Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
134758342
label
Hank Aaron 2/5/99 [2]
core
doc
dtoType
document
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
134758342
contentType
document
title
Hank Aaron 2/5/99 [2]
citationUrl
collections
Records of the Office of Speechwriting (Clinton Administration)
Joshua Gottheimer's Files
imageCount
1
hasImages
yes
source
import
hasTranscription
no
Source extras
naId
134758342
levelOfDescription
fileUnit
otherTitles
42-t-7431940-20160201S-017-005-2017
recordType
description
ocrSource
nara-archive
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
document
mediaId
32fd62b5dce67bef
ocrText
FEB-05-1999 17:20
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094 P.01
NATIONAL
NATIONAL BASEBALL HALL OF FAME
BASEBALL
AND MUSEUM, INC.
HALL OF FAME
Fax Cover Sheet
To:
Alex
Company:
White House - Speachwriting
Fax:
(202)456-2505
From:
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc.
P.O. Box 590
Cooperstown, New York 13326
direct: (607)547-0330 fax: (607)547-4094
Date:
2/5/99
Pages:
Notes:
FEB-05-1999 17:20
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.02
Henry Aaron
FRONT OFFICE
Senior Vice President &
Assistant to the President
Appointed Senior Vice President and Assistant
to the President in December of 1989, Hank Aaron
works with President Stan Kasten in many phases
of the Braves' operations and represents the
Braves in community relations activities.
Following his playing career, Aaron joined the
Braves' front office on October 7, 1976, as Vice
President and Director of Player Development. He oversaw the development
of many players instrumental In the Braves' 1982 National League West
Division championship, including Dale Murphy, who won back-to-back N.L.
MVP awards in 1982-83. Tom Glavine, Jelf Blauser, Mark Lemke. David
Justice, and Ron Gant, factors in the team's success in the 1990s, also began
their careers under Aaron's stewardship.
Aaron, the greatest home run hitter of all time, was elected to Baseball's
Hall of Fame in January of 1982. He missed by nine votes being the first
unanimous choice ever in the voting by the Baseball Writer's Association of
America. Aaron received 406 of a possible 415 votes for a percentage of .978.
Only Ty Cobb and Tom Seaver have received a higher percentage of the votes
cast. Aaron and Frank Robinson were Inducted Into the Hall of Fame at
Cooperstown, N.Y., on August 1, 1982.
In his 23-year Major League career, Aaron rewrote baseball's hitting record
book. He holds more Major League batting records than any other player in
the game's history. Among his records are some truly amazing ones, including
Most Runs Batted In, Lifetime, 2,297; Most Long Hits, Lifetime, 1,477; Most
Total Bases, Lifetime, 6,856; and, of course, Most-Home Runs, Lifetime, 755.
His most lamous home run came in Atlanta on April 8, 1974, when he hit his
715th, breaking Babe Ruth's seemingly untouchable record. He did It before
53,775 against the Dodgers' AI Downing. Aaron also ranks second on the all-
time list in at-bats (12,364) and runs (2,174. tied with Babe Ruth), third in
games (3,298) and hils (3,771), ninth in doubles (624), 11th in singles (2,294)
and tied for 14th in years of service (23).
On May 17. 1970, Hank singled at Cincinnati to become the first player to
compile both 3,000 career hits and more than 500 homers. He joined the 30-30 club
(30 HR's and 30 SB's in the same season) in 1963. Hank played in the Major
League All-Star Game 24 times, including the years 1959-61 when two games were
played. He was honored as the National League's Most Valuable Player in 1957
and named Player of the Year by The Sporting News in 1956 and 1963. He played
21 seasons with the Braves before being traded 10 Milwaukee for outfielder Dave
May and minor leaguer Roger Alexander at the end of the 1974 season. Aaron
retired as a player two years later.
Aaron, a vice president and member of the Board of Directors of Turner
Broadcasting and the Braves, is also the Vice President for Business Development
for the Airport Channel. He serves on the National Board of the NAACP and the
Sterling Committee of Morehouse College.
Aaron and his wife, the former Billye Suber, live in Atlanta. They have live
children, Gail, Hank Jr., Lary, Dorinda and Ceci.
