The 1976 season witnessed the return of baseball's most successful postseason-dynasty to the Fall Classic. After a twelve year hiatus, the New York Yankees had rebuilt themselves back into the American League champions of old. After the team was purchased by a cunning-businessman named George Steinbrenner (in 1972) they filled several gaps with some shrewd trading and finished in third during the '75 season.
This year, former "Bronx Bomber" Billy Martin was at the helm and his crew consisted of several standouts including Thurman Munson, Chris Chambliss, Graig Nettles, Sparky Lyle and Jim "Catfish" Hunter (who had made good on his threat to Oakland).
It seemed fitting that the perennial champions were to face the defending champions as the Cincinnati Reds returned for their second consecutive Classic. Manager Sparky Anderson may not have had a ship, but he did have "The Big Red Machine" and it ran on cylinders like Tony Perez at first, Joe Morgan at second, Pete Rose at third, Dave Concepcion at shortstop and George Foster, Cesar Geronimo and Ken Griffey on the grass.
They also boasted one of the best pitching rotations in all of Major League baseball. Gary Nolan led the pitching staff with fifteen victories, Pat Zachry won fourteen, and Fred Norman and Jack Billingham each won twelve games. Their bullpen was just as good with Manny Sarmiento and Rawly Eastwick, both with an ERA below 2.10 and a combined record of 16-6. The Reds had also remained one of the most consistent ball clubs in the league winning one-hundred eight games in '75, ninety-eight in '74 and ninety-nine in '73.
Cincinnati hosted the Series opener at Riverfront Stadium and showed their hometown fans who was in charge. Morgon launched a first-inning homer, Perez added three hits of his own and Gullett and reliever Pedro Borbon combined on a five hitter for the 5-1 victory.
Game 2 looked much the same as Perez snuck a two out single in the ninth to score Griffey for the 4-3 win. Hunter had retired the Reds' first two batters, but New York shortstop Fred Stanley's throwing error on Griffey's roller put the National League champs back in business. The Yankees may have been back as well, but the dust and cobwebs were certainly showing. As the Series returned to the "not-so familiar" surroundings of Yankee Stadium (due to the two year long modernizing process that had sent the Yanks to Shea from '74-'76) the Reds continued to dominate the home team. Perhaps "The Babe" was displeased with his new decor as the "Big Red Machine" became the "Bronx Bombers" for a day.
With the American League's designated-hitter rule being used in the Series for the first time, Dan Driessen cracked a homer and went three-for-three while helping the Reds to a third, 6-2 victory. On the other side, shortstop Jim Mason managed the only home run for the Yankees (in his only career at-bat ever in a Series).
Now on the verge of elimination, New York was determined to extend the contest, but the visiting team had a different idea. After blasting them for two and three run homers, the defending champions cruised to another title with a 7-2 sweeping triumph. Yankees fans were devastated (after all, losing in the Bronx was unacceptable) but Steinbrenner wasn't done yet and they would have their dynasty back, eventually.
Cincinnati became the first National League team to win back-to-back crowns since the New York Giants had in '21 and '22. Seven of their hitters batted above .300, led by Bench's .533 and Foster's .429.
Amazingly, Anderson did not make a single change during the entire Series among his nine regulars, forsaking the use of a pinch-hitter or a pinch-runner and never making a switch in either his batting order or fielding alignment. On the mound, his rotation boasted a combined 2.00 earned-run average and the franchise's two year totals consisted of two-hundred ten regular-season victories, a 6-0 record in Championship Series play, and two consecutive World Series triumphs. The mistaken fans at Yankees Stadium had witnessed the play of a dynasty, unfortunately for them though, they weren't wearing pinstripes.
