Hall of Fame announces it will unveil statue of Aaron

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.

The hall made the announcement Monday on the 50th anniversary of Aaron’s 715th home run, which topped the record 714 hit by Babe Ruth in a career from 1914-35.

Aaron hit 755 home runs from 1954-76, a mark that stood until Barry Bonds hit 762 from 1986-2007, a feat assisted by performance-enhancing drugs.

Aaron was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1982. A 25time All-star, he set a record with 2,297 RBIS.

“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 entire personal collection in Cooperstown, and this statue will stand forever as a tribute to an American hero.”

Blanco Blanko II?

Six nights after throwing a no-hitter at home against Toronto in his first start of the season, Houston Astros pitcher Ronel Blanco held the Texas Rangers without a hit until Adolis García had a clean single up the middle with two outs in the sixth in

Houston’s 3-1 win on Sunday. Blanco then retired Evan Carter and was done.

Astros manager Joe Espada said he already had decided that the sixth would the final inning for Blanco despite what was shaping up as a bid at no-hitters in consecutive starts, something achieved just once, by Johnny Vander Meer of the Cincinnati Reds in 1938.

After throwing 105 pitches in his no-hitter Monday night, Blanco had walked four batters and his pitch count was getting high already before going out for the sixth. Espada wanted to keep him around 90 pitches, which is right where he was after getting his final out.

• Justin Verlander allowed six earned runs and struck out six in pitching into the fourth inning of his first injury rehabilitation start Sunday for the Houston Astros’ Triple-a Sugar Space Cowboys.

The 41-year-old righthander, a three-time Cy Young Award winner, threw 46 of 65 pitches for strikes against Oakland’s Las Vegas Aviators.

Verlander retired his first four batters, then allowed hits to his next six. Five of those were for extra bases, leading to five runs.

Verlander, who began this season on the 15-day injured list with inflammation in his right shoulder, is expected to make at least one more rehab start in the minors.

Grote dies

Jerry Grote, the catcher who helped transform the New York Mets from a perennial loser into the 1969 World Series champion, died Sunday. He was 81.

Grote had suffered from heart issues and died at St. David’s Medical Center in Austin, Texas, Mets spokesman Jay Horwitz said.

At two-time All-star, Grote played 16 major league seasons and batted .252 with 39 homers and 404 RBIS.

“Backbone of a young Mets team who captured the heart of New York City,” Mets owner Steve Cohen and wife Alix said in a statement.

Buehler's day

Right-hander Walker Buehler made his second rehab start with Triple-a Oklahoma City on Saturday and was sharper than in his first outing.

Buehler retired the first nine batters he faced and 14 of 16 overall in 4 2/3 innings, allowing two hits, walking none and striking out six. Buehler threw 65 pitches (42 for strikes) with his fastball velocity steadily registering 94 mph with a high of 95.0 mph.

He is expected to make at least one more rehab start before joining the Dodgers’ starting rotation. His next rehab start could be with Class-a Rancho Cucamonga.

— Bill Plunkett

On this date

What is it about April 9? 1913 >> Ebbets Field opened in Brooklyn and Philadelphia defeated the Dodgers 1-0 before a crowd of 10,000. The stadium, which cost $750,000 to build, was named after Charles Ebbets, the club’s principal owner.

1947 >> Dodgers manager Leo Durocher was suspended for one year by commissioner Happy Chandler for “the accumulation of unpleasant incidents” detrimental to baseball.

1974 >> San Diego Padres owner Ray Kroc criticized his club over the public address system during the eighth inning of a 9-5 loss to the Houston Astros! “Ladies and gentlemen, I suffer with you,” Kroc told the crowd of 39,083 for the home opener. Kroc added, “I’ve never seen such stupid baseball playing in my life.”

1981 >> Fernando Valenzuela made his first major league start a stunning success by pitching a 2-0, five-hit triumph over the Houston Astros in Los Angeles. He would go on to win his first eight games.

2021 >> It took a record 8,206 games, but someone has finally pitched a no-hitter for the San Diego Padres: off-season acquisition Joe Musgrove defeats the Rangers, 3-0. Today’s pitching probables

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Detroit (Mize 0-0) at Pittsburgh (Pérez 1-0), 9:35 a.m.

Baltimore (Burnes 1-0) at Boston (Bello 1-0), 11:10 a.m.

Chicago White Sox (Soroka 0-1) at Cleveland (Allen 2-0), 3:10 p.m. Miami (Puk 0-2) at N.Y. Yankees (Rodón 0-0), 4:05 p.m.

Seattle (Kirby 1-1) at Toronto (Bassitt 0-2), 4:07 p.m.

Houston (Javier 1-0) at Kansas City (Ragans 0-1), 4:40 p.m. Oakland (Wood 0-1) at Texas (Eovaldi 1-0), 5:05 p.m.

Tampa Bay (Civale 1-1) at Angels (Sandoval 1-1), 6:38 p.m.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Milwaukee (Ross 0-0) at Cincinnati (Montas 2-0), 3:40 p.m.

N.Y. Mets (Houser 0-0) at Atlanta (López 0-0), 4:20 p.m.

Dodgers (Glasnow 2-0) at Minnesota (Varland 0-1), 4:40 p.m. Philadelphia (Wheeler 0-1) at St. Louis (Gray 0-0), 4:45 p.m.

Arizona (Kelly 1-0) at Colorado (Quantrill 0-1), 5:40 p.m. Washington (Gray 0-2) at San Francisco (Harrison 1-1), 6:45 p.m. Chicago Cubs (TBD) at Padres (Musgrove 1-1), 7:05 p.m.