BIG
BIG RECORD. BABE RUTH'S RECORD.
ATLANTA BRAVES' CHAIRMAN TERRY
McGUSH SAID WE ARE -- WE ARE
SEEING A NUMBER OF STATEMENTS
BEING SENT INTO US.
REGARDING THE LEGENDARY HANK
AARON.
AARON.
AARON. HE
AARON. HE WRITES WE ARE ABSOLUTELY
DEVASTATED BY THE PASSING OF
OUR BELOVED HANK.
HE WAS A BEACON FOR OUR
ORGANIZATION AND FIRST AS A
PLAYER AND THEN WITH PLAYER
DEVELOPMENT AND ALWAYS WITH OUR
COMMUNITY EFFORTS.
COMMUNITY EFFORTS. HIS INCREDIBLE TALENT AND
RESOLVE HELPED HIM ACHIEVE
HIGHEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS YET HE
NEVER LOST HIS HUMBLE NATURE.
HENRY LOUIS AARON WASN'T JUST
OUR ICON, BUT ONE ACROSS MAJOR
LEAGUE BASEBALL AND ACROSS THE
WORLD.
WORLD.
WORLD. HIS SUCCESS ON THE DIAMOND WAS
MATCHED ONLY BY BUSINESS
ACCOMPLISHMENTS OFF THE FIELD
AND CAPPED BY HIS EXTRAORDINARY
PHILANTHROPIC EFFORTS.
PHILANTHROPIC EFFORTS. ATLANTA MAYOR KEISHA LANCE
BOTTOMS EXPRESSING HER
CONDOLENCES TO BILLIE AARON.
AND THE ENTIRE AARON FAMILY
SAYING QUOTE -- THIS IS A
CONSIDERABLE LOSS FOR THE
ENTIRE CITY OF ATLANTA.
WHILE THE WORLD KNEW HIM AS
HAMMERING HANK AARON, BECAUSE
OF HIS INCREDIBLE RECORD-
SETTING BASEBALL CAREER, HE WAS
A CORNERSTONE OF OUR VILLAGE.
GRACIOUSLY AND FREELY JOINING
MRS. AARON IN GIVING THEIR
PRESENCE AND RESOURCES TOWARD
MAKING OUR CITY A BETTER PLACE.
AS AN ADOPTED SON OF ATLANTA,
MR. AARON WAS PART OF THE
FABRIC THAT HELPED PLACE
ATLANTA ON THE WORLD STAGE.
AND GOVERNOR BRIAN KEMP
TWEETING OUT HEART-BREAKING
NEWS, HANK AARON WAS AN
AMERICAN ICON AND A GEORGIA
LEGEND.
LEGEND.
LEGEND. HIS CAREER MADE HISTORY AND HIS
INFLUENCE WAS FELT NOT ONLY IN
THE WORLD OF SPORTS, BUT FAR
BEYOND.
BEYOND.
BEYOND. PLEASE JOIN US IN PRAYING FOR
HIS FAMILY AND LOVED ONES AS WE
REMEMBER HIM.
REMEMBER HIM. I WANT TO BRING IN OUR ANCHOR
JEFF HULLINGER RIGHT NOW.
YOU HAVE BEEN COVERING SPORT TS
IN TOWN FOR DECADES.
>> DON'T SAY HOW MANY YEARS.
>> JUST BEGIN HERE.
HANK AARON, HIS CAREER, WE SAY
SPANNED FROM 1954 TO 1976.
WITHIN BASEBALL.
WITHIN BASEBALL. BUT HIS CAREER BEGAN IN THE
NEGRO LEAGUES BACK IN 1952.
COMING INTO -- THE -- THE MAJOR
LEAGUES EIGHT YEARS AFTER
JACKIE ROBINSON INTEGRATED
BASEBALL.
BASEBALL.
BASEBALL. SO WE TALK ABOUT HIS STORIED
CAREER IN BASEBALL.
BUT I MEAN, THE YEARS AFTER
THAT AND HIS INCREDIBLE
FOOTPRINT ON THE CITY OF
ATLANTA.
