Donn Clendenon, 70; Mets’ 1969 World Series MVP

Donn Clendenon, the power-hitting first baseman who was named the most valuable player in the New York Mets’ 1969 World Series victory, died Saturday after a long fight with leukemia. He was 70.

A spokesman from the George Boom Funeral Home confirmed the death.

Clendenon hit three home runs and had four RBIs in the Mets’ five-game victory over the Baltimore Orioles. He hit .274 with 159 home runs and 682 RBIs in 12 seasons with Pittsburgh, Montreal, the Mets and St. Louis.

“He was a true gentleman and an integral part of the 1969 team. We knew he had been sick a long time, and ... we send our condolences to his entire family,” Mets spokesman Jay Horwitz said.

After retiring from baseball in 1972, Clendenon earned a law degree and moved to Sioux Falls in the summer of 1987.

In an interview that year, he said that he worked at law firms in Washington and Chicago before “getting tired of the big cities.”

Clendenon joined the Mets midway through the 1969 season.

The Orioles were ahead 3-0 in Game 5 of the World Series when Mets manager Gil Hodges emerged from the dugout to argue that a ball thrown by Baltimore’s Dave McNally had hit Mets outfielder Cleon Jones in the foot.

Hodges grabbed the shoe-polish-smudged ball and proved that Jones was struck, setting the stage for Clendenon.

The first baseman stepped to the plate and hit a two-run homer; the Mets went on to win, 5-3.

Clendenon recounted the 1969 season in his book, “Miracle in New York,” in which he also talked about growing up in Atlanta, earning his law degree and battling drug addiction as he neared his 50s.

Clendenon, who was born in Neosho, Mo., told the Associated Press in 1989 that he had used his varied experiences to help young people. “I like working with kids,” he said. “I’ve played major league baseball, I’m a lawyer, I’ve had an education, I’m an addict, so I can relate to them.”