"I don't want to embarrass any other catcher (specifically Thurman Munson) by comparing him with Johnny Bench." - Cincinnati Reds' Manager Sparky Anderson (after the 1976 World Series)
1976 World Series1976 World Series Official Program ← 1975 | Cincinnati Reds (4) vs New York Yankees (0) | 1977 → |
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1976 World Series Fast Facts | |||
Game 1 | Date / Box Score | 10-16-1976 | |
Location | Riverfront Stadium | ||
1st Pitch | From | To | |
Waite Hoyt (Yankees Pitcher / Reds Announcer) | Johnny Bench | ||
Attendance | 54,826 | ||
National Anthem | Charley Pride(Singer / Former Minor Leaguer) | ||
Game 2 | Date / Box Score | 10-17-1976 | |
Location | Riverfront Stadium | ||
Attendance | 54,816 | ||
Game 3 | Date / Box Score | 10-19-1976 | |
Location | Yankee Stadium | ||
1st Pitch | From | To | |
Joe DiMaggio | Thurman Munson | ||
Attendance | 56,667 | ||
National Anthem | Robert Merrill (Opera Singer) | ||
Game 4 | Date / Box Score | 10-21-1976 | |
Location | Yankee Stadium | ||
1st Pitch | From | To | |
Mel Allen (Yankees Broadcaster) | Thurman Munson | ||
Attendance | 56,700 | ||
National Anthem | Seaman Robert Johnson (U.S. Navy musician) | ||
1976 World Series Fast Facts |
1976 World Series
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1976 World Series Game 1 Capsule | ||||||||||||
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
New York | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
Cincinnati | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | x | 5 | 10 | 1 |
New York Pitcher(s) | Cincinnati Pitcher(s) | |||||||||||
Doyle Alexander (L) Sparky Lyle (7th) |
Don Gullett (W) Pedro Borbon (8th) |
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New York Home Runs | Cincinnati Home Runs | |||||||||||
None | Joe Morgan (1st) |
1976 World Series
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1976 World Series Game 2 Capsule | ||||||||||||
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
New York | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 1 |
Cincinnati | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 0 |
New York Pitcher(s) | Cincinnati Pitcher(s) | |||||||||||
Catfish Hunter (L) - |
Fred Norman Jack Billingham (W, 7th) |
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New York Home Runs | Cincinnati Home Runs | |||||||||||
None | None |
1976 World Series
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1976 World Series Game 3 Capsule | ||||||||||||
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
Cincinnati | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 13 | 2 |
New York | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 0 |
Cincinnati Pitcher(s) | New York Pitcher(s) | |||||||||||
Pat Zachry (W) Will McEnaney (S, 7th) - |
Dock Ellis (L) Grant Jackson (4th) Dick Tidrow (8th) |
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Cincinnati Home Runs | New York Home Runs | |||||||||||
Dan Driessen (4th) | Jim Mason (7th) |
1976 World Series
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1976 World Series Game 4 Capsule | ||||||||||||
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
Cincinnati | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 2 |
New York | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 0 |
Cincinnati Pitcher(s) | New York Pitcher(s) | |||||||||||
Gary Nolan (W) Will McEnaney (S, 7th) - |
Ed Figueroa (L) Dick Tidrow (9th) Sparky Lyle (9th) |
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Cincinnati Home Runs | New York Home Runs | |||||||||||
Johnny Bench (4th) Johnny Bench (9th) |
None - |
1976 World SeriesComposite Hitting Statistics |
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Name | Pos | G | AB | H | 2B | 3B | HR | R | RBI | Avg | BB | SO | SB |
Johnny Bench Jack Billingham Pedro Borbon Dave Concepcion Dan Driessen George Foster Cesar Geronimo Ken Griffey Don Gullett Will McEnaney Joe Morgan Gary Nolan Fred Norman Tony Perez Pete Rose Pat Zachry |
c p p ss dh of of of p p 2b p p 1b 3b p |
4 1 1 4 4 4 4 4 1 2 4 1 1 4 4 1 |