ATLANTA.
ATLANTA. YOU KNOW, WE WOULD BE HERE ALL
DAY.
DAY.
DAY. RIGHT?
RIGHT?
RIGHT? IF
RIGHT? IF WE TALKED ABOUT THE NUMEROUS
CONTRIBUTIONS HE MADE ON THE
FIELD AND OFF THE FIELD.
JUST SO MANY TO COUNT.
>> IT IS AN AMERICAN LIFE OF
WHICH WE WILL NEVER EVER SEE
AGAIN.
AGAIN.
AGAIN. AND TRYING TO CATEGORIZE HANK
AARON IS LIKE TRYING TO GET A
FASTBALL PAST HIM.
YOU JUST CAN'T.
THERE'S SO MUCH GREATNESS.
THERE'S SO MANY MOVING PARTS.
THERE'S SO MUCH THAT'S
ASTONISHING ABOUT THE NARRATIVE
OF HANK AARON.
YOU KNOW, I THINK YOU HAVE TO
BEGIN WITH WHAT HE DID IN
BASEBALL.
BASEBALL.
BASEBALL. AND SOMETIMES I ALWAYS FEEL
LIKE HE IS OVERLOOKED AND IS
THAT POSSIBLE?
THAT POSSIBLE? THAT YOU OVERLOOK HANK AARON?
I MEAN, LOOK AT HANK AARON'S
NUMBERS.
NUMBERS.
NUMBERS. IF YOU HAVE A CHANCE THIS
AFTERNOON, AND YOU ARE NOT NEAR
A TELEVISION, GOOGLE HIS NAME
ON WIKIPEDIA.
ON WIKIPEDIA. AND JUST TAKE IN THE STAGGERING
NUMBERS OF WHICH HE AMASSED
DURING HIS CAREER.
AT 25-TIME MAJOR LEAGUE
BASEBALL ALL-STAR.
BASEBALL ALL-STAR. THERE HE IS WITH BOBBY COX.
SANDY KOUFAX AND BOB GIBSON
SAID TRYING TO GET A FASTBALL
PAST HIM ON THE INSIDE PART OF
THE PLATE WAS INPOSSIBLE.
YOU COULDN'T DO IT.
HE BEGAN IN THE NEGRO LEAGUES
WITH A CROSS HANDED GRIP AND HE
ALWAYS SAID THAT THAT IN PART
WAS WHY HIS WRISTS WERE SO
STRONG.
STRONG.
STRONG. YOU KNOW WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT
GREAT POWER PLAYERS, IN
BASEBALL, HOME RUN HITTERS YOU
THINK ABOUT YOU KNOW BABE RUTH
OR MARK McGWIRE OR SAMMY SOSA
WHEN THEY WERE DOING ALL OF
THAT.
THAT.
THAT. OR
THAT. OR BARRY BONDS.
BUT TRUTH BE TOLD WHEN YOU
WOULD MEET MR. AARON YOU WOULD
BE ASTONISHED AT HOWDY
MIN UTIVE HE WAS.
IT WAS ASTONISHING AND THAT'S A
WORD WE'RE GOING TO USE OVER
AND OVER AND OVER ABOUT HIM.
ABOUT HIS DURABILITY AS A
PLAYER.
PLAYER.
PLAYER. HIS DURABILITY AS A CULTURAL
ICON.
ICON.
ICON. IN
ICON. IN THE UNITED STATES.
THE MEANING OF HIS LIFE.
HAS HAD AS MUCH OF AN IMPACT AS
ANYONE THAT I CAN THINK OF IN
THE 20th CENTURY.
OF WHAT HE MEANT TO THE
AMERICAN EXPERIENCE IN TERMS OF
RACE, IN TERMS OF THE ROLE THAT
SPORT PLAYED AND A SUPERSTAR
AND HIS -- HIS PLAY IN ALL OF
THIS.
THIS.
THIS. MUHAMMAD ALI ONCE SAID THERE'S
ONLY ONE MAN THAT I
THAN MYSELF.
