“What a marvelous moment for baseball. What a marvelous moment for Atlanta and the state of Georgia. What a marvelous moment for the country and the world. A black man is getting a standing ovation in the deep South for breaking the record of an all-time baseball idol. And it is a great moment for all of us, and particularly for Henry Aaron.” – Vin Scully
He was Milwaukee’s greatest baseball hero, having made history for the Brew City in 1957. 17 years later, on April 8, 1974, he made history for baseball, America and civil rights by breaking the home run record of Babe Ruth with his 715th homer of his career.
After having powered the Milwaukee Braves to the city’s only World Series championship, the owners of the Braves moved the team – and Aaron’s career – to Atlanta, where he slugged for the Braves for nine years. He finished his career with the Brewers in 1975-76.
For an entire off-season, Aaron got hate mail, death threats and more from racists who hated that an African-American was about to become the greatest home run hitter ever.
Aaron answered back with class. Dignity. And the most powerful bat baseball had ever seen.
Watch.
The date is April 8, 1974, and this is your all-time home run leaderboard:
— Super 70s Sports (@Super70sSports) April 8, 2020
Babe Ruth 714
Hank Aaron 714
And there’s about to be a new king:
pic.twitter.com/eGbIEjWFPK