Episode Details

Author Marshall Garvey and host Thomas Emerick revisit an overshadowed but fascinating Fall Classic between the Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals. This series peaks with Game 6, which happened to take place on the same night as Back to the Future: October 26, 1985. The series quietly captures a turning point in 1980s baseball, while featuring some provincial angles related to Missouri and the Midwest.

It’s October 1985. Cardinals vs. Royals. World Series, Game 6. Remember That Game is the podcast about sporting events that take you on a journey—and sometimes chart the path of the zeitgeist along the way. I’m your host, Thomas Emerick, joined by Marshall Garvey, author of Interstate 85: The Royals, The Cardinals, and the Show-Me World Series.

Show threads:

Why the 1985 Cardinals–Royals matchup felt unlikely before Opening Day—and why pundits missed the signs

Missouri vs. Missouri (by way of Kansas): geography, rail lines, I-70, and civic pride

How two very different baseball styles defined the 1980s and collided in this series

The stacked contenders who didn’t make the playoffs in 1985—and what that says about the era

John Tudor’s dominance, Brett Saberhagen’s youth, and a Game 7 collision course

Vince Coleman’s absence and how one injury reshaped the late innings of history

Dan Quisenberry, Willie McGee, and the razor-thin margins of elite October baseball

Don Denkinger’s call, Whitey Herzog’s reaction, and life before instant replay

Pinch hitters, unlikely heroes, and why Buddy Biancalana keeps showing up at the biggest moments

What the 1985 World Series tells us about 1980s baseball, Midwest culture, and why no team repeated as champs that decade

HOST

Remember That Game creator and producer Thomas Emerick

Guest

Author Marshall Garvey (Interstate 85: The Royals, The Cardinals, and the Show-Me World Series)

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SHOW NOTES

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