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The numbers are in, and the 2012 World Series between the Detroit Tigers and San Francisco Giants will officially go down as the lowest-watched finale since Fox took over broadcasting rights in 2000, according to a report by The Associated Press.
Clearly affected by the lack of competition in the series, the four games played averaged a meager 7.6 television rating overall, a number that ranks well below the previous low of 8.4 from the 2008 series between Philadelphia and Tampa Bay. Although San Francisco's Game 4-clinching victory picked up a stellar 8.9 rating that parallels a non-elimination Game 4 from the 2011 World Series, this year's mark of 6.1 in Game 3 represented the worst single-game number in Fox's history.
Held scoreless during the second and third games, the Tigers hardly gave hometown fans much to cheer about after falling into a debilitating 3-0 hole to begin the series. The lack of a power market team like Los Angeles, Boston or New York also played a significant role in keeping the ratings modest however, but the Tigers clearly didn't help things with their poor play offensively.