HUSL Today Salutes

Hank Aaron

Henry (Hank) Aaron was born in Mobile, Alabama on February 5, 1934. After starting his major league baseball career with the Milwaukee Braves in 1954, he distinguished himself as a home-run specialist. Aaron is considered by some as the best baseball hitter in history. Over his 23-year Major League Baseball career, he compiled more batting records than any other player in baseball history.

A year later, the 20-year-old Hank Aaron got his Major League start when a spring training injury to a Braves outfielder created a roster spot for him. Following a respectable first year (he hit .280), Aaron charged through the 1955 season with a blend of power (27 home runs), run production (106 runs batted in), and average (.328) that would come to define his long career. In 1956, after winning the first of two of his batting titles, Aaron registered an unrivaled 1957 season, taking home the National League MVP and nearly nabbing the Triple Crown by hitting 44 homeruns, knocking in another 132, and batting .322.

That same year, Aaron demonstrated his ability to come up big when it counted most. His 11th inning homerun in late September propelled the Braves to the World Series, where he led underdog Milwaukee to an upset win over the New York Yankees in seven games. Check the footage below to see Aaron as he hits a homer to help the M clinch the pennant.



He holds the record for runs batted in with 2297, and is a Gold Glove Winner in 1958, 1959, and 1960. Despite death threats and thousands of hate mail, Aaron continued his pursuit to break Babe Ruth's home run record. His most famous accomplishment came on April 8, 1974 at 9:07 P.M., when at the age of 40, he hit a 385-foot home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers, surpassing Babe Ruth's record of 714 career home runs. He ended his career with 755 home runs. Aaron often spoke about the treatment of blacks in baseball and about the lack of management and ownership opportunities in the league. In one interview, Aaron remarked "On the field, blacks have been able to be super giants," he said. "But, once our playing days are over, this is the end of it and we go back to the back of the bus again."


In 1982, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame(his plaque is pictured above). After his retirement, he returned to the Atlanta Braves as a vice-president for player development, and was promoted to senior vice-president in 1989. Aaron has been a leading spokesman for minority hiring in baseball.

Hank Aaron was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002.

For his contributions to baseball and his work towards equal treatment of minorities in sports HUSL Today salutes Hank Aaron!

Source: Biography.com