The 1985 World Series began on October 19, 1985 and ended October 27. The American League champion Kansas City Royals played against the National League champion St. Louis Cardinals, winning the series four games to three. The Series was popularly known as the "Show-Me Series", or the "I-70 Showdown Series," as both cities are in Missouri, connected by Interstate 70.

The Cardinals won the National League East division by three games over the New York Mets, then defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers, four games to two, in the National League Championship Series. The Royals won the American League West division by one game over the California Angels then defeated the Toronto Blue Jays, four games to three, in the American League Championship Series.

The Cardinals were seeking to win their NL-leading tenth World Series title, while the Royals were seeking to become the first AL expansion team to win the World Series.

This was the first World Series in which all games were played at night. This was also the first World Series that featured commentator Tim McCarver, who called the 1985 World Series with Al Michaels and Jim Palmer for ABC. Howard Cosell was originally supposed to be in the booth, but he was removed from his assignment just prior to Game 1 because of the controversy surrounding his book I Never Played the Game.

The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB), played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy. As the series is played in October, Major League Baseball also refers to it as the "Fall Classic". The most recent World Series was won by the St. Louis Cardinals, who defeated the Texas Rangers in 7 games in 2011.

The New York Yankees of the American League have played in 40 World Series and won 27, and the Oakland/Philadelphia Athletics have played in 14 and won 9. In the National League, the St. Louis Cardinals have played in 18 and won 11, while the San Francisco/New York Giants and Los Angeles/Brooklyn Dodgers have both appeared in 18 and won 6.

Until the formation of the American Association in 1882 as a second major league, the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (1871–75) and then the National League (founded 1876) represented the top level of organized baseball in the United States. All championships went to whoever had the best record at the end of the season, without a postseason series being played. Starting in 1884 and going through 1890, the National League and the American Association faced each other in a series of games at the end of the season to determine an overall champion. These matchups were disorganized in comparison to the modern Series: games played ranged from as few as three in 1884 (Providence defeated New York 3 games to zero), to a high of 15 in 1887 (Detroit beat St. Louis 10 games to 5), and both the 1885 and 1890 Series ended in ties, each team having won three games with one tie game.

Darryl DeWayne Motley (born January 21, 1960 in Muskogee, Oklahoma) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who played six seasons for the Kansas City Royals and Atlanta Braves between 1981 and 1987. In his MLB career, Motley played in 413 games, hit 44 home runs, 324 hits, 159 RBIs, and batted .243. Following his major league career, Motley played two seasons in Japan, 1992 and 1993, for the Chiba Lotte Marines.

Motley, a right-handed hitting outfielder, hit a 2-run home run for the Royals against the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 7 of the 1985 World Series to give Kansas City an early 2–0 lead. Motley's home run into the left field bleachers came on a 3–2 pitch, after he had hit the preceding 3–2 pitch to the same area in the stands, but foul. Motley, upon seeing the ball curve foul, slammed his bat into the home-plate area, breaking it. After selecting a new bat from the bat-boy, Motley delivered the fatal blow to the Cardinals. He also caught Andy Van Slyke's fly ball for the final out of the Series.

Joshua Blake Kennedy (born 20 August 1982 in Wodonga, Victoria) is an Australian professional football (soccer) player who plays as a striker for the Australia national association football team and Nagoya Grampus.

Joshua "Jesus" Kennedy, a 1.94 m tall central forward, began playing junior football in Albury/Wodonga, near his hometown of Yackandandah in Victoria, Australia. There, he played with the Twin City Wanderers and later SS&A Boomers. His talents won a scholarship place in the Australian Institute of Sport program, leading to a professional contract at new National Soccer League club Carlton in 1999, alongside fellow AIS graduates Vince Grella and Mark Bresciano.

After a season, he made a move to Europe transferring to Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg. His debut as a substitute coming on five minutes from time in the 4–4 draw against fellow Northern German side Hamburger SV on 13 September 2000, at age 17 made him the youngest player ever to appear for VfL. It was his only appearance for the first team that year, and the following season brought little change for Kennedy as he managed just seven appearances for the Bundesliga side, starting only once. However, he scored two goals in the 2001–02 season, with his first ever Bundesliga goal coming on 8 September 2001 against Energie Cottbus.

George Howard Brett (born May 15, 1953), is an American former Major League Baseball third baseman, designated hitter, and first baseman. He played his entire 21-year baseball career for the Kansas City Royals. Brett's 3,154 career hits are the most by any third baseman in major league history, and 16th all-time. Brett is one of four players in MLB history to accumulate 3,000 hits, 300 home runs, and a career .300 batting average with the others being Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Stan Musial. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999 on the first ballot.

Brett was born in Glen Dale, West Virginia. He was the youngest of four sons of a sports-minded family which included Ken, the second oldest, a major league pitcher who had pitched in the 1967 World Series at age 19. Brothers John (eldest) and Bobby had brief careers in the minor leagues. Although his three older brothers were born in Brooklyn, George was born in the northern panhandle of West Virginia. Jack & Ethel Brett then moved the family to the Midwest and three years later to El Segundo, a suburb of Los Angeles, just south of Los Angeles International Airport. George grew up hoping to follow in the footsteps of his three older brothers. He graduated from El Segundo High School in 1971 and was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the second round (29th overall) of the 1971 baseball draft. His high school teammate was pitcher Scott McGregor.