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Brooks Robinson, the Hall of Fame Baltimore Orioles third baseman who helped lead his team to two World Series championships and is widely regarded as baseball’s greatest defensive third baseman ever, died Sept. 26 at 86.

During a 23-year career in Baltimore, Mr. Robinson was an All Star for 15 seasons and won the Gold Glove award as the top fielder at his position 16 years in a row. His ability to grab any ball hit in his direction earned him many nicknames, including “the Human Vacuum Cleaner,” and he remained one of Baltimore’s best-loved athletes long after his retirement in 1977.

He was named the American League’s Most Valuable Player in 1964 and was among the core of players, including fellow Hall of Famers Jim Palmer and Frank Robinson (no relation), who formed an Orioles dynasty for the next decade as the team reached the postseason six times and the World Series four times.

Although the Orioles lost the World Series to the New York Mets in 1969, but by then Mr. Robinson’s reputation for defensive wizardry was already well established.

“I’m not hitting the ball to Robinson in this Series,” Donn Clendenon of the Mets said. “He’s the vacuum cleaner, don’t you know that?”

Among the pinnacles of Mr. Robinson’s career was the 1970 World Series, which the Orioles won over Cincinnati’s “Big Red Machine” in five games. Mr. Robinson was named the Series MVP.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/obitu...-orioles-dead/

He was beloved like no other Baltimore athlete, along with Johnny Unitas.