Hank Aaron

Infobox MLB retired
name=Hank Aaron
bgcolor1=#af0039
bgcolor2=#0f437c
textcolor1=white
textcolor2=white


caption=Aaron in 1978
position=Outfielder
bats=Right
throws=Right
birthdate=birth date and age|1934|2|5
Mobile, Alabama
debutdate=April 13
debutyear=by|1954
debutteam=Milwaukee Braves
finaldate=October 3
finalyear=by|1976
finalteam=Milwaukee Brewers
stat1label=Batting average
stat1value=.305
stat2label=Home runs
stat2value=755
stat3label=Hits
stat3value=3,771
teams=
*Milwaukee / Atlanta Braves (by|1954-by|1974)
*Milwaukee Brewers (by|1975-by|1976)
highlights =
* 21x All-Star selection (1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975)
* 1957 NL MVP
* 3x Gold Glove Award winner (1958, 1959, 1960)
* 1970 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award
* World Series champion (1957)
* 2nd on all-time home run list with 755
* 3rd on all-time hits list with 3,771
*Atlanta Braves #44 retiredMLB Records:
* 6,856 total bases
* 2,297 RBI
* 1,477 extra-base hits
* 17 consecutive seasons with 150 or more hits
hofdate=1982
hofvote=97.83% (first ballot)

Henry Louis "Hank" Aaron (born February 5, 1934 in Mobile, Alabama), nicknamed "Hammer," "Hammerin' Hank,” or "Bad Henry,” is a retired American baseball player whose Major League Baseball (MLB) career spanned from 1954 through 1976. After playing with the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro American League and in the minor leagues, Aaron started his Major League Baseball career in 1954. He played 21 seasons with the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves in the National League, and his last two years (1975-1976) with the Milwaukee Brewers in the American League. In his career, Aaron had many accomplishments and set many records. His most notable achievement was setting the MLB record for most career home runs with 755, which he held for 33 years until being surpassed by San Francisco Giants outfielder Barry Bonds on August 7, 2007.

During his professional career, Aaron performed at a consistently high level for an extended period of time. He hit 24 or more home runs every year from 1955 through 1973, and is the only player to hit 30 or more home runs in a season at least 15 times.Fact|date=July 2007 He is one of only four players to have at least 17 seasons with 150 or more hits.Fact|date=July 2007. Aaron made the All-Star team every year from 1955 until 1975 [23 of Aaron's 24 All-Star appearances were for the National League team. During his final appearance in 1975, the Milwaukee Brewers were a member of the American League. Currently, Milwaukee plays in the National League.] and won three Rawlings Gold Glove Awards. In 1957 he won the National League Most Valuable Player Award, while that same year, the Milwaukee Braves won the World Series. It was Aaron's one World Series victory during his career as a player.

Aaron's consistency helped him to establish a number of important hitting records during his 23-year career. Aaron holds the MLB records for the most career runs batted in (2,297), the most career extra base hits (1,477), and the most career total bases (6,856). He is also in the top five for career hits with 3,771 (3rd) and runs with 2,174 (tied for 4th with Babe Ruth). He also is in second place in at-bats (12,364) and in third place in games (3,298).

To honor Aaron's contributions to Major League Baseball, MLB created the Hank Aaron Award, an annual award given to the hitters voted the most effective in each respective league. He is the last Negro league baseball player to play in the major leagues.cite web | title=Cached BBHOF Bio | work=baseballhalloffame.org | url=http://216.239.51.104/search?q=cache:M68gXb1PYN0J:www.baseballhalloffame.org/hofers_and_honorees/hofer_bios/Aaron_Hank.htm+baseball+hall+of+fame+aaron+negro+league | accessdate=2007-07-11] He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982, his first year of eligibility.

