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The 1971 World Series matched the defending champions Baltimore Orioles against the Pittsburgh Pirates, with the Pirates winning in seven games. Game 4, played in Pittsburgh, was the first-ever World Series game scheduled to be played at night. The two teams proved to be evenly matched, as the Series went the full seven games, with the Pirates' Steve Blass pitching a complete game four-hitter in winning Game 7, 2–1, against Mike Cuellar and the Orioles. The Pirates' Roberto Clemente, who turned into a one-man gang in the Series, became the first Spanish-speaking ballplayer to earn World Series MVP honors. Clemente hit safely in all seven games of the Series, duplicating a feat he had performed in . Bruce Kison, who appeared in two games and finished with 6.1 innings pitched, tied the record set during the 1907 World Series when he hit three batters during a single series. These two teams would meet again in the fall classic eight years later, with the same result. ==Background== The Pirates won the National League East division by seven games over the St. Louis Cardinals then defeated the San Francisco Giants, three games to one, in the National League Championship Series. The Orioles won the American League East division by twelve games over the Detroit Tigers then defeated the Oakland A's, three games to none, in the American League Championship Series. The Orioles were coming off their third straight playoff series sweep (twice over the Minnesota Twins, once over the Oakland A's) and their third straight season with over 100 wins (1969 — 109, 1970 — 108, 1971 — 101). Featuring four (4) pitchers with 20 or more wins (Dave McNally — 21, Mike Cuellar — 20, Pat Dobson — 20, Jim Palmer — 20), the booming bats of sluggers Frank Robinson (28, 99, .281) and Boog Powell (22, 92, .256), and the sure hands of Brooks Robinson at third and Mark Belanger at short, the O's were primed to defend their title, winning the last eleven games of the regular season. The Pirates were in the World Series for the first time since the heroics of Bill Mazeroski (who appeared in this series as a pinch-hitter in Game 1) in Game 7 of the 1960 match-up against the New York Yankees. Though not as decorated as the O's staff, the Pirates featured 19-game winner Dock Ellis and 15-game winner Steve Blass. The Bucs did boast a murderous lineup led by Willie Stargell (48, 125, .295), Bob Robertson (26, 72, .271) and Roberto Clemente (13, 86, .341), who collected 12 series hits and hit .414. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「1971 World Series」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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