Hank Aaron–African American Baseball Legend

1934–2021

Hank Aaron passed away at age 86 on Friday, January 22, 2021. Aaron is regarded as one of the greatest baseball players of all time. His 755 career home runs, which broke the long-standing career record of Babe Ruth, stood as the MLB record for 33 years, and he still holds many other offensive MLB records. He hit 24 or more home runs every year from 1955 through 1973, and he is one of only two players to hit 30 or more home runs in a season at least fifteen times. In 1999, The Sporting News ranked Aaron fifth on its list of the “100 Greatest Baseball Players”. In 1982, he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.

Aaron was born and raised in and around Mobile, Alabama. Aaron had seven siblings, including Tommie Aaron, who played major-league baseball with him. He appeared briefly in the Negro American League and in minor league baseball before starting his major league career. By his final MLB season, Aaron was the last Negro league baseball player on a major league roster.