Blair was beaned by Ken Tatum in the eighth inning of a 6–1 loss to the California Angels at Anaheim Stadium on May 31, 1970. He sustained a broken nose, orbital floor fractures below his left eye and a broken cheekbone. The beaning was unintentional, as Tatum had grazed the jersey front of the previous batter Boog Powell. Blair returned to the starting lineup three weeks later, finishing the season batting .267. After going 1 for 13 in the American League Championship Series, he had the World Series' highest batting average and on-base percentage with .474 and .524 respectively and shared with Series MVP Brooks Robinson the five-game Fall Classic record with nine hits apiece. Jim Palmer wrote that "ever since he got hit by a pitch, he isn't the hitter he was."