TOTAL P.02
FEB-05-1999 17:21
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.01
CAREER
REGULAR SEASON
9. Rusty Staub
2,951
SERVICE
10. Brooks Rabinson
2,896
11. Rabin Yount
2,856
YEARS PLAYED
12. AI Kaline
2,834
Deacon McGuire
26
13. Eddie Collins
2,826
Eddie Collins
25
14. Reggie Jackson
2,820
Bobby Wallace
25
15. Frank Robinson
2,808
Ty Cobb
24
16. Honus Wagner
2,792
Rick Dempsey
24
17. Tris Speaker
2,789
Cariton Fisk
24
18. Tony Perez
2,777
Pete Rose
24
19. Mel Off
2,730
Hank Aaron
23
20. George Bren
2,707
Rogers Hornsby
23
CONSECUTIVE GAMES PLAYED
Rabbit Maranville
23
Tony Perez
23
1. Cal Ripken
2,478
Brooks Robinson
23
2. Lou Gehrig
2,130
3. Everett Scott
Rusty Staub
23
1,307
Carl Yastrzemskl
23
4. Sleve Garvey
1,207
17 tied with 22
5. Billy Williams
1,117
6. Joe Sewell
1,103
YEARS ONE CLUB
7. Stan Muslal
895
Brooks Robinson, Orioles
23
8. Eddle Yost
829
Carl Yastrzemski, Red Sox
23
9. Gus Suhr
822
Cap Anson, Cubs
22
10. NeMle Fox
798
Ty Cobb, Tigers
22
11. Pate Rose
745
Al Kaline, Tigers
22
12. Date Murphy
740
Stan Musial, Cardinais
22
13. Richie Ashburn
730
Mel Ott, Glants
22
14. Ernie Banks
717
Hank Aaron, Braves
21
15. Pctc Rose
678
George Brent, Royals
21
16. Earl Averill
673
Harmon Killebrew. Senators/Twins
21
17. Frank McCormick
652
Willie Mays. Glants
21
18. Sandy Alomar Sr.
648
Willie Stargell, Pirates
21
19. Eddie Brown
618
3. Luke Appling, White Sox
20
20. Roy McMillan
585
Phil Cavarretta, Cubs
20
HIGHEST AVERAGE
Alan Trainmell, Tigers
20
Robin Yount. Brewers
20
(Minimum 1,500 hits)
7. 10 tied with 19
1. Ty Cobb
366
2. Rogers Harnsby
358
YEARS PITCHED
3. Joe Jackson
.356
1. Nolan Ryan
27
4. Ed Delahanty
346
2. Tommy John
26
5. Tris Speaker
.345
3. Charlie Hough
25
6. Ted Williams
344
Jim Kaal
25
Billy Hamilton
344
5. Steve Carlton
24
8. Dan Brouthers
342
Phil Nickro
24
Babe Ruth
342
7. Dennis Eckersley
23
Harry Hellmann
342
Jack Quinn
23
11. Pete Browning
341
Don Sutton
23
Willie Keeler
.341
Early Wynn
23
Bill Terry
341
1. Bert Blyleven
22
14. George Sister
340
Rich Gossage
22
Lou Gehrig
.340
Sam Jones
22
Tany Gwynn
340
In the early 1960s, Pete Rose was a young player looking for recognition. By
Dennis Martinez
22
17. Jesse Burkett
338
the time he retired, he was baseball's all-time career hit leader.