THAN MYSELF. AND THAT'S HANK AARON.
I THINK ALL OF US.
NO MATTER OUR AGE, NO MATTER
WHERE WE'RE FROM IN THE UNITED
STATES, THERE'S A GREAT SENSE
OF LOSS.
OF LOSS.
OF LOSS. IF YOU LOVED THIS COUNTRY, IF
YOU LOVE SPORTS AND IF YOU LOVE
BASEBALL, IF YOU LOVE ATLANTA,
THIS IS THE VERY SYMBOL OF ALL
THAT WAS GOOD AND ALL THAT WAS
GREAT IN OUR LIFETIME.
AND IN OUR WORLD.
AND WHAT HE DID WILL
PERPETUITY.
PERPETUITY. WHAT A LEGEND.
>> A BEAUTIFUL SMILE.
AND A TREMENDOUS MAN.
SHORTLY AFTER NEWS BROKE OF MR.
AARON'S PASSING, PEOPLE BEGAN
MAKING THEIR WAY TO THE
MONUMENT IN FULTON COUNTY MARK,
HIS HISTORIC 714th HOME RUN.
IT'S NEAR THE FORMER HOME OF
THE BRAVES OVER WHICH HIS
RECORD-BREAKING BASEBALL FLEW.
WE SPOKE TO ONE MAN ABOUT --
>> THAT'S KIND OF SMALL AND
AWFUL ISN'T IT?
I MEAN, JUST SEEING THAT SHIBA,
I MEAN, HE DESERVES SO MUCH
MORE THAN THAT.
MAYBE THIS WILL CHANGE THAT.
THAT SPOT NEEDS A PLACE OF
GREATER HONOR.
GREATER HONOR. >> LET'S LISTEN IN TO WHAT THIS
MAN HAS TO SAY ABOUT WHAT
HAMMERING HANK MEANT TO HIM.
JEFF, THANK YOU.
>> YOU KNOW, I THINK FOR SO
MANY WHO GREW UP YOU KNOW,
DURING THE TIME OF MR. AARON'S
LIFE, YOU KNOW, AS A SMALL KID
AND BOYS, YOU ALWAYS LOOK FOR
HEROES AND GIANTS.
AND THERE WAS NONE LARGER THAN
MR. AARON.
MR. AARON. AND YOU KNOW, AS ATLANTANS WE
DON'T HAVE A LONG ATHLETIC
LEGACY OR LINEAGE OF WINNING IN
SPORTS.
SPORTS.
SPORTS. BUT WE HAD THE GREATEST FOR A
PERIOD OF TIME.
AND A PERSON WHO WAS GREAT BUT
GREAT WITH CLASS AND A PERSON
WHO EMBODIED PERSEVERANCE AND
RESILIENCY, AND THE PERSON -- A
PERSON WHO CARRIED THE WEIGHT
OF AN ENTIRE PEOPLE ON HIS
SHOULDERS.
SHOULDERS. AND STILL MANAGED TO ACHIEVE
AND EXCEL AND JUST A REMARKABLE
HUMAN BEING.
HUMAN BEING. REMARKABLE MAN OF CHARACTER.
>> I WANT TO GO OUT TO OUR
SPORTS REPORTER ALEX GLAZE AT
TRUIST PARK FOR US THIS
AFTERNOON.
AFTERNOON. ALEX, YOU HAD MENTIONED TO ME A
LITTLE EARLIER ON WHEN YOU WERE
SPEAKING OFF-CAMERA, THAT HANK
AARON'S LOSS IS JUST ONE OF A
FEW FOR THE ATLANTA BRAVES.
IT'S BEEN A
WEEKS.
WEEKS.
WEEKS. FOR THE ORGANIZATION.
>> Reporter: YEAH.
SHIBA.
SHIBA.
SHIBA. IT'S BEEN A TOUGH MONTH FOR THE
BRAVES.
BRAVES.
