I was 23 years old and a 1st year teacher/coach at my alma mater, Forney High School—APRIL 8, 1974—and I “got the word” that Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves had broken Babe Ruth’s all-time home run record. The only good thing I could think about it at the time was that he had done it against the Dodgers, probably the team I most “did not like” during my youthful years. (Grandpa and I were “Yankees Fans” and watched them every time they were on television when I visited him in Okarche, Oklahoma.)
Now, don’t get me wrong, I liked Hank Aaron and loved to watch him play. In fact, as boys playing “pickup” baseball at/on the Forney American Legion field or Kingfisher, Oklahoma’s Municipal Park Field every summer, we would adopt the names of major leaguers when we chose teams, and if I did not get to be Whitey (Ford) or Mickey (Mantle), I quite often opted for Ernie Banks or Henry Aaron. (Yes, we guys, including my cousins in Oklahoma, nearly always referred to Mr. Aaron as Henry; it sounded better to be a duo of “Ernie” and “Henry” than Ernest and Hank! Yes, we also knew his nickname of “Hammerin’ Hank!”
George Herman “Babe” Ruth, Jr., was born on February 6, 1895, in Baltimore, Maryland, one of eight children born to his parents, even though only his sister and he survived. George was rather unruly as a child and, therefore, his parents hoped to put him onto the path of “right direction” by enrolling him in St. Mary’s Industrial School for Boys. This school was run by Catholic Monks and probably did more to help shape his future, teach him vocational skills, and awaken in him a passion for BASEBALL than did any other early trainings or associations.
Take a look at his lifetime baseball statistics. Batting average—.342….. Slugging percentage—.690….. Home runs— 714…..Runs batted in— 2,213…..Runs scored—2,174….. Walks—2,062….. Hits—2,873….. Pitching wins/ losses—94/46…..
Pitching earned run average—2.28…..In 1927, he set a record of 60 home runs in one season at a time when hitting 10 or 20 was considered a wonderful feat!
Because he was such a multi-talented player, I agreed with Dr. Jim Luther when he debated with one of my very smart students that Babe Ruth was the greatest player ever in Major League Baseball, because he both pitched and hit at an amazing level—plus a he was a New York Yankee for nearly all his playing career!
So, when other players came along and threatened his records, I was some what sad! I hated it when Roger Maris hit “61” homers in his famous home run race against fellow Yankee teammate (Guess who?), Mickey Mantle.
And then, here comes a player in the early ‘70s, who appears to be on the road to breaking the Babe’s home run record. Because I did not believe we should wish “bad” for anyone, I hoped that Henry Aaron would hit 714 homers and then continue to be a great player but not hit another one out of the park or that he would retire the day he tied the record. But, no such luck!
Before a sellout crowd in Atlanta Stadium on the night of April 8 and on national television, Mr. Aaron hit his 715th home run off Al Downing, a former Yankee, who was by then playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He went on to finish his career with 755, which I consider STILL THE RECORD, since the higher record in the books now is by someone about whom there were widespread allegations of the use of performance enhancing drugs.
He also holds the alltime records for runs batted in—2,297….. extra base hits—1,477…..and total bases—6,856…..and was selected for the ALL-STAR GAME 21 consecutive years. His career batting average was .305, and he had what some people might say was a “cannon for an arm.” It was not smart for opposing players to try to “take on extra base” if the ball was hit to “Hank.”
Henry Louis Aaron (3rd of 8 children) was born in Mobile, Alabama, on February 5, 1934, in the “Down the Bay” section of the city. He excelled in both football and baseball in high school but in 1951 quit school to play for the Negro American League’s Indianapolis Clowns and at age 18 led the team to victory in the league’s 1952 World Series, fielding excellently and batting .366!
According to one source I read, he was the final player to be a part of both the Negro Leagues and the Major Leagues, as he signed with the Milwaukee Braves. He made his Major League debut in 1954 and won his first batting title in 1956.
After 21 glorious years as a BRAVE, HANK AARON played his final two seasons back with his old big league home town fans as he joined the Milwaukee Brewers to take advantage of the new designated hitter rule of the American League.
And, after 86 years as a great human being, Mr. Aaron has passed on to the “field where there are no more injuries or hardships.” He will be greatly missed but never forgotten!
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