The last time the Kansas City Royals won baseball’s championship the World Series it was 1985. Ronald Reagan was the U.S. president. The rock band Wham!, led by singer George Michael, had two of the top three hits on the Billboard chart.

A year later, the New York Mets won one of the most dramatic World Series ever against the Boston Red Sox. Neither the Mets, nor the Royals have been that close to glory since.

In 2000, the Mets lost to the New York Yankees in what fans called The Subway Series. Last year, the Royals lost to the San Francisco Giants in the seventh and final game of the Series. This season, one of the teams will become champions for the first time in almost 30 years. And the first pitch is Tuesday night in Kansas City.

Baseball experts say the Mets are favored to win the championship. The magazine Sports Illustrated polled some of its writers before the series started. Four of the six writers picked the Mets to win because of their strong pitchers.