Aaron’s HR record honored 50 years after hit
ATLANTA >> The 50th anniversary of Hank Aaron’s 715th home run was marked Monday with announcements of a new statue at Baseball’s Hall of Fame and a new commemorative stamp from the U.S. Postal Service.
Meanwhile, baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred helped honor Aaron in Atlanta by joining the Braves in announcing the $100,000 endowment of a scholarship at Tuskegee University, a historically Black university in Aaron’s home state of Alabama.
Manfred noted the Henry Louis Aaron Fund, launched by the Braves following Aaron’s death in 2021, and the Chasing the Dream Foundation, created by Aaron and wife Billye, were designed to clear paths for minorities in baseball and to encourage educational opportunities.
“I got to know Hank later in his life and he had that amazing presence that the great ones usually have, and he was undoubtedly a force for change in our society,” Manfred said at the Atlanta History Center, where a new exhibit honoring Aaron was unveiled.
“I’m sure that commitment to improving the life of others was in part a product of what he went through as a player. Hank’s legacy goes way beyond baseball.”
The exhibit will remain open through the 2025 All-star Game in Atlanta.
Billye Aaron attended the unveiling of the exhibit and spoke in a video about Aaron’s recordbreaking homer in 1974. She said while watching from her seat near the field, she was upset to see two 17-year-old fans, Britt Gaston and Cliff Courtenay, run onto the diamond and join Aaron as he ran around the bases.
“It just made me angry,” Billye Aaron said, adding she thought the young fans were “stealing his thunder” but noted her husband was not upset.
“If I had been Henry running around the bases, I would have given them more than an elbow,” she said.
Another fan, Charlie Russo, told The Associated Press he followed Aaron’s family onto the field and for the first time he made available a video reproduction of the 8mm film he shot that night.
Manfred said much has changed in the last 50 years, including security. “I think we’re better than letting fans onto the
field,” he said.
Aaron’s 715th home run topped the record 714 hit by Babe Ruth in a career from 1914-35. Aaron hit 755 home runs from 195476, a mark that stood until Barry Bonds hit 762 from 1986-2007, a feat assisted by performance-enhancing drugs.
Baseball’s Hall of Fame will unveil a bronze statue of Hank Aaron on May 23 on the first floor of its museum in Cooperstown, New York.
Aaron was elected to the approach to this spring season, instead focusing on her own game instead of worrying about those around her.
“I think I’m kind of going into the season just focusing on getting ready for college and preparing for other national tournaments,” she said. “I think last season, I kind of got caught up in results, winning, breaking records. It wasn’t good for me mentally because then I wasn’t really just playing golf.”
Hale, the reigning 4A queen, has likewise been working to hone her mental fortitude. She said that having such a strong team to back her up helps ease some of the pressure amid competition, as she continues to focus on what she can control on unfavorable courses.
“This is kind of a difficult course,” Hale said. “Regardless of the distance, there’s just some tricky tee shots. I would say there’s some holes where it being shorter honestly makes it kind of harder, because it’s just not in the correct landing areas. It was kind of windy today, but it was in good condition. … It teaches you a new level of confidence and having to commit to your shots.”
Junior Taylor Hale and senior Hollyn Drennen rounded out Erie’s top-four showing with fifth (79) and 11th (82), respectively.
Muscling through
Much like the rest of the
hall in 1982. A 25-time Allstar, he set a record with 2,297 RBIS. He continues to hold the records of 1,477 extra-base hits and 6,856 total bases.
“The legacy of Hank Aaron has always been about so much more than just his incredible baseball achievements,” Hall chair Jane Forbes Clark said in a statement. “His philanthropic vision, his support of youth empowerment efforts and his pioneering work as an executive have opened the doors of opportunity for millions throughout the United States and around the world. We are extremely privileged to care for and preserve his
field, Fairview senior Ava Hickey had to battle the finicky pace of an otherwise sluggish tournament. In just the second competition of her last year with the Knights, she focused on the positive aspects that came with a tie for 11th and an 82.
“This one was pretty slow, especially at the beginning and the end, I feel like, which was kind of rough,” Hickey said. “The middle was a normal high school pace, I guess. I had trouble getting in a rhythm, especially on the greens, but I was swinging it really well today.”
Over the summer, Hickey worked on her confidence on the course and hit the weight room to tone the physical side of her game. She believed the difference
entire personal collection in Cooperstown, and this statue will stand forever as a tribute to an American hero.”
The Postal Service announced it will release a stamp picturing Aaron in his batting stance wearing his Atlanta Braves uniform. The date of issue and dedication ceremony will be announced later.
Among Aaron’s teammates from the 1974 Braves team who attended the event at the Atlanta History Center were Dusty Baker, who was on deck when Aaron hit the homer off Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Al Downing, and Tom House, the reliever
in her style of play was palpable.
“My mental game was a lot stronger today and I feel like I’m definitely hitting the ball farther,” she said. “I think it just gives me a
who caught the ball in the bullpen.
Baker retired as Houston’s manager following the 2023 season.
Billye Aaron joined Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, Baker and others on the field as the Braves marked the anniversary in a ceremony before Monday night’s game against the New York Mets. Following a video replay of the record homer, Baker said “Babe was a bad dude, but Hank was badder.”
Delta announced a $150,000 contribution to the Henry Louis Aaron Fund. The Braves had “715” painted on the grass in center field.
Erie’s Hadley Ashton watches her shot on the ninth hole at Lake Valley Golf Club during the Erie Cocoa Classic on Monday.
Erie’s Logan Hale maps out her put on the ninth green at Lake Valley Golf Club on Monday.
lot of confidence because, even when I’m swinging it pretty well but short game’s not great, I can still have a decent round and at least play how I want to even if the score doesn’t reflect it.”