BRAVES. HANK AARON WAS SO MANY THINGS
TO SO MANY PEOPLE.
THE MOST IMPORTANT SPORTS
FIGURE IN ATLANTA SPORTS.
THE MOST IMPORTANT FIGURE IN
ATLANTA SPORTS.
ATLANTA SPORTS. HERO TO MANY BECAUSE OF HIS
FIGHT DURING THE CIVIL RIGHTS
MOVEMENT.
MOVEMENT.
MOVEMENT. AND A BASEBALL LEGEND
CONSIDERED TO BE ONE OF THE
BEST TO EVER PLAY THE GAME.
AND YOU WOULD THINK THAT DURING
HIS TIME CHASING THE HOME RUN
RECORD THAT'D BE TIME OF HIS
LIFE BUT IT ACTUALLY TURNS OUT
IT WASN'T.
IT WASN'T. HE WAS DEALING WITH RACISM ON
AND OFF THE FIELD.
BUT INSTEAD OF LETTING THAT
RACISM GET TO HIM, HE USED THAT
AS FUEL TO BE BETTER AND
ACTUALLY TALKED WITH HIM ABOUT
THAT BACK IN 2018.
>> IT WAS TOUGH.
IT WAS -- I HAD MY PROBLEMS.
>> YOU FACED THREATS.
>> OH, YEAH.
MANY, MANY TIMES.
YES.
YES.
YES. QUITE A FEW.
THAT WAS -- PART OF WHY I GUESS
I BROKE HIS RECORD WAS THE FACT
THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE THOUGHT
THAT IT COULDN'T BE DONE.
AND A BLACK PERSON DOING IT?
THERE WAS -- NOT SOMETHING THAT
THEY WANTED TO SEE DONE.
>> Reporter: HANK WILL
CERTAINLY BE MISSED.
BUT SHIBA LIKE YOU SAID IT HAS
BEEN JUST A REALLY TOUGH MONTH
FOR THE BRAVES FIRST LOSING
PHIL NIEKRO A FEW WEEKS AGO
THEN DON SUTTON A COUPLE OFDAYS
AGO AND THEN HANK AARON PASSED
ON.
ON.
ON. IT'S
ON. IT'S BEEN A REALLY TOUGH MONTH.
>> ALEX, A GREAT HONOR BACK IN
2018 WHEN YOU INTERVIEWED HANK
AARON.
AARON.
AARON. ANYTHING YOUWALKED AWAY FROM
THAT INTERVIEW THAT YOU WILL
FOREVER REMEMBER WITH THAT
LITTLE BIT OF TIME YOU WERE
ABLE TO SPEND WITH HIM?
>> Reporter: YEAH.
ONLY GOT A COUPLE OF MINUTES.
SELFISHLY FOR ME ONE OF THE
THINGS I'LL REMEMBER, HANK WAS
A RAVENS' FAN.
I'M FROM BALTIMORE AND WE
TALKED ABOUT THE RAVENS AND
THAT WAS REALLY COOL.
BUT YOU KNOW SERIOUSLY THOUGH,
HE WAS JUST SUCH A REALLY KIND
AND HUMBLE MAN THAT YOU KNOW,
WOULD SPEAK ABOUT BASEBALL.
LIFE.
LIFE.
LIFE. WHATEVER YOU WANTED TO TALK
ABOUT.
ABOUT.
ABOUT. AND YOU KNOW, I DEFINITELY WILL
REMEMBER THOSE COUPLE OF
MINUTES.
MINUTES.
MINUTES. I ACTUALLY HAVE A PICTURE UP OF
ME AND HANK ON MY PICTURE WALL.
SO IT'S DEFINITELY A MOMENT
THAT I WILL REMEMBER.
>> VERY NICE.
VERY NICE.
VERY NICE. ALEX, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
I HAVE A CHANCE TO MEET HANK
AARON AS WELL BACK IN 2016 AT
THE MAYOR'S BALL.
UNITED NEGRO COLLEGE FUND'S
MAYOR MASK BALL.
RIP TO A LEGEND.
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