In 1999, editors at "The Sporting News" ranked Hank Aaron 5th on their list of "Baseball's 100 Greatest Players." That same year, baseball fans named Aaron to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

Early life

Hank Aaron was born in Mobile, Alabama to Herbert and Estella Aaron. By the time his parents were finished having children, Aaron had seven siblings. Tommie Aaron, one of his brothers, also went on to play Major League Baseball. By the time Aaron retired, he and his brother held the record for most career home runs by a pair of siblings (768). They were also the first siblings to appear in a League Championship Series as teammates.cite web|title=Baseball Page Bio|work=thebaseballpage.com|url=http://www.thebaseballpage.com/players/aaronha01.php|accessdate=2007-07-10]

While he was born in a section of Mobile referred to as "Down the Bay," he spent most of his youth in Toulminville. Aaron grew up poor. He picked cotton on a farm, and to this day people say that strengthened his hands so he could hit more home runs. His family couldn't afford baseball equipment, so he practiced by hitting bottle caps with sticks. Aaron attended Central High School as a freshman and a sophomore. There he played outfield and third base on the baseball team and helped lead his team to the Negro High School Championship both years.Kappes, Serena. (2005) "Hank Aaron", Twenty-First Century Books. ISBN 978-0-8225-3069-5.] Allen, Bob & Bill Gilbert. (1999) "The 500 Home Run Club", Sports Publishing LLC. ISBN 978-1-58261-031-3.] During this time, he also excelled in football. His success on the football field led to several football scholarship offers.cite web | title=Hank Aaron Biography | work=jrank.org | url=http://sports.jrank.org/pages/14/Aaron-Hank.html | accessdate=2007-07-10] Aaron turned these down to pursue a career in major league baseball. Although he batted cross-handed (that is, as a right-handed hitter, with his left hand above his right), a somewhat unconventional batting method, Aaron had already established himself as a top power hitter. As a result, in 1949, at the age of 15, Aaron had his first tryout with a MLB franchise. Aaron tried to make the Brooklyn Dodgers; his tryout did not go well, however, and he did not make the team.cite web | title=Early Years | work=angelfire.com | url=http://www.angelfire.com/sports/texanbraves/haaron.html | accessdate=2007-07-10] After the tryout, Aaron returned to school to finish his secondary education. His last two years were spent at the Josephine Allen Institute, a private high school in Alabama. During his junior year, Aaron joined the Mobile Black Bears, an independent Negro league team. While on the Bears, Aaron earned $10 per game.

Aaron's major league career began on November 20, 1951, baseball scout Ed Scott signed Aaron to a contract on behalf of the Indianapolis Clowns.cite web | title=Hank Aaron Biography | work=jrank.org | url=http://sports.jrank.org/pages/6/Aaron-Hank-Played-in-Negro-League-Major-League.html | accessdate=2007-07-10]

Negro league career

After relocating to Indianapolis, 18-year-old Aaron helped the Clowns win the 1952 Negro League World Series. As a result of his standout play, Aaron received two telegram offers from MLB teams. One offer was from the New York Giants and the other from the Boston Braves (who would move to Milwaukee the following year). Aaron elected to play for the Braves, who purchased him from the Clowns for $10,000. On June 14, 1952, Aaron signed with Braves' scout Dewey Griggs. During this time, he picked up the nickname "pork chops" for eating strictly pork chops and French fries while traveling with his team.

Minor league career

The Braves assigned Aaron to the Eau Claire Bears, the Braves' Northern League Class-C farm team. The 1952 season proved to be very beneficial for Aaron. Playing in the infield, Aaron continued to develop as a ballplayer and in fact made the Northern League's All-Star team. He broke his habit of hitting cross-handed and adopted the standard hitting technique. By the end of the season, he had performed so well that the league made him the unanimous choice for Rookie of the Year. Although he appeared in just 87 games, he scored 89 runs, had 116 hits, 9 home runs, and 61 RBI. In addition, Aaron hit for a .336 batting average.

