1972 World Series

The 1972 World Series matched the American League champion Oakland A's against the National League champion Cincinnati Reds, with the A's winning in seven games. These two teams would meet again in the fall classic 18 years later. Their managers would meet again in the fall classic 12 years later, this time on different teams.

Background
The A's won the American League West division by $5 1/2$ games over the Chicago White Sox then defeated the Detroit Tigers, three games to two, in the American League Championship Series. The Cincinnati Reds won the National League West division by $10 1/2$ games over both the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Houston Astros, then defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates, three games to two, in the National League Championship Series, marking the first year in which an LCS series in either league went the full five games since divisional play was introduced in 1969. The Reds, who won one fewer game than the Pirates during the regular season, became the first team in MLB history to reach the World Series without having the best record in its league. In each of the first six League Championship Series, the team with the better record advanced to the World Series.

This was the Reds' second trip to the Series in three years. It was Oakland's first trip to the Series, and the first for the Athletics' franchise since their Philadelphia days (1931).

The A's prevailed in this matchup of what were to become the two premier Major League Baseball dynasties of the 1970s. Iconoclastic club owner Charlie Finley's "Swingin' A's" featured day-glo uniforms, lots of facial hair, colorful nicknames, and explosive personalities, while "The Big Red Machine" were a more traditional franchise with a more traditional look—and an everyday lineup with multiple future Hall of Famers as well as all-time Hits King, Pete Rose. The Series was dubbed "The Hairs vs. the Squares".

After a 40-year absence and two franchise relocations, the A's had finally made it back to the Series. They would play the Series without their star right fielder Reggie Jackson, who was injured (pulled hamstring) stealing home in the final game of the season against Detroit. Darold Knowles was also missing. He broke his thumb during a game played on September 27, 1972—less than three weeks before the Series opener.

With Jackson out, Gene Tenace—who had hit five home runs during the entire 1972 regular season—would fill-in admirably socking four home runs equaling the World Series mark set by Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. Tenace also had nine RBI in the Series—no other Oakland player had more than one. He was voted winner of the World Series Most Valuable Player Award.

In contrast, the Reds' big boppers, Johnny Bench (.270 avg., 40 HR, 125 RBI, NL MVP), Tony Pérez (.283 avg., 21 HR, 90 RBI), and Denis Menke (9 HR, 50 RBI), combined for only two homers and five RBI the entire Series.

The teams were fairly equal statistically, each club totaling 46 hits with the same .209 batting average (the combined batting averages were the lowest recorded in all World Series played up to that year). The Reds out-scored the A's, 21–16, but lost each of their four games by a single run. Six of the seven games in the series were decided by one run, marking perhaps the most closely contested series in major league history.

Summary
† : postponed from October 17 due to rain

Game 1
Saturday, October 14, 1972 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio

The Series opened in unexpected fashion as unheralded catcher Gene Tenace of the A's hit a home run in each of his first two at-bats, leading Oakland. Tenace was the first player ever to homer in his two initial Series plate appearances, a feat later matched by Andruw Jones of the Atlanta Braves in 1996.

Game 2
Sunday, October 15, 1972 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio

Jackie Robinson, the first black major-league player of the modern era, made his final public appearance in Cincinnati before Game 2 (he would die nine days later). In a brief speech, he expressed his desire to see a black manager of a Major League Baseball team, a color barrier that had not yet been broken. (That honor would go to, ironically, a former Reds' great, Frank Robinson in 1975 when he was hired to manage the Cleveland Indians).

The Game 2 hero would be A's left fielder Joe Rudi, who smacked a home run and added a sparkling, game-saving catch up against the wall in the ninth inning on a ball hit by Denis Menke. Catfish Hunter pitched eight strong innings, consistently wiggling out of trouble, and also added an RBI single in the second off Ross Grimsley. The Reds' failure to produce in the clutch was as much the story as Rudi's heroics as Cincinnati had leadoff baserunners in five innings but only scored a single run in the ninth.

In the ninth, Tony Pérez led off with a base hit before Rudi's catch of Menke's drive for the first out. Oakland first baseman Mike Hegan then made another great defensive play when César Gerónimo, the next Reds hitter, lined a shot that appeared headed down the line for extra bases. Hegan dove for the ball, knocked it down, and dove for the bag, barely beating Geronimo. Pérez took second and scored on a Hal McRae single. Rollie Fingers then relieved Hunter and induced pinch hitter Julián Javier to pop out to Hegan in foul territory to end the game. The World Series home loss was Reds' seventh-straight, which included three in the 1961 World Series against the New York Yankees and two in the 1970 World Series against the Baltimore Orioles.

Game 3
Wednesday, October 18, 1972 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California

Reds starter Jack Billingham was brilliant, holding the A's to three hits in eight innings. The Reds pushed across the game's only run in the seventh when César Gerónimo singled home Tony Pérez. Pérez scored despite slipping on the damp grass as he was rounding third; it had rained in Oakland the day before. On the play, Oakland second baseman Dick Green was apparently unaware that Perez had slipped; otherwise, he had a play on him at the plate. Clay Carroll pitched the ninth for the save.

