Columbus Confederate Yankees

The Columbus Confederate Yankees were charter members of the Southern League, which began play in 1964.[4][5] As the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees, they were managed by former major league catcher Rube Walker.[6] The team finished its first year of play with a 64–74 record in seventh place.[7]

The 1965 club was managed by Loren Babe, an ex-Yankee third baseman.[8] On July 19, the Confederate Yankees hosted the 1965 Southern League All-Star Game. With 4,091 people in attendance at Golden Park, they defeated a team of the league's All-Stars, 4–3.[9] Two members of the Columbus pitching staff threw no-hitters that season. The first occurred on June 30 when Mike Jurewicz no-hit the Charlotte Hornets in the second game of a seven-inning doubleheader.[10] The second happened on August 13 when Rich Beck pitched seven no-hit innings against the Lynchburg White Sox.[10] The 1965 SL pennant race was a close one: going into the final weekend, the Asheville Tourists led Columbus by a single game, with a three-game series set for Golden Park to determine the title. After splitting the first two games, Columbus won the finale, 7–0, with Rich Beck tossing a two-hit shutout, handing Columbus the Southern League pennant with a 79–59 first-place finish; technically, the Yankees were in a virtual first-place tie with Asheville, but the Tourists (80–60) played two more games, and thus had a lower winning percentage.[11][12] The pennant-winning season meant that the Confederate Yankees were the league champions, as there was no postseason in the Southern League at that time.[12]

In 1966, their final season of play, the Confederate Yankees were managed by Jack Reed, an outfielder with the 1961 World Series champion Yankees.[13] They ended the season in seventh place at 63–76.[14] During the off-season, the Southern League contracted from eight teams to six and Columbus left the circuit; they would return in 1969 as a White Sox affiliate.

Twenty-three Confederate Yankees also played in at least one game for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team during their careers. These players and their years with Columbus were:[6][8][13]

• Stan Bahnsen (1965)
• Rich Barry (1964–1965)
• Rich Beck (1965)
• Bill Bethea (1965)
• Gil Blanco (1966)
• Jim Brenneman (1966)
• Tom Dukes (1964)
• Frank Fernández (1964–1965)
• Mike Ferraro (1965)
• Mike Hegan (1964–1965)
• Bill Henry (1966)
• Elvio Jiménez (1966)
• Mike Jurewicz (1965–1966)
• Jerry Kenney (1966)
• Dave McDonald (1966)
• John Miller (1965–1966)
• Cecil Perkins (1965–1966)
• Fritz Peterson (1965)
• Roger Repoz (1964)
• Ellie Rodríguez (1966)
• Steve Whitaker (1965–1966)
• Roy White (1964–1965)
• Dooley Womack (1964)

• Statistics from Baseball-Reference