Richard Hyatt: Making a connection between history

Hart Mizell's fastball was clocked at 94 miles per hour but when prodded he admits to hitting 97 on one occasion. He was a relief pitcher at Columbus State University and spent a season with the Joliet Slammers in a minor league ballpark across the road from the prison where the Blues Brothers, Jake and Elwood, did time.

Back in school, Mizell has connected his love of baseball and history. His senior project is "When the Yankees Came Back to Columbus," a research paper on the unforgettable Confederate Yankees, a minor league club that once played at Golden Park.

"With history you want to tell a story that hasn't been told. To stumble across a story so rich in content was great for me," said Mizell, who graduates from CSU in December.

Between 1959 and 1966, the club dominated the city's conversation. The New York Yankee farm team was at the forefront of alcohol sales and civil rights. They were around when the Braves moved to Atlanta and threatened to put minor league baseball in the state out of business. Oh, and they also won a pennant.

Mizell's interest in local baseball lore was spurred by a course on the history of baseball taught by Dr. Dan Crosswell, a respected military historian who confesses that his first love is baseball. His class brings together baseball and American culture.

The C-Yankees included Roy White, the first African American to wear a Columbus uniform. He went on to play in New York for 14 years along with teammates Stan Bahnsen, Mike Hegan, Roger Repoz, Dooley Womack and Bill Madden.

Mizell presents his paper at a 7 p.m. forum Wednesday at CSU's Schwob Memorial Library sponsored by the Hallock Foundation and the Department of History and Geography. Admission is free.

A panel discussion on local baseball follows headed by Ricky Steele, John Shinkle and Columbus Council member Glenn Davis. They will share different points of view. Davis played here on his way to a sparkling career in the major leagues. Steele, whose father owned the local franchise, was the home batboy as a 12-year-old. Shinkle was batboy for the visitors.

Mizell said making a connection between sports and history is not unusual.

The hard-throwing right-hander said the only topic that has been researched more than baseball is the Civil War.

"Just Google it," he suggested.

This story was originally published November 1, 2014 at 11:47 PM with the headline "Richard Hyatt: Making a connection between history."