• Seeing Aaron pass Babe; being his friend,
The idea of seeing Henry Aaron break Babe Ruth’s home run record began when a college friend headed to Atlanta to work for what she called the domestic Peace Corps. It was perfect – she bought the tickets in the winter and we had a place to crash for the Braves’ 1974 home opener.
Aaron stood at 713 after the ’73 season, creating a winter’s worth of publicity as he was just one homer shy of then magic No. 714 authored by Ruth two generations before.
The plan was simple: Drive to the Georgia capital from American University in Washington while the Braves were in Cincinnati to open the ’74 season. Hank did his part on opening day by tying the Babe and setting up what the Braves hoped would be the record-setter at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium the following week. That would mean Braves manager Eddie Mathews would bench Hank the final two games in Riverfront Stadium.
Not so fast, said baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn, who after Hank sat out the Saturday game ordered the Braves to play him on Sunday.
Aaron went 0-for-3 that day as we listened on the radio at Stone Mountain outside Atlanta. No one moved or spoke around the picnic table while Hank batted.
As the Braves headed home, we headed to the airport to greet the team. In an era with muchless security, my friends and I were up close as Hank told us he always thought the record should be broken in Atlanta. As he gripped the microphone you could see his huge hands and wrists.
Game day – April 8, 1974 – was filled with tornado warnings and rain but nothing dampened our college-age spirits. We had painted a sheet that read “Boston Loves Hank,” as several
of us were Red Sox fans. We learned weeks later that NBC showed the banner during the national telecast.
One thing missing – Commissioner Kuhn, who had angered the Braves faithful with his mandate that Aaron play on Sunday. Mention of Kuhn’s name drew noticeable booing.
The Braves entertained the Los Angeles Dodgers that evening, with Al Downing on the mound. From our box seats beyond the Braves dugout down the right-field line, we watched Aaron walk amid jeers and score against the left-hander in the second inning.
The rain stopped in the decisive fourth as if the weatherman knew the importance of what was about to happen. Darrell Evans reached on an error to bring up Henry, who watched Downing throw a pitch in the dirt amid more booing.
The home run came on the next pitch and I can still see the ball next to the stadium lights as it soared toward left field where Bill Buckner leaped in vain at the fence. Meantime, Hank circled the bases and we watched
those two fans slap him on the back near shortstop before a massive reception at home plate. A guy in a raincoat with a tape recorder was prominent – Craig Sager, who would go on to star on CNN and Turner’s NBA coverage.
One vivid memory involved the on-deck batter Dusty Baker, who was seen jumping up and down in absolute joy. The current Houston Astros manager told MLB.com after learning of his hero’s death, “Hank Aaron was the most important influence in my life next to my dad.” Three more takeaways:
Well over half of the 53,775 fans cleared out after the big home run.
Hank displayed his clutch play that night with his two-run shot tying the game 3-3 before the Braves pulled away for a 7-4 victory.
Later in the game, we could see Hank at the end of the dugout sucking on a cigarette. We yelled to him – and he waved back with a noticeably large hand.
Kimball was an editor at USA TODAY Sports from 1995 to 2012.