The Book "Interstate '85" Covers More Than The Royals' First World Series

The challenge for anyone writing about baseball history is to make whatever person or event you are expounding on come alive. After all, anyone can now look up the score of any game, or at least a brief biography of just about any player. As someone who writes about Royals history, I know this difficulty all too well.

The best way to overcome it, in my opinion, is to hear from the players or managers involved, if at all possible. What they were thinking and feeling helps flesh out these stories. Also, context matters. If you can provide those details on the surroundings, your reader will have a much better understanding of the stakes, as well as the game or person’s place in the larger scheme of things.

A case in point is Marshall Garvey’s book, Interstate ‘85. As you might guess from the title, the subject is the 1985 World Series between the Royals and the St. Louis Cardinals. While Royals and Cardinals fans know the main points of the story, Garvey has done baseball fans everywhere a favor by putting this World Series, a very underrated one in my mind, into a book.

For those who don’t remember, the national media was not exactly enthused about spending their late October in the Midwest. As the New York Yankees and New York Mets contended throughout the summer of 1985, those media types salivated about a Subway Series. Failing that, the California Angels and Los Angeles Dodgers also put the possibility of a Freeway Series on the map. So the disappointment was palpable when the plucky Royals and defiant Cardinals (who many writers picked to finish last in the NL East) captured their respective pennants. As a result, the 1985 World Series definitely didn’t get the hype the other potential matchups would have. 

And when Don Denkinger ruled Jorge Orta safe at first base in the bottom of the ninth of Game Six (yes, Cardinal fans, incorrectly), a World Series that featured terrific pitching, a ninth-inning rally, unlikely heroes, and historic performances was overshadowed by the call. And when the Royals exploded for 11 runs in the deciding Game Seven, the Series was forever cast as a disappointment, remembered mostly for a blown call and perhaps for the Cardinals’ temper tantrums as the last game got out of hand.

Garvey’s book is a needed counterpoint to this view. He does an excellent job of setting the stage for both teams leading up to 1985, then covering their paths to division titles and, eventually, league pennants. Naturally, the Series itself consumes a hefty chunk of the book. But when Darryl Motley hauled in the last fly ball of the season, there was still roughly a third of the book to go, and I wondered what could possibly be left to discuss.

But Garvey does a terrific job of examining the aftermath of the World Series for both teams, and especially for Denkinger. This is where the author’s legwork really shines, because he was able to interview the umpire and his family for the book. That is a good reminder for us all that umpires are human beings, too (and I’m as guilty as anyone of forgetting that). It also leads into the touching story of how Denkinger was ultimately accepted by St. Louis fans, although they understandably continued to rib him about the call, and even Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog.

While the Denkinger interviews are a highlight of the book, Garvey also talked to plenty of players on both sides, from stars like Ozzie Smith to more obscure players like Royals reliever Joe Beckwith. The Beckwith interview is particularly poignant, as he lost his battle with cancer just a couple of weeks after talking to Garvey. But it also is a good example of the importance of these interviews, with Beckwith relating how none other than Sandy Koufax helped him regain his form after a slump (I won’t spoil the anecdote, but it is entertaining. It is also one I had not heard before.).

Even family members (such as Royals manager Dick Howser’s daughter, and Denkinger’s wife and daughters) and clubhouse personnel were interviewed for the book. The breadth of interviews and storytelling makes Interstate ‘85 essential reading for Royals and Cardinals fans, and really anyone interested in baseball history. Now that the 2026 World Series is over, I recommend getting a copy to help the offseason go a little faster.