Raw did some historically bad numbers against big sports competition

Without the draft, and with competition from the baseball playoffs and the NFL, Raw’s Oct. 11 ratings were going to take a hit.

When that competition ended up featuring a walk-off elimination & one of the games oldest rivalries from MLB, and a huge comeback from one of football’s most exciting players? WWE and USA took a really big hit.

Average viewership for Monday’s Raw was 1.582 million, with a .42 rating among 18 - 49 year olds. Those are respectively 15 and 19 percent drops from the week before. They’re also the lowest since the Independence Day weekend show from ThunderDome back on July 5. A big factor was a first hour that Wrestling Observer notes was the worst in the show’s history.

Hour One: 1.588 million / .39
Hour Two: 1.641 million / .44
Hour Three: 1.516 million / .42

The Baltimore Ravens come from behind win over the Indianapolis Colts dominated everything else on Monday, delivering an audience of more than 11 million with a 3.49 demo rating for ESPN. The San Francisco Giants edging their rival Los Angeles Dodgers 1 - 0, and the Boston Red Sox eliminating the Tampa Bay Rays also finished well ahead of Raw.

Football’s not going anywhere for months, and the start of the Red Sox/Houston Astros American League Championship Series is set for next Monday. WWE will counter with the Crown Jewel go home show, so far featuring Queen’s Crown and King of the Ring semi-final matches.

For complete results and this week’s Raw live blog click here. To read a recap & review of the night’s events click here. For video highlights of the show click here.

Numbers via Showbuzz Daily