up until its 5-1 conclusion three hours and 37 minutes later. A conclusion that ended with trophies and Astros shortstop Carlos Correa asking girlfriend Daniella Rodriguez to marry him on live TV – a fitting end for what baseball fans everywhere have to admit was a great Fall Classic.

The clinching Game 7 victory saw a 18.8/31 metered market result for last night. Up against some strong history and the best of this Fall Classic so far, those numbers are down 25% from what Game 7 of the 2016 World Series scored. That game, on November 2 last year, saw the Chicago Cubs beat the Cleveland Indians to end the Cubs’ 108-year World Series drought. Of course, last night had a drought ending of its own, with the Astros winning their first World Series in their 55-year history. If things had gone a little differently, the Dodgers would have clinched their first World Series win since 1988, alas.

Last night’s game ranks as the second highest-rated baseball broadcast since the 2002 World Series Game 7 between the San Francisco Giants and the Anaheim Angels. It is also the second best broadcast on TV in general since the Oscars in February.

A 15-year ratings high for Fox in the early numbers, that historic Cubs Game 7 win of last year went on to deliver a 12.6/39 rating among adults 18-49 and a massive viewership of 40.045 million. The latter result is the best any baseball game has done since 1991.

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Compared to the Game 6 of Halloween night, when the Dodgers won and kept the City of Angels’ World Series hopes alive, last night’s game rose by 25% in MM ratings. In the final numbers, that October 31 Game 6 snagged a 6.0/23 rating in the key demo and 22.29 million viewers.

Lastly, Wednesday to Wednesday, last night’s Game 7 jumped 70% against October 25’s Astros-winning Game 2 in MM ratings. Steady with 2016’s Game 2, it went on to pull a 4.2/17 rating and an audience of 15.48 million.

As for the rest of the Big 4’s primetime last night, Survivor (1.5/6) was up at bat but CBS and NBC wisely chose to run mainly encores against Game 7. Currently pulling in a 7.0/25 in unadjusted fast affiliates with 24.68 million viewers, Fox is obviously the winner for the night.

Though down 43% in the key demo and 37% in total audience from the fast affiliates of last year’s once in three or four generations World Series final, last night’s Game 7 is the second best Fall Classic ender in years. We’ll update when the final numbers are in later today.

As for Survivor, the vet reality show was unsurprisingly down two tenths from its October 25 show. ABC’s Modern Family (1.5/5) was also down two tenths as was The Goldbergs (1.2/5) and Speechless (0.9/3). The rest of the Disney-owned net’s night saw American Housewife (1.2/5) dip 8% and Designated Survivor (0.7/3) even with last week.

Proving MLB proof, even was the result for both the CW’s Riverdale (0.6/2) and Dynasty (0.2/1) on Wednesday, as well as NBC sole original of the night The Blacklist (0.8/3)

And, in the end, a gracious exit from a team that did LA proud:

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