Joe Niekro
22
Nap Lajole
338
Herb Pennock
22
19. Riggs Stephenson
336
Nap Lajole
15
Ed Delahanty, 1893-1697
390
Gaylord Perry
22
20. AI Simmons
334
Pete Rose
15
5. Jesse Burkett, 1895-1899
.387
Jerry Reuss
22
YEARS LEADING LEAGUE IN AVERAGE
15. Hank Aaron
14
6. George Sister, 1918-1922
381
Red Ruffing
22
Luke Appling
14
Harry Heilmann, 1923-1927
381
Cy Young
1. Ty Cobb
12
22
Wade Bougs
14
8. AI Simmons, 1927-1931
375
2. Tony Gwynn
8
Paul Waner
14
Billy Hamilton, 1894-1898
375
YEARS PITCHED ONE CLUB
Hanus Wagner
8
19. 9 tied with 13
10. Tris Speaker, 1920-1924
.371
4. Rod Carew
7
1. Walter Johnson, Senators
21
Rogers Hornsby
CONSECUTIVE 300 SEASONS
11. Babc Ruth, 1920-1924
370
7
Ted Lyons, White Sox
21
12. Tony Gwynn, 1993-97
.368
21
Stan Muslal
7
1. TY Cobb
23
Phil Niekra, Braves
Joe Jackson, 1911-1915
.368
7. Ted Williams
6
2. Stan Musial
16
4. Red Feber, White Sox
20
14. Lafty O'Doul, 1928-1932
.365
8. Wade Boggs
5
3. Cap Anson
15
Mel Harder, Indians
20
15. Ted Williams, 1941-1948
,362
Warren Spahn, Braves
20
Dan Brouthers
5
Rod Carew
15
Joe Kelley, 1894-1898
.362
19
10. Cap Anson
4
Tony Gwynn
15
7. Jim Palmer, Orioles
17. Hughie Jennings, 1894-1898
.361
Roberto Clemente
4
15
8. Babe Adams, Pirates
18
Hanus Wagner
Bill Terry, 1929-1933
361
18
Harry Heilmann
4
7. Dan Brouthers
14
Bob Feller, Indians
19. Hugh Duffy. 1893-1897
359
Jesse Haines, Cardinals
18
Nap Lajole
4
8. Wille Keeler
13
Chuck Klein, 1929-1933
359
11. Bob Gibson, Cardinals
17
BILL Madlock
4
9. Lou Gehrig
12
Christy Mathewson. Giants
17
15. George Brett
3
Billy Hamilton
12
AT-BATS
13. Tommy Bridges, Tigers
16
Pete Browning
3
Harry Hailmann
12
1. Pete Rose
14,053
Whitey Ford, Yankess
16
Jesse Burkett
3
Paul Waner
12
2. Hank Aaron
12,364
Carl Hubbell, Glants
16
Tony Oliva
3
13. Ed Delahanty
11
3. Carl Yastrzemski
11,988
Vern Law, Pirates
16
Pate Rose
3
Frank Frisch
11
d. Ty Cobb
11,434
Charlie Root, Cubs
16
Paul Waner
3
Rogers Hornsby
11
5. Eddia Murray
11,83G
Don Sutton. Dodgers
16
Carl Yastrzemski
3
Joe Kelley
11
6. Robin Yount
11,008
19. 15 tied with 15
AI Simmons
11
YEARS TOPPING 300
7. Dave Winfield
11,003
18. Wade Boggs
10
8. Stan Musial
10,972
1. Ty Cobb
23
Jesse Burkett
10
9. Willle Mays
10,881
BATTING
2 Cap Anson
19
Nag Lajoie
10
10. Brooks Rabinson
10,654
3. Tris Speaker
16
Joe Madwick
10
11. Honus Wagner
10,430
GAMES
4. Eddle Collins
17
Tria Speaker
10
12. George Brett
10,349
1. Pete Rose
3,562
Stan Muslal
17
Bill Terry
10
13. Paul Molitor
10,333
2. Carl Yastrzemskl
3,308
6. Babe Ruth
16
Arky Vaughan
10
14. Lou Brock
10,332
3. Hank Aaron
3,298
Honus Wagner
16
Ted Williams
10
15. Luis Aparicio
10,230
4. Ty Cobb
3,035
Ted Williams
16
3.026
15
AVERAGE 5 STRAIGHT SEASONS
16. Tris Speaker
10,195
5. Eddie Murray
9. Dan Brouthers
17. AI Kalinc
10,116
Stan Musial
3,026
Rod Carew
15
1. Rogers Hornsby, 1921-1925
402
18. Rabbit Maranville
10,078
7. Willie Mays
2,992
Tony Gwynn
15
2. fy Cobb. 1909-1913
396
19. Frank Robinson
10,006
B. Dave Winfield
2,973
Rogers Homsby
15
3. Willie Keeler, 1895-1899
390
20. Eddle Collins
9,949
-445-
FEB-04-1999 09:47
Special Guests and VIPs:
NEED
Gerald Levin, Chairman, Time Warner
Dick Parsons, President, Time Warner
Jane Fonda and Ted Turner
Bob Costas
Governor and Mrs. Roy Barnes
- Governor and Mrs. Zell Miller
fur. mayor of Atlanta?
