The Braves honored Hank Aaron on Monday evening at Truist Park, fifty years to the night Aaron hit home run No. 715, passing Babe Ruth as baseball’s home run king.
Before the Braves faced the Mets, they held a pre-game ceremony to commemorate the anniversary of the most iconic moment in Braves history and one of the greatest moments in sports.
There were 715 Braves A-list members spread across the outfield each holding a large baseball cutout with a number representing a home run. Aaron’s wife Billye, along with some of Aaron’s old teammates from the 1974 season gathered near home plate. Among the teammates were Dusty Baker, Ralph Garr, Tom House, Marty Perez, Ron Reed, Craig Robinson, Larvell Banks, John Fuller and Buzz Capra.
There was a large No. 44 on a red mat placed behind home plate. Three Hank Aaron award winners stood in front of the number and were acknowledged: Andruw Jones (2005), Ryan Howard (2006) and reigning National League MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. (2023).
The Braves aired a tribute video on the big screen as the on-field festivities were assembled. It featured interviews with Billye and former teammates. Among the highlights, Baker said, “Babe was a bad dude, but Hank was badder.”
It was announced that April 8 is officially “Henry Louis Aaron Day” in Georgia. Gov. Brian Kemp, alongside Braves chairman Terry McGuirk, presented the proclamation to Billye. Aaron’s great grandson King threw out the first pitch.
The Braves had “715″ imprinted in the center-field grass for the game. The on-deck circle was a graphic honoring Aaron. The team wore their city uniforms that are a callback to the classic look from Aaron’s era.
“It is amazing (to think it’s been 50 years),” said Braves manager Brian Snitker, whom Aaron initially hired as a coach decades ago. “I think it’s a great even to get (old teammates) back together. Time goes fast, I’ll tell you that.”
On the former teammates and old friends discussing Aaron as this moment approach, Snitker added: “You listen to those guys talk, that’s exactly what they all talked about, the same things that later on I witnessed and got to see. The person, the friend; it was a lot of the same things. You listen to Dusty and Ralph, those guys talk, it’s just who the man was and the kind of person he was. They all felt the same things we did, so it’s been pretty neat listening to them tell stories and relive their experiences.”
Aaron, a 25-time All-Star, finished with 755 homers. He remains the all-time leader in RBIs (2,297) and total bases (6,856). He’s considered the best player in franchise history and perhaps the best player in MLB history.
“He played the game the way it was supposed to be played and he was an excellent teammate, and an even better human being,” Garr told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution recently. “Henry Aaron was special. I thank God for him breaking that record and all he’s done for the game of baseball.”
Credit: Ryon Horne
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