Baseball Hall of Famer Hank Aaron, the quiet, unassuming slugger who broke Babe Ruth's supposedly unbreakable record for most home runs in a career and battled racism in the process, died on Friday, the Atlanta Braves announced. He was 86.
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Aaron joined the Braves management to become one of the few African-Americans in a baseball executive position after retiring as a player in 1976 with 755 career home runs, a record unmatched for more than three decades. Aaron died "peacefully in his sleep," the Braves said in a statement.
His hitting prowess earned him the nickname "Hammerin' Hank," and his power was attributed to strong wrists. He was somewhat shy and lacked the flair of contemporaries Willie Mays and Mickey Mantle.
Tributes to Aaron poured in from the worlds of sports, entertainment and politics, praising not only his achievements in baseball, but his courage in confronting the racism that dogged him even at the pinnacle of his career.
Aaron played 23 major league seasons – the first 21 for the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves, and the final two for the Milwaukee Brewers. He appeared in a record-breaking 25 All-Star games. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982.