In 1953, the Braves promoted him to the Jacksonville Tars, their Class-A affiliate in the Sally League. Helped in large part by Aaron's performance on the field, the Tars won the league championship that year. Aaron led the league in runs (115), hits (208), doubles (36), RBI (125), total bases (338), and batting average (.362). He won the league's Most Valuable Player Award and had such a dominant year that one sportswriter was prompted to say, "Henry Aaron led the league in everything except hotel accommodations." Aaron's time with the Tars did not come without problems. He was one of the first five African Americans to play in the league. The 1950s were a period of racial segregation in the United States, especially in the southeastern portion of the country. When Aaron traveled around Jacksonville, Florida and the surrounding areas, he was often separated from his team because of Jim Crow laws. In most circumstances, the team was responsible for arranging housing and meals for its players; Aaron often had to make his own arrangements. The Tars' manager, Ben Geraghty, tried his best to help Aaron on and off the field. Former Braves minor league player and sportswriter Pat Jordan said, "Aaron gave [Geraghty] much of the credit for his own swift rise to stardom."Jordan, Pat. "A False Spring." New York: Dodd, Mead, 1975. ISBN 978-0-8032-7626-0.]

1953 also proved notable to Aaron off the field. Aaron met a woman by the name of Barbara Lewis. The night he met her, Lewis decided to attend the Tars' game. Aaron singled, doubled, and hit a home run in the game. On October 6, 1953, Aaron and Lewis married.

Before being promoted to the Major League team, Aaron spent the winter of 1953 playing in Puerto Rico. Mickey Owen, the team's manager, helped Aaron with his batting stance. After working with Owen, Aaron was better able to hit the ball effectively all over the field. Previously, Aaron was only able to hit for power when he hit the ball to left field or center field. During his stay in Puerto Rico the Braves requested that Aaron start playing in the outfield. This was the first time Aaron had played any position other than shortstop or second base with the Braves.

Major League Baseball career

On March 13, 1954, Milwaukee Braves left fielder Bobby Thomson broke his ankle while sliding into second base during a spring training game. The next day, Aaron made his first spring training start for the Braves' major league team, playing in left field and hitting a home run. On April 13, 1954, Aaron made his major league debut and went 0-for-5 against the Cincinnati Reds' Joe Nuxhall. In the same game, Eddie Mathews hit two home runs, the first of a record 863 home runs the pair would hit as teammates. On April 15, 1954, Aaron collected his first major league hit, a single off Cardinals pitcher Vic Raschi. Aaron hit his first Major League home run eight days later on April 23, also off Raschi. Over the next 122 games, Aaron batted .280 with 13 homers before he suffered a broken ankle on September 5.

Prime of career

In 1955, Aaron made his first All-Star team; it was the first of a record-tying 24 All-Star Game appearances. He finished the season with a .314 average, 27 home runs and 106 RBI. Aaron hit .328 in 1956 and captured first of two NL batting titles. He was also named The Sporting News NL Player of the Year.

In 1957, Aaron won his only NL MVP Award. He batted .322 and led the league in home runs and runs batted in. On September 23, 1957, Aaron hit a two-run walk-off home run in the 11th inning of a game against the Cardinals. The win clinched the Braves' first pennant in Milwaukee, and Aaron was carried off the field by his teammates. Milwaukee went on to win the World Series against the New York Yankees. Aaron did his part by hitting .393 with three homers and seven RBI.

In 1958, Aaron hit .326, with 30 home runs and 95 RBIs. He led the Braves to another pennant, but this time they lost a seven-game World Series to the Yankees. Aaron finished third in the MVP race, but he picked up his first Gold Glove.

During the next several years, Aaron had some of his best games and best seasons as a major league player. On June 21, 1959 against the San Francisco Giants, he hit three two-run home runs. It was the only time in his career that he hit three home runs in a game. [Hank Aaron and the Home Run that changed America, Tom Stanton, p.142, ISBN 978-0-06-072290-6]

Aaron nearly won the triple crown in 1963. He led the league with 44 home runs and 130 RBI and finished third in batting average. [His average was .319, .007 behind the leader, Tommy Davis.] In that season, Aaron became the third player to steal 30 bases and hit 30 home runs in a single season. Despite that, he again finished third in the MVP voting.

