March 3, 2021 by Philip Lewenstein
Baseball Heroes of My Youth Are Gone: Remembering Henry Aaron
As a child—I don’t recall how or why—I developed and nurtured a love of sports. Sports stars became my heroes, mostly baseball players, starting with Henry Aaron.
I noted in a 2018 blog (“World Series Memories,” December 4, 2018, www.philsfocus.com) that Minnesota did not have a professional baseball team until 1961, when the Washington Senators transferred to the Twin Cities. Until then, I cheered for the Milwaukee Braves, perhaps because my mother’s brother, relatives, and close friends lived in Milwaukee.
The Milwaukee Braves’ players were my heroes. I was particularly fond of the hall of famers: third baseman Eddie Mathews, pitcher Warren Spahn and, of course, right fielder Aaron, my favorite.
Thus, I was devastated to read of Aaron’s passing at age 86 on January 22. His death is part of a sad trend. In 2020, seven hall-of-fame players died, the most ever to pass in a calendar year. In all, 111 former major league players died, most of whom I recognized from my old baseball card collections. And so far this year, besides Aaron, two more hall of famers have died.
I first heard of Aaron when my parents told me that Aaron had started his career in the Northern League at Eau Claire in 1952 and had played against my home-town Duluth. I think my parents saw him play.
As an Aaron fan, I was an early adopter. Nobody imagined that Aaron would become baseball’s home run king in 1974, when he eclipsed Babe Ruth’s career home run record or that he would be recognized as one of the greatest baseball players of all time. However, I did not know about his upbringing or the racism he faced throughout his career.
Aaron played in somewhat obscurity compared to players like Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays, two players who performed in bigger cities like New York and received much more publicity than Aaron did. Aaron did not become a national figure until the early 1970s when he was chasing Ruth’s record. In February 1972, he became the highest-paid player in major league history, signing a three-year, $600,000 deal.
After starting the 1952 season with the Negro leagues’ Indianapolis Clowns, Aaron, 18 years old, signed in June with the Braves in their last season in Boston. They assigned him to their Class C farm team in Eau Claire, where he batted .336 in 87 games and was named the league’s rookie of the year.
In 1953, Aaron was promoted to play for Jacksonville in the South Atlantic League, becoming one of the league’s five Black players. He won the league’s most valuable player award. However, he was a poor infielder and after the season was switched to the outfield, where he became an outstanding right fielder. He began his major league career with Milwaukee in 1954 and emerged as a star in 1955, hitting .314.
The thrill of my childhood came in summer 1956, when our family traveled to visit relatives in Milwaukee, and my uncle took my dad and me to Milwaukee County Stadium to see the Braves—my first major league game.
The Braves won the National League pennant in 1957, the year Aaron won the National League’s most valuable player award, and won the pennant again in 1958. My uncle attended the World Series games and sent me a program and ticket stub from each series.
Milwaukee defeated the Yankees four games to three in the 1957 series. Aaron hit three home runs and drove in seven runs. In the 1958 series, the Braves led the Yankees three games to one, but the Yankees won the last three games to capture the title.
My uncle sent me autographed pictures of the key Braves’ players. I cherished them and still have them. My favorite is the “Good Luck Phil” picture, signed “Henry Aaron.” His jersey number 44 became my favorite sports number. It also adorned the jersey of my favorite basketball player, Jerry West. Aaron hit 44 home runs in four different seasons.
Aaron had several nicknames: “Hank,” “Hammerin Hank,” “Hammer,” and “Bad Henry.” His 1954 Topps rookie baseball card is valued at up to $30,000. I had some Aaron cards, but they were not in good condition, greatly diminishing their value.
As nine-and ten-year-old kids playing baseball in our driveway, the alley, the street, and elementary school fields, we emulated our favorite players’ batting stances and mannerisms. The distinguishing aspect of Aaron’s swing was his powerful wrists. With a flick of his wrists, he could whip the bat out of his right-handed stance with uncommon speed.
In summer 1959, our family returned to Milwaukee to see the Braves play the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants. Then, in 1964, I saw the Braves host the Cincinnati Reds. The Braves moved to Atlanta in 1966.
I watched the nationally-televised broadcast on April 8, 1974, when Aaron hit his 715th home run to break Babe Ruth’s career home run record. Aaron finished his career with 755 homers. His record stood until August 7, 2007, when Barry Bonds hit his 756th home run; he finished his career with 762 homers.
Aaron showed little interest in playing for the Braves after the 1974 season; he felt the fans demonstrated tepid support as he pursued Ruth’s record. Aaron was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers of the American League and was the team’s designated hitter for two seasons, 1975 and 1976.
After he retired, Aaron was named vice president and director of player development for the Braves, then senior vice president and assistant to the Braves’ president. Aaron was an executive for the Turner Broadcasting System. He owned several auto dealerships and a chain of restaurants. Aaron worked on behalf of Hank Aaron Chasing the Dream Foundation, helping gifted kids develop their talent.
On the 25th anniversary of Aaron’s 715th home run, Major League Baseball created the Hank Aaron award given annually to players with the best overall offensive performance in each league.
