"Orioles Classics" rewind: 1970, year of the Birds

As we move closer to spring training - and, hopefully, toward storing the rock salt and snow shovels for the winter - it's time to throw back to some of the most memorable games in Orioles history: the 1970 World Series, where the Birds vanquished the vaunted Big Red Machine from Cincinnati in five games to win their second world championship. Future Hall of Famers Johnny Bench and Tony Perez, along with eventual all-time hit king Pete Rose, were no match for Earl Weaver's Orioles.

If you're of a certain age, you remember the record album (much later made into a CD) called, "1970: Year of the Bird," which chronicled the O's season from start to finish. Baltimore won 108 games (down a victory from their 109-win 1969, the end of which we won't discuss, OK?), but nothing was sweeter than watching (or listening to) pinch-hitter Pat Corrales ground out to third baseman Brooks Robinson, who fired over to first baseman Boog Powell to clinch the World Series.

Robinson made the 1970 World Series his personal showcase, turning sparkling defensive play after sparkling defensive play and hitting .429 with two homers and six RBIs en route to MVP honors. In the days before every game was shown in crystal-clear high definition on MASN, a lot of baseball fans across America were only tangentially acquainted with the slick fielder known as "The Human Vacuum Cleaner." After his fancy glovework against the Reds, everyone knew what Brooks was capable of.

There will be a couple of more recent games interspersed with this week's remembrance of the 1970 World Series, but enjoy the trip down memory lane as you watch the Orioles make mincemeat out of the Reds.

Monday, Jan. 9, 9 a.m. - Jim Palmer came within one out of a complete game, benefiting from homers off the bats of Powell, Elrod Hendricks and Robinson as the Orioles took the first game 4-3 at Riverfront Stadium on Oct. 10, 1970. Keep your eyes peeled for Robinson's wizardry in the sixth, when he made a nifty backhanded grab of a Lee May grounder down the line, spinning to nab May.

Tuesday, Jan. 10, 12:30 a.m. - Down 2-0 in the ninth, the Orioles rally to beat the A's on a three-run Wilson Betemit walk-off homer on April 29, 2012. Betemit connected off Grant Balfour, capping a five-run ninth inning.

Tuesday, Jan. 10, 9 a.m. - The Orioles took a two games to none lead in the best-of-seven Fall Classic with a 6-5 victory, stunning the homestanding Reds on Oct. 11, 1970. Tom Phoebus picked up the win in relief and the Orioles used a five-run fifth inning to take the lead for good. Powell homered and had two RBIs, and Hendricks also drove in a pair.

Wednesday, Jan. 11, 9 a.m. - The World Series shifted to Memorial Stadium on Oct. 13, 1970 and the Baltimore bats had 33rd Street rocking in a 9-3 triumph that put them a game away from winning the Fall Classic. Don Buford and Frank Robinson connected for the Orioles, but the big blow came off the bat of winning pitcher Dave McNally, who blasted a sixth-inning grand slam off Wayne Granger. Brooks Robinson again flashed his leather, starting a douple play in the first with a leaping grab of a Perez bouncer, then diving to rob Bench of a hit in the sixth.

Thursday, Jan. 12, 12:30 a.m. - Let's return to the O's of a more recent vintage with this memorable game from Aug. 10, 2012. Playing in his second major league game, Manny Machado hits the first two homers of his career, driving in four runs in a 7-1 beatdown of the Royals.

Thursday, Jan. 12, 9 a.m. - There would be no sweep in the 1970, as the Reds won Game 4 of the 1970 World Series on Oct. 14, 1970, disappointing the crowd at Memorial Stadium with a 6-5 victory. Brooks Robinson had the home team's lone homer, part of a four-hit day.

Friday, Jan. 13, 9 a.m. - The Orioles knocked out Reds starter Jim Merritt in the second and erupted for nine runs on 15 hits, claiming a 9-3 win to take the World Series on Oct. 15, 1970. Frank Robinson and Merv Rettenmund went deep. Robinson, Rettenmund and Davey Johnson had two RBIs apiece in support of Mike Cuellar's complete game.

Sunday, Jan. 15, 2 p.m. - Now that you've had a couple of days to let the hangover from your post-World Series celebration dissipate, enjoy this memorable game from April 15, 2016. Mark Trumbo became the first Orioles player to homer twice in the same inning as the Birds battered the Rangers 11-5 in Arlington, Texas.