The Braves moved from Milwaukee to Atlanta, Georgia after the 1965 season.

Home run milestones

During his days in Atlanta, Aaron reached a number of milestones. He was only the eighth player ever to hit 500 career home runs. At the time, he was the second youngest player to reach that plateau. [Aaron was 34 years, five months and nine days old. Jimmy Foxx was the youngest to reach the mark at the time. Since then, Alex Rodriguez has become the youngest to reach this mark.]

On July 31, 1969, Aaron hit his 537th home run, passing Mickey Mantle. This moved him into third place on the career home run list behind Willie Mays and Babe Ruth. At the end of the season, Aaron again finished 3rd in the MVP voting.

The next year Aaron reached two career milestones. On May 17, 1970 Aaron collected his 3,000th hit. This was done in a game against the Cincinnati Reds, the team against which he played his first game. [Hank Aaron and the Home Run that changed America, Tom Stanton, p.202, ISBN 978-0-06-072290-6] He was the first player to get 3,000 career hits and 500 career home runs. Also during that year, Aaron established the record for most seasons with 30 or more home runs in the National League.

On April 27, 1971, Aaron hit his 600th career home run, the third player ever to do so. On July 31, Aaron hit a home run in the All-Star Game (played at Detroit's Tiger Stadium) for the first time. He hit his 40th home run of the season against the Giants' Jerry Johnson on August 10. This established a National League record for most seasons with 40 or more home runs (seven). He hit 47 home runs during the season, and finished third in MVP voting for the 6th time.

During the strike shortened season of 1972, Aaron tied and then surpassed Willie Mays for second place on the career home run list. Aaron also knocked in the 2,000th run of his career and hit a home run in the first All-Star game in Atlanta. As the year came to a close, Aaron broke Stan Musial's major league record for total bases (6,134).

While many expected Aaron to break Ruth's home run record in 1973, a key moment of the season came on August 6. This was Hank Aaron Day in Wisconsin and the Atlanta Braves played the Milwaukee Brewers in an exhibition game. The guests in attendance included Aaron's first manager with the Braves, "Jolly Cholly" Grimm, his teammate from Jacksonville, Felix Mantilla, Eau Claire president Ron Berganson, and Del Crandall, the catcher for the 1957 World Champion Braves and the current manager of the Brewers. [Hank Aaron and the Home Run that changed America, Tom Stanton, p.129, ISBN 978-0-06-072290-6]

The only position that the Braves wanted Aaron to play was as the Designated Hitter because the game was held in an American League park. However, at that time the National League prohibited use of the DH even in scrimmages. Due to the fact that National League president Chub Feeney could not be reached, it was left up to the umpire, Bruce Froemming to make a decision. Froemming ignored the rule and allowed Aaron to be the DH for the Braves. Later on, National League officials ignored the infraction. [Hank Aaron and the Home Run that changed America, Tom Stanton, p.130, ISBN 978-0-06-072290-6]

Breaking Ruth's record

Although Aaron himself downplayed the "chase" to surpass Babe Ruth, baseball enthusiasts and the national media grew increasingly excited as he closed in on the home run record. During the summer of 1973 Aaron received thousands of letters every week; the Braves ended up hiring a secretary to help him sort through it. [Hank Aaron and the Home Run that changed America, Tom Stanton, p.62, ISBN 978-0-06-072290-6]

At the age of 39, Aaron managed to slug 40 home runs in 392 at-bats, ending the season one home run short of the record. He hit home run number 713 on September 29, 1973, and with one day remaining in the season, many expected him to tie the record. But in his final game that year, playing against the Houston Astros (led by manager Leo Durocher, who had once roomed with Babe Ruth), he was unable to hit one out of the park. After the game, Aaron stated that his only fear was that he might not live to see the 1974 season. ["Hank Aaron and the Home Run that changed America," Tom Stanton, p.179, ISBN 978-0-06-072290-6]

