Season of Ghosts

<p> This is the story of one of the most dramatic baseball seasons ever as it stretched both backwards and forwards--from the ghosts of seasons and players past to the reality of what followed. At the beginning of 1986 most of the baseball talk was about money; at the end it was about a season that played out with a compelling cast of memorable characters--Bonds Canseco Puckett Ryan Rose Boyd Gooden Strawberry Clemens Boggs Hernandez and more.</p><p> On an institutional level the game faced critical issues--player contracts collusion drugs free agency charges of racism cheating gambling the growing popularity of professional football and the influence of cable TV and satellites. Yet it produced a season of intense drama ending with an unforgettable post-season.</p>