Hank Aaron, the home run champion of Major League Baseball in the pre-steroid era, has died in Atlanta at the age of 86. Aaron slammed 755 home runs over a 21 season career.
Aaron played briefly in the Negro Leagues for the Indianapolis Clowns before joining the then-Boston Braves organizations of Major League Baseball in 1951. After three minor league seasons, he got the call to join big-league Braves team, who had moved to Milwaukee, in March 1954.
Aaron became a respected leader in the league and in the public, fighting for civil rights and player worker rights. As he approached the career home run record held by Babe Ruth, Aaron was deluged with racist hate mail, a fact buried at the time by the league. During the offseason of 1973-74, when he was one home run away from tying Ruth, Aaron received multiple death threats.
Aaron hit his 715th home run on April 8, 1974 at Atlanta’s Fulton County Stadium off Al Downing of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He would finish his career with 755 home runs, which would only be surpassed by Barry Bonds.
After his playing career ended, Aaron joined the management of the Atlanta Braves organization. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982 and named to the MLB All-Century team.
Divorced once, Aaron is survived by Billye Suber Williams, his wife of 47 years, and six children.