1970 World Series recap

The Reds couldn't hold a lead, and they couldn't get anything past Brooks Robinson, the Orioles' third baseman.

The World Series opened in Cincinnati, and the Reds grabbed a 3-0 lead in the third inning when Lee May lined a two-run homer over the left-field wall off Jim Palmer. But Palmer settled down, and the O's tied the game with Boog Powell's two-run blast in the fourth and Elrod Hendricks' solo shot in the fifth. With the score still 3-3, May led off the bottom of the sixth with a shot down the third-base line, but Brooks Robinson snared the ball and threw out May.

A walk and a single later, pinch-hitter Ty Cline chopped a ball in front of the plate. With Bernie Carbo sprinting home, catcher Hendricks grabbed the ball and lunched back toward Carbo. He applied the tag with his glove, and plate umpire Ken Burkhart -- in poor position -- called Carbo out even though at the time Hendricks was holding the ball in his throwing hand. The Reds wouldn't score that inning, and Brooks Robinson put the Orioles ahead to stay with his solo homer in the seventh.

The Reds grabbed a 3-0 lead in the first inning of Game 2, and they went up 4-0 on Bobby Tolan's homer in the third. But once again, Cincy couldn't hold a lead. Boog Powell got Baltimore on the board with a homer in the fourth, and then the O's scored five times in the fifth. Johnny Bench homered for the Reds in the sixth, but it wasn't enough as Baltimore held on for a 6-5 victory.

In Game 3, the O's already led 4-1 in the seventh when starter Dave McNally hit a grand slam, and Baltimore cruised to a 9-3 triumph and a commanding three-games-to-none lead in the Series. The Reds finally got on the board in Game 4, as Lee May's three-run homer in the eighth gave his club a 6-5 decision.

Game 5 saw the Reds score thrice in the top of the first, but the Orioles scored twice in the first, second and third innings, while their starter Mike Cuellar held Cincinnati scoreless from innings two through nine. Baltimore tacked on some insurance runs in the late innings, thus crushing Cincinnati 9-3 to capture the Series.

Path to the World Series
ALCS: Baltimore over Minnesota (3 games to 0)
NLCS: Cincinnati over Pittsburgh (3 games to 0)

Managers: Earl Weaver, BAL; Sparky Anderson, CIN

MVP: Brooks Robinson, BAL: .429, 2 2B, 2 HR, 6 RBI