15 0 0 14 14 14 13 17 0 0 15 0 0 16 16 0 |
8 0 0 5 5 6 4 1 0 0 5 0 0 5 3 0 |
1 0 0 1 2 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 |
1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 |
2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 |
4 0 0 1 4 3 3 2 0 0 3 0 0 1 1 0 |
6 0 0 3 1 4 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 2 1 0 |
.533 .000 .000 .357 .357 .429 .308 .059 .000 .000 .333 .000 .000 .313 .188 .000 |
0 0 0 1 2 2 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 2 0 |
1 0 0 3 0 3 2 1 0 0 2 0 0 2 2 0 |
0 0 0 1 1 0 2 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 |
Totals | 134 | 42 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 22 | 21 | .313 | 12 | 16 | 7 | ||
1976 World SeriesComposite Hitting Statistics |
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Name | Pos | G | AB | H | 2B | 3B | HR | R | RBI | Avg | BB | SO | SB |
Doyle Alexander Chris Chambliss Dock Ellis Ed Figueroa Oscar Gamble Ellie Hendricks Catfish Hunter Grant Jackson Sparky Lyle Elliott Maddox Jim Mason Carlos May Thurman Munson Graig Nettles Lou Piniella Willie Randolph Mickey Rivers Fred Stanley Dick Tidrow Otto Velez Roy White |
p 1b p p of-2 ph p p p of-1,dh-1 ss dh c 3b of-2,dh-2 2b of ss p ph of |
1 4 1 1 3 2 1 1 2 2 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 2 3 4 |
0 16 0 0 8 2 0 0 0 5 1 9 17 12 9 14 18 6 0 3 15 |
0 5 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 9 3 3 1 3 1 0 0 2 |
0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 |
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |
0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 |
0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 |
.000 .313 .000 .000 .125 .000 .000 .000 .000 .200 1.000 .000 .529 .250 .333 .071 .167 .167 .000 .000 .133 |
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 3 0 1 1 3 0 0 3 |
0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 1 0 3 2 1 0 3 0 |
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 |
Totals | 135 | 30 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 8 | .222 | 12 | 16 | 1 |
1976 World SeriesComposite Pitching Statistics |
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Name | W | L | G | GS | CG | S | Sh | IP | ERA | H | SO | ER | BB |
Jack Billingham Pedro Borbon Don Gullett Will McEnaney Gary Nolan Fred Norman Pat Zachry |
1 0 1 0 1 0 1 |
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |
1 1 1 2 1 1 1 |
0 0 1 0 1 1 1 |
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |
0 0 0 2 0 0 0 |
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |
2.2 1.2 7.1 4.2 6.2 6.1 6.2 |
0.00 0.00 1.23 0.00 2.70 4.26 2.70 |
0 0 5 2 8 9 6 |
1 0 4 2 1 2 6 |
0 0 1 0 2 3 2 |
0 0 3 1 1 2 5 |
Totals | 4 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 36.0 | 2.00 | 30 | 16 | 8 | 12 |
1976 World SeriesComposite Pitching Statistics |
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Name | W | L | G | GS | CG | S | Sh | IP | ERA | H | SO | ER | BB |
Doyle Alexander Dock Ellis Ed Figueroa Catfish Hunter Grant Jackson Sparky Lyle Dick Tidrow |
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |
1 1 1 1 0 0 0 |
1 1 1 1 1 2 2 |
1 1 1 1 0 0 0 |
0 0 0 1 0 0 0 |
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |
6.0 3.1 8.0 8.2 3.2 2.2 2.1 |
7.50 10.80 5.63 3.12 4.91 0.00 7.71 |
9 7 6 10 4 1 5 |
1 1 2 5 3 3 1 |
5 4 5 3 2 0 2 |
2 0 5 4 0 0 1 |
Totals | 0 | 4 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 34.2 | 5.45 | 42 | 16 | 21 | 12 |
The 1976 World Series was the first ever to utilize the designated hitter. Those who played the "position" were Dan Driessen of the Cincinnati Reds (who hit the first home run for the position) and Elliott Maddox / Carlos May / Lou Piniella of the New York Yankees.
Did you know that the Cincinnati Reds were the first National League team to win back-to-back World Championships since the New York Giants in 1921 & 1922?
The Cincinnati Reds were once swept by the New York Yankees during the 1939 World Series and when this factoid was brought up to Joe Morgan he replied, "How can you have a much better team than this one?"