Although most of the mail sent to the Braves star wished him well, he used the venom-soaked letters as kindling to stoke his fire. Aaron, who started his career in the Negro Leagues and joined the Braves only seven years after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier, wrote in his autobiography that he was driven by “the sense of doing something for my race.” He believed the best way to honor Robinson’s legacy “was to become the all-time home run champion in the history of the game that had kept out Black people for more than sixty years.”
Aaron stood on the precipice of history as the 1974 season began. On his first swing on Opening Day, he launched a ball over the wall of Cincinnati’s Riverfront Stadium to tie Ruth at 714 homers. Four days later, he was back in Atlanta for the team’s home opener. Pearl Bailey sang the national anthem, and Aaron’s father threw out the first pitch as the country watched on NBC, which pre-empted its normal Monday night prime-time lineup to broadcast the game. Aaron walked in his first at-bat in the second inning and broke Willie Mays’ National League record for runs when he came around to score. Normally, the occasion would have been momentous, but compared to the home run chase, it was a mere footnote for the record books.
As the slugger stepped to the plate in the fourth inning, the tempest that surrounded him faded away. To Aaron, the focal point of the batter’s box was like the eye of a storm, a quiet sanctuary. He dug in and focused in on Downing, a veteran southpaw who had won 20 games in 1971 and surrendered Aaron’s 676th and 693rd home runs. Ball one. Downing went into the wind up again, and the ball spun out of his left hand. The pitcher’s sinker didn’t do much sinking, however, and Aaron struck the ball with his fluid, easy swing that belied his tremendous power. Aaron and the entire country watched as Dodgers left fielder Bill Buckner retreated to the wall. When he could run no more, Buckner scaled the ballpark’s chain link fence, but he could only watch as the baseball sailed over his head and into the mitt of Braves relief pitcher Tom House in the bullpen.
Aaron floated around the bases. “Hammerin’ Hank” rarely smiled on his home-run trots, but on this occasion, he couldn’t help it. Dodgers players extended their hands in congratulations. As Aaron’s cleats touched second base, he suddenly discovered he had an escort. Teenagers Britt Gaston and Cliff Courtney had leaped onto the field and ran alongside the new home-run king to shake his hand and pat him on the back before he reached third base. Given all the threats toward Aaron, his bodyguard considered pulling out his concealed pistol until he realized the fans meant no harm.
Aaron’s teammates mobbed him as he touched home plate. “Hammer, here it is!” shouted House, who had sprinted in from the bullpen to present his teammate with the historic home-run ball. Fireworks burst in the Georgia sky as Aaron’s mother gave him the tightest hug of his life. The future Hall of Famer shed tears, more out of relief than joy, as he told the crowd in a brief ceremony, “I’d just like to say to all the fans here this evening that I just thank God it’s all over with.”
Aaron retired in 1976 with 755 home runs, a record that stood until 2007 when Barry Bonds, tainted by allegations of using performance-enhancing drugs, broke it. However, much like baseball fans in the 1970s who still considered Ruth the greatest home-run hitter who ever lived, many present-day fans echo the feelings of Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson who said Aaron remains “the people’s home run champion.” Aaron died on January 22, 2021, at age 86.
