Did you ever see a full game from the 1950s?

The MLB Network made its debut by showing Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers. It was the first time the game was aired since it happened. This was a great way for MLB Network to open.

I've only seen clips of the old-time players. It was a treat to see them play for a whole game. You get to see players for 3 or 4 at bats rather than one swing for a homerun or a hit. It is a big difference to watch a game for 9 innings because you get to see every aspect of the game, every throw, every routine out.

I finally was able to see these legends play a whole game including Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Don Larsen, Billy Martin, Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella, and others.

All of the original commercials were shown throughout the game. Most of the commercials included players involved in the game. The majority of the commercials had to do with shaving. There also were not as many commercials as there are today. Without a lot of commercials the game moved faster and seemed to be well under 2 hours.

Watching this game also gave me the idea of what it was like to watch games back then. The camera shot was coming from behind homeplate rather than from center field. They would rarely have a shot of the dugout and almost never had a close up of a player. The quality of the picture and the black and white broadcast were a contrast to today's telecasts.

Seeing this game gave me the chance to hear "The Voice of the Yankees," Mel Allen, and a young Vin Scully. The way they broadcasted is different from the style used today. Mel Allen did the first half of the game alone and Vin Scully did the second half of the game on his own. The broadcaster concentrated mostly on play by play with very little to no color commentating.

Hopefully the MLB Network continues to air classic games from the past. It would be nice to see games from when Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle were going for 61 homers. Uninterrupted World Series games from beginning to end would also be great to see. Regular season games would be great to telecast to see players like Ernie Banks who never made it to the World Series. It was great to see how the game and television have changed over the years.