"Part of C. C. Sabathia's preparation this week for his start Thursday included some cardio work, a bullpen session and an inspirational visit to a museum.

Sabathia and the bullpen coach Mike Harkey spent Tuesday morning at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum at the famous intersection of 18th and Vine in the home of one of the iconic Negro league teams, the Kansas City Monarchs. During a special tour of the museum, Sabathia was once again struck by the legend of one of the most celebrated players from those days, the Hall of Fame pitcher Satchel Paige.

"He is my favorite player from that era," Sabathia said. "I love reading about him. Nobody knows how old he was. But they knew what a great pitcher he was, and just what a character he was."

Sabathia said he drew inspiration from the dedication and commitment Negro league players showed to the game while enduring many hardships just to play. But Paige was particularly inspiring to Sabathia because of his charismatic personality and his vast array of pitches, which Sabathia noted were all thrown for strikes.

"It was cool reading and hearing about all the stuff he could do," Sabathia marveled. "He would warm up with a gum wrapper on the ground, and he would hit the corners of it. He could throw every pitch there was."

Although Sabathia had been there twice before, Tuesday was his first opportunity to visit the museum since he joined the Yankees before the 2009 season. His previous visit came in early 2008, after he won the museum's Bullet Rogan Legacy Award as the previous season's best pitcher in the American League as a member of the Cleveland Indians.

"It's such a cool place," he said, "and I just want to continue to show my support and see all the history that enabled me to play baseball. I think it's something every minority player should see; every player, really.""