Party Like It's 1985

It was 29 years ago: Ronald Reagan was president, Johnny Carson was still TV's King of Late Night. You could still buy a Plymouth, Pontiac or Mercury. No one had heard of a Tesla -- or an iPad, for that matter. At the movies, it was Teen Wolf, Volunteers and After Hours. And on the radio, Top 40 radio meant "Money For Nothing," "Take on Me," "Saving All My Love for You" and "Dress You Up."  Dressed in white and blue, the Kansas City Royals outlasted the St. Louis Cardinals in the I-70 World Series, matching Missouri's two major league teams. Who would have imagined that would not only be the last Royals championship team, but also their last playoff team. With an offense built around young stars like Eric Hosmer (above), Salvador Perez, Alex Gordon and Lorenzo Cain, the Royals are finally back in the dance. They're home tonight to open the 2014 post-season, hosting the Athletics in the play-in game -- with the winner moving onto the Division Series against the Angels.
Perhaps the memory of the late Ewing Kaufman, Dick Howser and Dan Quisenberry make the Royals a sentimental favorite. The team plays in a classic ballpark. And 29 years is too long a gap between playoff appearances, an absence finally corrected.

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