Uni Watch on the Confederate Flag Uniform Patch
From SABR member Paul Lukas at ESPN.com on August 10, with mention of SABR member Joseph Hylton:
Whether you consider the Confederate flag to be a racist affront, a symbol of cultural pride or just something to wave at a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert, there’s one place you probably haven’t seen it before: on a baseball uniform.
That’s Loren Babe, manager of the Columbus (Ga.) Yankees, a Double-A Yankees affiliate that played from 1964-66. They were often referred to as the Columbus Confederate Yankees, or just the Confederate Yankees, and it’s easy enough to see why.
The rebel flag on Babe’s sleeve is a potent symbol, but it’s nothing compared to the seismic jolt delivered by the sight of the flag being worn by a black ballplayer. That’s Roy White, who was one of the Columbus Yankees’ few black players in 1964 and ’65. He and Babe weren’t the only ones to wear the Confederate flag — the whole team wore it.
Read the full article here: http://espn.go.com/espn/page2/story/_/id/6852602/uni-watch-investigates-controversial-patch-1960s
Originally published: August 11, 2011. Last Updated: August 11, 2011.