Home Run King Hank Aaron Dies

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Shocked to see one of my favorite baseball idols as a kid passed away today. Hammerin' Hank Aaron the "real home run" leader with 755 died peacefully in his sleep. Before the performance enhancing (steroid) era, Aaron passed the home run record of the great Yankee Babe Ruth, who held the previous record with 714. Aaron was 86 years old. A player who carried himself with great dignity and grace in his private life and on the ballfield, he endured racist threats while pursuing and breaking Ruth's home run record. He was not only a slugger with consistent power, but a player who also hit for average. His career .305 batting average and 3,771 plus hits can attest to that. Hank also ended his career with the RBI record with 2,297. In his post playing career the "Hammer" was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982, having received votes on 97.8 percent of the ballots, second only to Ty Cobb. When Aaron was named the Braves' vice president and director of player development it made him one of the first minorities in Major League Baseball to receive an upper-level management position. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, from President George W. Bush in June 2002. What impressed me about Henry Aaron was the sportsmanship and class he displayed on the ballfield and in retirement. Never showed up other players, or displayed any temper with bad calls by umpires. A true role model for minorities many whom could take a lesson on how to behave and overcome societies injustices. Hope you found this little tribute to one of my favorite players informative. If your not familiar with this athlete you should check him out on Wikipedia.