Just because it's the offseason doesn't mean there isn't ample opportunity to watch baseball. MLB has uploaded hundreds of classic games onto Youtube, which can both scratch the itch and provide an interesting look at baseball's past. Today we're featuring Game 7 of the 1952 World Series.
The above game was the deciding matchup of the 1952 World Series. The Dodgers hosted the Yankees, and for the former it was a chance to win their first Championship.
Some interesting tidbits I noticed while watching:
- Both starters warmed up in the foul territory behind home plate. I don't know if this is a quirk of Ebbets Field, or was common for baseball at the time.
- Some people wax poetically about high socks and the classic look, railing against the pajama look that has dominated since the late 90s. Although everyone had visible stir-ups in this game, you can see it wasn't monolithically above the knee (which is how most modern players do it). Instead, most are actually below the knee and some almost to the ankle.
- It used to be that catchers would catch with two hands, using their non-glove hand to stabilize and control the other. I've known this tidbit for awhile, but it was very interesting to see it in action in some of the profile shots of Yogi Berra and Roy Campanella.
- The umpires wore suits and ties. No t-shirts for these professionals.
- At the 23 minute mark there's a really cool shot where they superimpose the runner at first over the shot of the pitcher/batter. This allows the viewer to watch both pieces of action seamlessly. Now, they'd use a split screen, but this shot was really cool in the way it blended together.
The broadcast quality isn't great, but it's my understanding the 1952 World Series is the earliest Series with surviving broadcast tapes. Lot of cool things to see, and if you're jonesing for some baseball this is a nice little solution. Other games are available on Youtube, and I might profile some others if I come across especially interesting ones.