The Red Sox Nation is celebrating — and so is Fox.
The Red Sox beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-1 Wednesday to clinch the World Series at Fenway Park for the first time in 95 years. This year’s Fall Classic has been good news for Fox — it bounced back from last year’s low-rated matchup.
Also read: FCC to Boston Red Sox Player David Ortiz: F–k Yeah (Video)
The championship was the eighth for the Red Sox in franchise history and the third in the last decade. The Sox broke an 86-year curse in 2004, when they won their first series since 1918. That was also the last series the Sox won at home.
The win was an especially meaningful one for Boston after the tragedy at the Boston Marathon, where three were killed and many more maimed in a terrorist bombing near the finish line. The nation and the sports world rallied to Boston’s side, with even their fiercest rivals, the New York Yankees, playing the Sox anthem “Sweet Caroline” in support of their Eastern Division nemeses. “Boston Strong” became a slogan for the city.
Also read: Ratings: Fox’s World Series Game 5 Ties NBC’s ‘Voice,’ ‘Blacklist’ Combo
Fox had the good fortune to have a series that went for six games, meaning a bigger ratings boost for the network. The series has performed solidly, earning a 3.8 rating Monday in the key 18-49 demographic and 13.2 million total viewers. It tied NBC for first in the demo and was first outright in total viewers.