Hank Aaron is known for three major things:
Setting the career Home Run record (since broken by Barry Bonds).
Facing severe racism while chasing the record.
Being an overall class act.
“Hammerin” Hank Aaron would hit 733 of his 755 career Home Runs with the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves, and while his season high of 44 doesn’t come close to the season high set before or after his run in baseball, his consistency to hit the long ball is near unequalled. Aaron hit 44 Home Runs to win the NL Title in 1967, and he would repeat, leading the title three more times (1963, 1966 & 1967), with the second and third titles being won with…what else? 44 Home Runs. Aaron would have five more 40 Home Run and six more 30 Home Run Seasons. He is also the career leader in Runs Batted In (2,297) with 2,202 coming as a Brave. He was a four-time RBI leader, and he exceeded 120 RBI seven times. His Braves Slash Line is a sick .310/.377/.567 with an even 3,600 Hits, and without Aaron, the Braves do not go back-to-back World Series (1957 & 1958), in which Milwaukee won the first one, where Hank batted .393 with 3 Home Runs.
Aaron was named to the All-Star every season from 1955 to 1974, and with the exception of his rookie campaign, he was always an All-Star while playing for the Braves. Aaron was named the MVP in the 1957 campaign while finishing third for the award six times. Aaron was also a decent defensive player who won the Gold Glove three times, and he had underappreciated speed on the basepaths, as evidenced by his six seasons with 20 or more stolen bases.
The Atlanta Braves retired his number 44 in 1977, and he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982. Fittingly, to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Aaron surpassing Babe Ruth in career Home Runs, Major League Baseball created the Hank Aaron Award to honor the best offensive player in each league. The Braves also named Aaron to their Hall of Fame in the inaugural class in 1999.
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