April 8, 1974

Mobile native Henry Aaron hit his 715th home run, becoming Major League baseball’s all-time home run king. Aaron, nicknamed “Hammerin’ Hank,” broke Babe Ruth’s longstanding record of 714 home runs, ultimately hitting 755. Aaron’s record stood from 1974 to 2007, when Barry Bonds eclipsed the mark. Aaron spent most of his playing career with the Atlanta Braves, and after his last two years as a player with the Milwaukee Brewers, returned to Atlanta to serve in the Braves’ front office. Aaron’s playing career spanned from 1954 to 1976, and from 1955 to 1975, he made the National League All-Star team every year. Aaron was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982.

Read more at Encyclopedia of Alabama.

Hank Aaron was voted the National League’s Most Valuable Player in 1957, a year in which he compiled a .322 batting average and hit 44 home runs for the Milwaukee Braves. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, courtesy of Alabama Department of Archives and History)

Atlanta Braves slugger Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s long-standing record when he hit his 715th home run in Atlanta on April 8, 1974. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, courtesy of National Baseball Hall of Fame Library)

Milwaukee Braves outfielder and Hall of Famer Hank Aaron in the 1960 issue of Baseball Digest. (Baseball Digest, December 1960, Wikipedia)

Hank Aaron, July 27, 2013. (Chris Evans, Wikipedia)

For more on Alabama’s Bicentennial, visit Alabama 200.