WORLD SERIES / CINCINNATI REDS VS. OAKLAND ATHLETICS : Sabo Won’t Say So, but He’s Not Just So-So : Reds: Game 3’s unassuming star calls himself only a decent player.

True story. Chris Sabo once walked out of a barber shop without paying because he didn’t like his haircut. But the barber was only half finished.

True story. Sabo once scolded his Cincinnati Reds teammates for discussing new houses by saying: “What’s the big deal about a house? What else do you do but sleep in it?”

True story. Until this summer, Sabo drove a bruised Ford Escort with an odometer topping 100,000.

True story. Chris Sabo joined Babe Ruth and surpassed Brooks Robinson in World Series lore Friday night with two homers and 10 errorless chances at third base to help the Reds to an 8-3 victory over the Oakland Athletics in Game 3 at Oakland Coliseum.

A World Series featuring flashy catches, high-top cleats and players with more earrings than sweatbands has momentarily returned to basics.

Sabo wears prescription goggles, a military haircut and has “hockey goalie” on his resume. He answers to the name of “Spuds” because of his resemblance to that famous beer mascot.

He ended the night with dirt caked on his pants, a bandage on his elbow, and a shrug.

“I’m a decent player,” he said. “Not a great player, a decent player. I’m not like Rickey Henderson, (Jose) Canseco, (Mark) McGwire.”

With a bases-empty homer in the second inning and a two-run homer in the third inning, he became just the sixth player in Series history to hit homers in consecutive innings, joining a club featuring Babe Ruth, Reggie Jackson and Ted Kluszewski.

But you would never know it. While rounding the bases he never even lifted his head, much less his arms or hands.

“After home runs, most guys give high-fives, some guys try that forearm-bash thing,” teammate Todd Benzinger said. “But not Chris. He ducks and shakes your hand and tries to get the heck off the field.”

Sabo said: “What is there to celebrate? We have won three games in this Series. We need to win four. So we’re only three-fourths of the way there, right?”

By accepting 10 chances at third base without an error, he set a World Series fielding record. But was he impressed?

“I was impressed with the dirt and the grass here,” he said. “Nice dirt. Real nice dirt.”

His play was not so boring.

On the first ball hit by the A’s, to start the bottom of the first inning, Sabo leaped and robbed Rickey Henderson of a single. To end the third inning, he lunged, back-handed a grounder by Dave Henderson, then spun and threw him out.

He made a charging grab and assist in the fifth inning on Mike Gallego’s grounder, and soon CBS was showing Brooks Robinson highlights and talking about him.

“My hitting, I think, was better than my fielding,” Sabo said. “I mean, I didn’t save no runs in the field, did I?”

True story. Sabo was one of the only members of the Cincinnati Reds who did not celebrate on the field after they clinched the National League West championship.

“He doesn’t like the attention,” said teammate Paul O’Neill.

When the Reds clinched, Sabo was also upset about a late-season funk that left him in a four-for-28 slump entering Game 3 of the National League championship series with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

It was then that Manager Lou Piniella noticed his bat was just sitting on his shoulder. He wanted more movement. Sabo complied.

Since then, Sabo has hit .370, going 10 for 27 with three homers and eight RBIs.

He hit the eventual game-winning homer in Game 4 of the playoffs, a two-run shot in the seventh inning. In the same game, he made a great catch of Eric Davis’ throw from center field to tag out Bobby Bonilla.

In Game 1 of the Series, he hit a two-run single in the fifth that helped lead to a 7-0 win.

He ended Game 2 with singles in three consecutive at-bats, including lining a ball to left field in the 10th inning after Billy Bates singled, leading to the winning run on Joe Oliver’s single.

And suddenly people are mentioning his name with Billy Hatcher’s as a possible Series most valuable player.

“This is perfect,” Benzinger said. “The guy who just goes about his business ends up being the big story.”

“I’m nothing special,” repeated Sabo, 28, who has already won a rookie of the year award and had a 25-homer summer in three big league seasons. “No matter people try to write.”

True story. Sabo and O’Neill were riding in a cab to a game in Pittsburgh earlier this year when, at a stoplight, Sabo suddenly jumped from the cab and walked the final blocks to the park.

O’Neill was confused until later learning that Sabo was upset with the cab driver.

“I guess the driver was smoking,” O’Neill said. “It was then I learned that Sabo is not a big smoking fan.”