For all the noise about the Big Red Machine, it really wasn’t until the 1976 postseason that their greatness truly stood out—and then their time was over. The Cincinnati Reds lost the 1970 World Series, lost the 1972 World Series, and barely won the 1975 World Series. But this is the year the team really asserted itself as evidenced here on MLB Monday. In truth, the Big Red Machine looks more the Little Engine That Didn’t.

1976 World Series MVP: Johnny Bench, C, Cincinnati (original, confirmed)

The Reds swept the New York Yankees, in their first Series since 1964, and catcher Johnny Bench (.533 BA, 2 HRs, 6 RBI, 1.667 OPS) was the voted MVP. It will be hard for anyone to top that stat line in a four-game stretch. Of course, Cincinnati outscored New York, 22-8, in the four games, and only 9 Reds batters came to the plate in the Fall Classic overall; each had at least 1 RBI. So, yeah, it was a dominant effort, led by Bench.

The winning pitching staff didn’t have anyone toss a low-hit shutout or anything, either, so we stick with the voters here. Every Reds starter went at least 6 innings, though. That is impressive, overall, even if the Yankees hitters only struck out 16 times in 36 innings. Cincinnati won its second straight World Series, but it wouldn’t return to the Fall Classic until 1990. This was the swan song for the alleged Big Red Machine.

1976 AL Championship Series MVP: Chris Chambliss, 1B, New York

The Yankees beat the Kansas City Royals in five games, thanks to the famous bottom-of-the-ninth home run delivered by New York first baseman Chris Chambliss. He actually was on fire in this matchup, hitting .524 with 2 HRs, 8 RBI, and a 1.452 OPS. So, it wasn’t just the series-clinching homer that earned him this award. Overall, the Royals outscored the Yankees, 24-23, in these five games, so Chambliss carried the load.

1976 NL Championship Series MVP: Ken Griffey, RF, Cincinnati

In the final year before an official NLCS MVP vote, the Reds swept the Philadelphia Phillies to win the pennant, and Cincy right fielder Ken Griffey (.385 BA, 2 RBI, 2 SBs, 1.005 OPS) is our pick for the MVP. Two other Reds had 1.000+ OPS marks for this matchup, but Griffey didn’t have any errors or more Ks than walks like the other two did. None of the starting pitchers were able to completely shut down Philly, either.

1976 AL MOTY: Billy Martin, New York

Of the seven teams that finished with winning records in the American League, only two managers posted a PPP mark better than zero: Baltimore Manager Earl Weaver (plus-4) and Cleveland Manager Frank Robinson (plus-1). The Orioles still finished 10.5 games behind the Yankees, though, as New York Manager Billy Martin (even-zero PPP) kept that ship sailing on course. We give this nod to Martin by default, then.

1976 NL MOTY: Walter Alston, Los Angeles

Both division winners received negative PPP efforts from their managers, so this gets more complicated. Pittsburgh Manager Danny Murtaugh (plus-2) guided his team to second place, 9 games behind the Phillies. Los Angeles Manager Walter Alston (plus-3) led his team to second place, 10 games behind the Reds. This was Alston’s last season as an MLB manager, as he retired his position with 4 games to go.

We give him his eighth NL MOTY nod here, though, not for nostalgia, but because the Reds got a minus-1 PPP effort from their manager (Sparky Anderson), while the Phillies got a minus-3 PPP impediment from their manager (Danny Ozark). We know Alston had the tougher task than Murtaugh, all things considered, and he still did a better job under those adverse circumstances in managing his second-place team.