Aaron’s baseball accomplishments over 23 seasons were amazing:
- 755 career home runs;
- 2,297 runs batted in, most of any player in major league history;
- 3,771 career hits, behind only Pete Rose, 4,256, and Ty Cobb, 4,189; Aaron has more hits batting right- handed than any other major league player;
- 1,477 career extra-base hits, best in major league history; he hit 624 doubles and 98 triples in addition to his home runs;
- 6,856 total bases, most in major league history;
- .305 career batting average, including National League batting titles in 1956 and 1959;
- 25 all-star game selections, most of any player in major league history;
- 3 Gold Gloves for his skill in right field; Aaron was noted for his strong arm, smoothness, and grace;
- 0 – times he struck out 100 times in a season; he struck out an average of 60 times per season, 1,383 times in all;
- 77 percent success rate in stealing bases; he stole 20 or more bases six times; and
- 97.8, percentage of votes in making hall of fame on his first ballot in 1982.
In my youth, I admired Aaron for his talents and achievements. It was not until later that I learned about and understood the full story of his overcoming poverty and defying racism in becoming one of baseball’s greatest players.
Aaron was born February 5, 1934, in Mobile, Alabama, one of eight children, in a climate of poverty and racism. As he grew up, he saw pro baseball as a path to escape poverty and segregation.
Aaron’s major league debut was only six years after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in major league baseball in 1947. Most of the players on my baseball cards in the 1950s were white. Even though Black players were starting to integrate baseball, segregation was still prevalent in the 1950s, and Black athletes faced limitations in accommodations in their cities, both outside and within their locker rooms.
Throughout his career, Aaron had to overcome racial and social barriers. Even as Aaron pursued Ruth’s record, he found many Braves’ fans to be indifferent and hostile toward him. He received 930,000 pieces of fan mail, including many racist letters. He received verbal abuse and death threats; he often needed police escorts.
In reviewing Aaron’s career, I gained appreciation for his enduring qualities: humbleness, dignity, integrity, durability, consistency, toughness, perseverance, epitome of class, and role model.
Not only is Aaron one of the greatest baseball players of all time, he is one of the greatest Black athletes ever to perform. Black athletes were beginning to emerge as celebrities during Aaron’s ascent to stardom in baseball. Besides Aaron, I remember Willie Mays of the Giants, Ernie Banks of the Cubs, and Bob Gibson of the Cardinals. There were Jim Brown in football, Bill Russell in basketball, Arthur Ashe in tennis, and Muhammad Ali in boxing.
While remembering Henry Aaron, I also acknowledge the hall of famers who died in 2020 and so far this year: Lou Brock, Whitey Ford, Bob Gibson, Al Kaline, Joe Morgan, Phil Niekro, Tom Seaver, Don Sutton, and Tommy Lasorda—a great generation of special baseball players.
Brock was one of the best base stealers in baseball history. He played 19 seasons in the majors, 16 with the St. Louis Cardinals. He has the second-most stolen bases.
Ford, nicknamed “Chairman of the Board,” played his entire 16-year career for the Yankees. He was a ten-time all-star and six-time World Series champion. Ford had a 236-106 record and 2.75 earned run average, winning the 1961 Cy Young award as the best pitcher in the American League.
Gibson was known for his inspiring competitiveness and forceful determination. He played all of his 17 seasons with the Cardinals. Gibson was a nine-time all-star, Gold Glove winner, and two-time World Series champion. In 1968, Gibson won his first Cy Young award and most valuable player award after winning 22 games and recording a major league record 1.12 earned run average with 268 strikeouts. A two-time Cy Young winner, he holds the record for most strikeouts in a World Series game (17) and an entire World Series (35).
Kaline, nicknamed “Mr. Tiger,” played 22 seasons for the Detroit Tigers. He won ten Gold Glove awards for his fielding and was selected for 18 all-star games.
Morgan, one of the best second basemen in baseball history, was the sparkplug of Cincinnati’s Big Red Machine, which won two World Series championships. He was a two-time National League most valuable player, ten-time all-star, and five-time Gold Glove winner.
Niekro was one of baseball’s most prolific, durable pitchers, known for his knuckleball. “Nucksie” won 318 games in 24 seasons, including 21 with the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves; he won 121 games after turning 40 and pitched until age 48.
Seaver was a three-time Cy Young winner and 12-time all-star. Known as “Tom Terrific,” he won 311 games and had a 2.86 earned run average over a 20-year major league career. He was a member of the 1969 “Miracle Mets,” which won the team’s first World Series that year.
Two Dodger greats have passed away this year. Don Sutton won 324 games in a 23-year pitching career, 16 with the Dodgers. He was a broadcaster for three decades.
Tom Lasorda managed the Dodgers from 1977 through 1996, winning two World Series titles, four National League pennants, and eight division titles. He served 71 years with the Dodgers as a player, scout, coach, manager, and front-office executive, dating back to a start in Brooklyn.
I am grateful for the opportunity to watch all these hall of famers, but none more than Henry Aaron, my first baseball hero.
Leave a Reply