Game 1 of the 2010 World Series earned a 10.4 overnight household rating and a 4.7 adult demo rating, down 25 percent from last year’s opener between Philadelphia and New York. The numbers were steady with the 2008 World Series opener, which was the second lowest-rated Game 1 ever.
With two premiere pitchers on the mound in Cliff Lee of Texas and Tim Lincecum of San Francisco, you would have expected a spike in numbers.
In fact, Modern Family on ABC had more viewers at 9:00 pm than the World Series.
Tonight’s matchup features C.J. Wilson and Matt Cain, two pitchers who are hardly household names for the casual sports fan.
While TNT’s NBA doubleheader shouldn’t cause a major dent in the ratings, the first real test for the World Series comes on Saturday, as they go head-to-head against USC vs. #2 Oregon on ABC.