I was watching the 1988 World Series last week when something caught my attention. They had former First Lady (and horoscope enthusiast) Nancy Reagan throw out a ceremonial first pitch. Part of it arose from her final year in the White House, I’m sure, but the other part was due to the “Just Say No” program she had spearheaded during her tenure. After she concluded her speech on the dangers of drugs, accompanied by a group of schoolchildren in an acceptable array of races and sexes for the era, the Oakland Athletics started their batting lineup. Those familiar know the rest, but for the uninitiated, batting third was legendary steroid enthusiast, Jose Canseco, followed by Mark “Big Mac, Bigger Needle” McGwire batting fifth. The so-called Bash Brothers set a variety of records, with Canseco being the first “40/40” man (steals and homers) while McGwire went on to chase the single season homer record set by Roger Maris in 1961. What was most hypocritically amusing was how the announcers pretended that these two with their impressive dimensions were 100% natural, knowing what we know now. To top it off, it becomes clear that anybody ever to play in the major leagues would have known the difference between a juiced player and a natural one, so the idea that Joe Garagiola was somehow completely clueless becomes a virtual impossibility. So, we have Nancy Reagan start the evening off telling kids to stay off drugs before handing the show over to a pair of the most notorious users of the era. I still enjoyed the game, largely due to nostalgia, but I was reminded that even back then we were not given a straight story.