World Series television ratings are as meager as the Detroit Tigers' offense.

The St. Louis Cardinals' 5-0 victory Tuesday night at Busch Stadium was the lowest-rated Game 3 in Series history, and the three-game average also was at its lowest.

Game 4 was rained out last night.

Game 3 drew a 10.2 fast national rating and 17 share, Fox said yesterday, down 7 percent from the 11.0 rating last year for the 7-5, 14-inning win by the Chicago White Sox against the Houston Astros. The previous record low for Game 3 was the 10.8 rating for the Anaheim Angels' 10-4 win against the San Francisco Giants in 2002. The three-game average of 9.9/17 was down 7 percent from the previous low of 10.6/19, set last year.

In St. Louis, the game got a 51.9 rating and 66 share, and in Detroit it received a 37.1 rating and 52 share. Fox spokesman Lou D'Ermilio said that because smaller markets are involved in the World Series this year, about 1 million fewer homes from the local teams are tuned in to the games.

Asked about lower postseason ratings last week, baseball commissioner Bud Selig said he didn't want to leap to conclusions.

"I'm not overly concerned," he said. "The teams' television ratings all year have been spectacular. Let's wait until the World Series is over."

He cited baseball's new seven-year deals with Fox and Turner Sports, which will bring the sport a total of about $3 billion from 2007-2013.

"We've now renewed all our contracts for seven years and had lots of competition," Selig said, "so apparently the people in the television business like what they're seeing."

The national rating is the percentage of U.S. television households tuned to a program, and each point represents 1,114,000 homes. The share is the percentage of households watching a broadcast among those homes with televisions in use at the time.

Radar malfunction

Detroit reliever Joel Zumaya attracted quite a bit of attention in the American League playoffs by routinely topping 100 mph on the radar gun.

So fellow Tigers rookie Justin Verlander thought it was odd when he noticed Zumaya wasn't hitting triple digits on the Busch Stadium scoreboard in Game 3.

Instead of 103 mph heat, the speeds posted were in the mid-90s.

Zumaya recently was out with an injured wrist and forearm, and Verlander wondered whether there might be a problem. Verlander wandered back into the clubhouse and was glad to see the TV radar gun registering Zumaya's pitches at 100 mph.

"He says in every stadium, he knows where the radar guns are and he checks them," Verlander said. "If he thinks the radar guns are low, and it gets in his head, there might be something to it.

"I don't know if it was something funny with the radar guns outside or not," said Verlander, who also reaches 100 mph. "I just knew Joel was a little down."

The radar gun at Busch is mounted behind the plate and instantly relays the speeds to the scoreboard operations booth.

Tigers closer Todd Jones found it funny that there might be some chicanery with speeds.

"It's a great day when you can lose 8 mph and throw 95," Jones said. "I would consider it the greatest compliment ever, if an organization thought enough of you to turn the radar guns down."

Political ads

Jeff Suppan was pitching more than baseballs this week. The St. Louis starter was among several celebrities appearing in a minute-long commercial against a Missouri stem cell initiative.

The ad debuted yesterday, hours before Suppan was scheduled to start Game 4 of the World Series. It was a response to a commercial featuring actor Michael J. Fox urging passage of Amendment 2 next month.

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner, Kansas City Royals first baseman Mike Sweeney and actors Patricia Heaton and Jim Caviezel appeared with Suppan, the MVP of the NLCS.

Manager Tony La Russa supported the decision of his players to take part in off-the-field activities.

"Our policy is you recognize each person as the professional side and personal side, and you respect both sides of them," La Russa said. "Actually, our organization encourages guys to get involved in something beyond just baseball. Whether you agree with the choice or whatever, I just like the fact that guys make a commitment and they get involved."

Out of the slump

After skipping the off-day workout Monday, Cardinals leadoff batter David Eckstein got his first two hits of the World Series in Game 3.

The St. Louis shortstop had been 8 for 50 in the postseason before Tuesday night. He has cut back on batting practice swings and unnecessary throws to rest his sprained left shoulder, but said he didn't need a break.

"I'd rather just keep playing," Eckstein said after the Cardinals' 5-0 win. "The days off at this point in time, as long as we get home at a decent hour to get enough sleep, I feel really good."

Eckstein was 0 for 11 in the World Series before getting two singles and a walk in his final three trips against Detroit.