Over the winter, Aaron was the recipient of death threats and a large assortment of hate mail from people who did not want to see a black man break Ruth's nearly home run record. [Hank Aaron and the Home Run that changed America, Tom Stanton, p.64, ISBN 978-0-06-072290-6] The threats extended to those providing positive press coverage of Aaron. Lewis Grizzard, then editor of the "Atlanta Journal", reported receiving numerous phone calls calling them "nigger lovers" for covering Aaron's chase. While preparing the massive coverage of the home run record, he quietly had an obituary written, scared that Aaron might be murdered. [Grizzard, Lewis, "If I Ever Get Back to Georgia, I'm Gonna Nail My Feet to the Ground", p. 239-40]

"Sports Illustrated" pointedly summarized the racist vitriol that Aaron was forced to endure:

"Is this to be the year in which Aaron, at the age of thirty-nine, takes a moon walk above one of the most hallowed individual records in American sport...? Or will it be remembered as the season in which Aaron, the most dignified of athletes, was besieged with hate mail and trapped by the cobwebs and goblins that lurk in baseball's attic?" [ Leggett, William. "A Tortured Road to 715." "Sports Illustrated," p.28, May 28, 1973.]

Aaron received an outpouring of public support in response to the bigotry. Babe Ruth's widow, Claire Hodgson, even denounced the racism and declared that her husband would have enthusiastically cheered Aaron's attempt at the record. ["Hank Aaron and the Home Run that changed America," Tom Stanton, p.25]

As the 1974 season began, Aaron's pursuit of the home run record caused a small controversy. The Braves opened the season on the road in Cincinnati with a three game series against the Reds. Braves management wanted him to break the record in Atlanta, and were therefore going to have Aaron sit out the first three games of the season. But Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn ruled that he had to play two games in the first series. He played two out of three, tying Babe Ruth's record in his very first at bat off Reds pitcher Jack Billingham, but did not hit another home run in the series. [ [http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-739 "New Georgia Encyclopedia", "Hank Aaron"] ]

The team returned to Atlanta, and on April 8, 1974, a crowd of 53,775 people showed up for the game — a Braves attendance record. In the 4th inning, Aaron hit career home run number 715 off L.A. Dodgers pitcher Al Downing. Although Dodgers outfielder Bill Buckner nearly went over the outfield wall trying to catch it, the ball landed in the Braves bullpen, where relief pitcher Tom House caught it. While cannons were fired in celebration, two white college students sprinted onto the field and jogged alongside Aaron as he circled the base paths. As the fans cheered wildly, Aaron's mother ran onto the field as well.

A few months later, on October 5, 1974, Aaron hit his 733rd and final home run as a Brave, which stood as the National League's home run record until it was broken by Barry Bonds in 2006. Thirty days later, the Braves traded Aaron to the Milwaukee Brewers for Roger Alexander and Dave May. Because the Brewers were an American League team, he was able to extend his career by taking advantage of the designated hitter rule. On May 1, 1975, Aaron broke baseball's all-time RBI record, previously held by Ruth with 2,217. That year, he also made the last of his 24 All-Star appearances; it, like his first in 1955, was before a home crowd at Milwaukee County Stadium.

On July 20, 1976, Hank Aaron hit his 755th and final home run at Milwaukee County Stadium off Dick Drago of the California Angels.

Post-playing career

On August 1, 1982 Hank Aaron was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, having received votes on 97.8 percent of the ballots, second to only Ty Cobb, who had received votes on 98.2% of the ballot in the inaugural 1936 Hall of Fame election.cite web
url=http://www.baseballlibrary.com/ballplayers/player.php?name=Hank_Aaron_1934
title=Hank Aaron Player Profile
accessdate=2007-02-01
last=Braunstein
first=Arnie
publisher=BaseballLibrary.com] Aaron was then named the Braves' vice president and director of player development. This made him one of the first minorities in Major League Baseball upper-level management.cite web
url=http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/Aaron_Hank.html
title=Hammerin' back at racism
accessdate=2007-02-01
last=Schwartz
first=Larry
publisher=ESPN Classic]

Since December 1989, he has served as senior vice president and assistant to the Braves' president. He is the corporate vice president of community relations for TBS, a member of the company's board of directors and the vice president of business development for The Airport Network.