A rare trick play occurred in the eighth inning. The Reds had Joe Morgan on third and Bobby Tolan on first base with Rollie Fingers pitching to NL MVP Johnny Bench. Fingers pitched carefully to Bench before Tolan stole second base on ball three. After the stolen base, with the count 3–2 on Bench, A's manager Dick Williams visited the mound. After a long discussion, he motioned for an intentional walk to Bench. A's catcher Gene Tenace stood to catch ball four, but at the last minute returned to his crouch as Fingers delivered a strike on the outside corner. A surprised Bench watched the pitch go by for strike three.

Game 4
Thursday, October 19, 1972 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California

A's starter Ken Holtzman shut out the Reds on four hits through seven innings and had a 1–0 lead courtesy of Gene Tenace's third homer of the series. With two outs in the eighth and Dave Concepción on second, A's manager Dick Williams brought in left-hander Vida Blue to face left-handed hitters Joe Morgan and Bobby Tolan. The strategy backfired as Blue walked Morgan and allowed a two-run double to Tolan, giving the Reds the lead. Williams left Blue in the game to pitch to powerful right-handed hitting Johnny Bench, but Bench flied out to end the inning.

In the bottom of the ninth with one out, the A's strung together four straight hits to score two runs. Pinch hitter Gonzalo Marquez singled, Tenace followed with a single, Don Mincher followed with another pinch-hit single scoring pinch-runner Allan Lewis to tie the game before a third pinch-hitter, Angel Mangual, singled off Clay Carroll to score Tenace with the game-winner to put Oakland up three games to one. It was the first time that a team collected three pinch hits in the same World Series inning.

Game 5
Friday, October 20, 1972 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California

Up three games to one and with ace Catfish Hunter on the mound, the A's looked to close out Cincinnati. But the Reds got a home run by Pete Rose to lead off the game and Rose also drove in the game-winner in the ninth. The dramatic game ended when Joe Morgan threw out the potential game-tying run at the plate as the Reds staved off elimination.

Trailing 1–0 in the second, Gene Tenace hit his fourth home run of the series, a three-run shot, to put Oakland up by two. The Reds cut the lead to 3–2 in the fourth on a solo homer by Denis Menke. Angel Mangual came through with another pinch RBI single in the A's half of the fourth to make it 4–2.

With two outs in the fifth, Joe Morgan walked. With a 3–2 count on Bobby Tolan, Morgan broke for second and was able to score when Tolan lined a base hit into right-center field. The speedy Morgan and Tolan collaborated once again to tie the game in the eighth. Morgan again walked and stole second and Tolan brought him in with a single.

In the ninth, Rose singled in the go-ahead run. The Reds preserved the lead when, with one out and runners on first and third, Bert Campaneris hit a foul pop on the first-base side that first baseman Tony Pérez appeared to call. Second baseman Morgan raced over, waved Perez off, caught the ball, and fired home to nail pinch runner Blue Moon Odom, who had tagged from third.

The Friday afternoon contest was the last non-weekend World Series day game. The three games in Oakland were all scheduled to be played at night, but Game 3 was rained out, forcing Game 5 to be played on a Friday, originally scheduled as a travel day. The game was played in the afternoon to allow ample time for the teams to travel to Cincinnati for Game 6 the next day.

Game 6
Saturday, October 21, 1972 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio

Back at the friendly confines of Riverfront Stadium, the Reds tied the series at 3–3 with an 8–1 rout. Johnny Bench, who had no homers or RBI in the series to that point, broke a scoreless tie in the fourth with a solo homer off starter Vida Blue. The A's fought back on a Dick Green RBI double in their half of the fifth, but from then on it was all Reds. Dave Concepción had a sacrifice fly in the fifth, and Tony Pérez an RBI single in the sixth (his first RBI of the Series). The Reds then broke it open with a five-run seventh an RBI single by Joe Morgan and a pair of two-run singles by Bobby Tolan and César Gerónimo.

Game 7
Sunday, October 22, 1972 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio

Gene Tenace capped a spectacular World Series with two hits, two RBI and he also scored the game-winning run in the sixth inning on Sal Bando's double.

Oakland scored an unearned run in the first inning off Jack Billingham when Reds center fielder Bobby Tolan misplayed a fly ball. Cincy tied things up in the fifth on Hal McRae's sacrifice fly. However, McRae was pinch hitting for Billingham who had allowed no earned runs in $13 2/3$  innings against the A's. His replacement in the sixth inning, Pedro Borbón, allowed the two deciding runs on RBI doubles by Tenace and Bando. The Reds closed to within 3–2 in the eighth, but A's closer Rollie Fingers shut down the Reds in the ninth.

The World Series series victory for the Oakland A's was the first for the franchise in 42 years since the days of Connie Mack when the team was in Philadelphia and had won in 1930. The victory ensured manager Dick Williams' return for another year. It was the Athletics' sixth World Series title. Tenace hit a record-tying four World Series home runs and set a Series-record for slugging percentage.

Composite box
1972 World Series (4–3): Oakland A's (A.L.) over Cincinnati Reds (N.L.)

Radio and television

 * This was Al Michaels' first World Series as a play-by-play man; he was then a broadcaster for the Cincinnati Reds. At the time, Major League Baseball and NBC had a policy (which ended in 1977) in which announcers from the participating World Series teams were allowed to commentate on the national television and radio broadcasts.  Michaels would not call another World Series until 1979, after he had joined ABC Sports.