The viewership numbers for the World Baseball Classic championship game reflected the magnitude of its storylines.
Team Japan’s 3-2 victory over the United States averaged 4.48 million viewers on the Fox Sports 1 broadcast, combining with Fox Deportes and streaming services for 5.2 million viewers, the outlet announced Wednesday
Per Sports Business Journal, the 4.48 million FOX Sports 1 viewers was a number higher than all but three of the American and National League Division Series games in 2022, and it also surpassed the average viewership for Game 5 of the National League Championship Series between the Phillies and Padres — when Bryce Harper gave Philadelphia the lead with a two-run homer in the eighth inning and extended their stunning postseason run into the World Series.
According to The Athletic, the 2017 WBC final between the United States and Puerto Rico averaged 3.1 million viewers on ESPN2, ESPN Deportes and MLB Network, which was approximately a two-million increase from the 2013 championship game between Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic.
The WBC championship game, which was a rematch of a 2017 semifinal, featured MLB stars Shohei Ohtani, Mike Trout, Trea Turner, Yu Darvish and a handful of others.
It also included a ninth inning where Ohtani struck out Trout, his Angels teammate, to clinch the title, throwing his glove and hat in celebration.
According to Front Office Sports, the fifth edition of the WBC produced other strong attendance and viewership numbers for teams, including Japan (62 million viewers from the country watching its game against Korea) and Puerto Rico (62 percent of their households watching them eliminate the Dominican Republic).
Japan’s championship concluded its undefeated run through the 2023 WBC, with Ohtani claiming the MVP award after hitting .435 — with four doubles and a homer — in seven games and compiling a 1.86 ERA.
Ohtani won both of his starts, and he earned the save Tuesday against the United States.
The United States managed to make its second consecutive championship game despite losing to Mexico, 11-5, and finishing second in its pool.
The tournament will return again in 2026, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said.