On May 16, 2007, Major League baseball announced the sale of the Atlanta Braves. In that announcement, Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig also announced that Aaron would be playing a major role in the management of Atlanta Braves. He will be forming programs through Major League Baseball that will encourage the influx of minorities into baseball. [Blum, Ronald. [http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/4810908.html "Braves' Sale Approved by Baseball Owners"] , "Associated Press", May 16, 2007.] [ [http://www.timesargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070518/SPORTS/705180343/1004/SPORTS "Hank Aaron will have new role with new Atlanta Braves"] , "Associated Press", May 18, 2007.]

On February 5, 1999, at his 65th birthday celebration, Major League Baseball announced the introduction of the Hank Aaron Award. [cite web
url=http://www.sportingnews.com/archives/aaron/timeline.html
title=Hank Aaron Timeline
accessdate=2007-02-01
last=
first=
publisher="The Sporting News"] The award was set to honor the best overall offensive performer in the American and National League. It was the first major award to be introduced in more than thirty years and it was also the first award named after a player who was still alive.cite web
url=http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/awards/mlb_awards_content.jsp?content=hank_aaron_history
title=History of the Hank Aaron Award
accessdate=2007-02-01
last=
first=
publisher=MLB.com] Later that year, he ranked number 5 on "The Sporting News"' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, [cite web
url=http://archive.sportingnews.com/baseball/100/index-5.html
title=Baseball's 100 Greatest Players
accessdate=2007-02-01
last=
first=
publisher="The Sporting News"] and was elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. [cite web
url=http://www.baseball-almanac.com/legendary/limc100.shtml
title=Major League Baseball All-Century Team
accessdate=2007-02-01
last=
first=
publisher=Baseball Almanac]

In July 2000 and again in July 2002, Aaron threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, played at Turner Field and Miller Park, respectively.

In June 2002, Aaron received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor. [cite web
url=http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/06/20020620-16.html
title=President Bush Announces the Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
accessdate=2007-02-01
last=
first=
publisher=White House]

His autobiography "I Had a Hammer" was published in 1990. The book's title is a play on his nickname, "The Hammer" or "Hammerin' Hank," and the title of the folk song "If I Had a Hammer". Aaron now owns Hank Aaron BMW of south Atlanta in Union City, Georgia, where he gives an autographed baseball with every car sold. [cite web
url=http://www.superiorpics.com/hank_aaron/
title=Hank Aaron Biography
accessdate=2007-02-01
last=
first=
publisher=] Aaron also owns Mini, Jaguar, Land Rover, Toyota, Hyundai and Honda dealerships throughout Georgia, as part of the Hank Aaron Automotive Group. Aaron sold all but the Toyota dealership in McDonough in 2007. [cite web
url=http://www.hankaaronauto.com/
title=Hank Aaron Automotive Group
accessdate=2007-02-01
last=
first=
publisher= ]

Statues of Aaron stand outside the front entrance of both Turner Field and Miller Park. There is also a statue of him as an 18-year-old shortstop outside of Carson Park in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, where he played his first season in the Braves' minor league system.

In April 1997, a new baseball facility for the AA Mobile Bay Bears constructed in Aaron's hometown of Mobile, Alabama was named Hank Aaron Stadium.

In 2006, a recreational trail in Milwaukee connecting Miller Park with Lake Michigan along the Menomonee River was dedicated as the "Hank Aaron State Trail." Hank Aaron was on hand for the dedication along with Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle, who at the ceremony described himself as a boyhood fan of Aaron's.

Home run record eclipsed by Barry Bonds

During the 2006 season, San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds passed Babe Ruth and moved into 2nd place on the all-time home run list, attracting growing media coverage as he drew ever closer to Aaron's record. Playing off the intense interest in their perceived rivalry, Aaron and Bonds made a television commercial that aired during Super Bowl XLI, shortly before the start of the 2007 baseball season, in which Aaron jokingly tried to persuade Bonds to retire before breaking the record. [cite web
url=http://www.ifilm.com/video/2419641/collection/18503/minisite/superbowl
title=Charles Schwab Super Bowl XXXVI ad
accessdate=2007-07-31
last=
first=
publisher=]

As Bonds began to close in on the record during the 2007 season, Aaron let it be known that, although he recognized Bonds' achievements, he would not be present when Bonds broke the record. [http://www.workers.org/2007/us/barry-bonds-0623/] There was considerable speculation that this was a snubbing of Bonds based on the widespread belief that Bonds had used performance-enhancing steroids to power his achievement. However, some observers looked back to Aaron's personal history, pointing out that he had downplayed his own breaking of Babe Ruth's all-time record and suggesting that Aaron was simply treating Bonds in a similar fashion. In a later interview with Atlanta sportscasting personality Chris Dimino, Aaron made it clear that his reluctance to attend any celebration of a new home run record was based upon his personal conviction that baseball is not about breaking records, but simply playing to the best of your potential. [http://www.workers.org/2007/us/barry-bonds-0623/]

After Bonds hit his record-breaking 756th home run on August 7, 2007, Aaron made a surprise appearance on the JumboTron video screen at AT&T Park in San Francisco to congratulate Bonds on his accomplishment:

Career statistics

See also

* List of MLB individual streaks
* List of Major League Baseball Home Run Records
* List of Major League Baseball RBI Records
* List of Major League Baseball doubles records
* 500 home run club
* 3000 hit club
* 3000-500 Club
* List of top 500 Major League Baseball home run hitters
* List of major league players with 2,000 hits
* List of Major League Baseball players with 400 doubles
* List of Major League Baseball players with 100 triples
* List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
* List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBI
* List of Major League Baseball RBI champions
* List of Major League Baseball batting champions
* List of Major League Baseball home run champions
* List of Major League Baseball runs scored champions
* List of Major League Baseball doubles champions
* Major League Baseball hitters with three home runs in one game
* Major League Baseball titles leaders

References

External links

*
*
* [http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-739 georgiaencyclopedia.org] Aaron story
* [http://www.gshf.org gshf.org] Georgia Sports Hall of Fame
* [http://www.summerupnorth.com summerupnorth.com] Documentary on Hank Aaron's early years in Eau Claire
* [http://www.archive.org/details/HankAaron-715thHomeRun-ThreeDifferentCalls Play-by-Play Audio of Aaron's 715th Home Run] from Archive.org
* [http://www.quoteland.com/author.asp?AUTHOR_ID=1113 Quoteland.com] Hank Aaron Quotes

succession box
title = National League Batting Champion
before = Richie Ashburn
Richie Ashburn
years = 1956
1959
after = Stan Musial
Dick Groatsuccession box
title = National League Home Run Champion
before = Duke Snider
Willie Mays
Willie Mays
years = 1957
1963 (with Willie McCovey)
1966-1967
after = Ernie Banks
Willie Mays
Willie McCoveysuccession box
title = National League RBI Champion
before = Stan Musial
Ernie Banks
Tommy Davis
Deron Johnson
years = 1957
1960
1963
1966
after = Ernie Banks
Orlando Cepeda
Ken Boyer
Orlando Cepedasuccession box
title = Career home run record holders
years = 1974-2007
before = Babe Ruth
after = Barry Bondssuccession box
title = Lou Gehrig Memorial Award
years = 1970
before = Pete Rose
after = Harmon Killebrewsuccession box
title = National League Most Valuable Player
years = 1957
before = Don Newcombe
after = Ernie Bankssuccession box
title = Major League Player of the Month
years =May 1959 (withHarvey Haddix)
June 1967
before = Willie Mays
Roberto Clemente
after = Roy Face
Jim Ray Hart