- Mayor and Mrs. Bill Campbell
- Rev. Jesse Jackson
Ambassador and Mrs. Andrew Young
- Police Chief Beverly Harvard and spouse
Sheriff Jackie Barrett and spouse
- Georgia Attorney General Thurber Baker
Evander Holyfield
Sec. Herm an -
Sammy Sosa
Rev. William Guy
childhood friend of
Ernie Banks
Frank Robinson
Aaron's from
Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee
Dave Winfield
Mobile, Ala.
Charlie Pride
Mr. and Mrs. Bud Selig, Major League Baseball Commissioner
Mr. and Mrs. Leonard Coleman, President of the National League
Ed Dwight, Sculptor of the Hank Aaron statue at the stadium
Ken Griffey, Sr.
Ozzie Smith
Reggie Jackson
Congressman and Mrs. John Lewis
- Mayor Dow, Mobile, Ala.
Michael
tweise MBrime, President
Pres - NAACP
Rep. Joseph Kennedy
?
CAN THEY TRAVEL TO ATLANTA
ON AF1 FROM WASH. DC
FEB-04-1999 09:47
ATLANTA PRESS ADV
4046841126 P.007
BASEBALL LEGENDS
*
Sammy Sosa
*
Ernie Banks
*
Frank Robinson
*
Dave Winfield
*
Ozzie Smith
*
Reggie Jackson
*
Ken Griffey, Sr
*
Leonard Coleman, Jr
*
Joe Morgan
*
Omar Minaya
*
Lou Brock
*
Don Baylor
*
Ricky Clemons
*
Phil Nickro
*
Joe Black
02/02/99
17:34
404 827 1784
CNN PUBLIC REL
002
The65th Celebration Birthday
715
25TH
ANNIVERSARY
ALite. Legand. A Legncy
NEWS RELEASE
For release: Jan. 14. 1999
Baseball Great Hank Aaron to be Feted in All-Star Celebration
of Two Landmark Anniversaries
February 5, 1999 Gala Marks Aaron's 65th Birthday
and 25th Anniversary Year of His Record-Breaking Home Run
Proceeds from the Evening to Benefit the Hank Aaron Chasing the Dream Foundation;
Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., Time Warner Inc., Coca-Cola, BMW of North America,
Delta Airlines, Cox Enterprises and Hyatt Hotels Among Companies Lending Support
On February 5, 1999, luminaries from the worlds of business, baseball and entertainment will gather in Atlanta to
toast a hometown hero and national treasure on the occasion of two personal milestones: His 65th birthday and the 25th
anniversary year of the home run he hit into history.
The Salute to Hank Aaron gala, to be held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Downtown Atlanta, will benefit the
Hank Aaron Chasing the Dream Foundation and feature special appearances by musical guests The Temptations and
Jeffrey Osborne; Major League Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig; baseball great Frank Robinson; actors
Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ambassador Andrew Young; Rev. Jesse Jackson; Larry King; Ernie Banks; Al Downing;
Georgia Governor Roy Barnes and former Governor Zell Miller. Names of additional participants will be released in the
coming weeks. The evening will be hosted by NBC sportscaster and longtime Aaron friend Bob Costas.
Honorary chairs include President and Mrs. Jimmy Carter: General and Mrs. Colin L. Powell; R.E. Turner and
Jane Fonda; Senator and Mrs. Sam Nunn; Mr. and Mrs. Selig; Ambassador and Mrs. Young; and Mr. and Mrs. Gerald
Levin. Tom Johnson, chairman, president and CEO of the CNN News Group, is spearheading the event as gala chair.
The event launches Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic moments in sports
history: Aaron's April 8, 1974, home run-his 715th-that broke Babe Ruth's record and earned a place of honor in the
record books for himself, his team and his city. During the 1999 baseball season, national and local promotions and special
events will be held to honor Aaron, culminating in a special tribute at the '99 All-Star Game.
Henry Louis Aaron's mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to Major League home run king is the stuff of
sports legend. Over the course of his 23-year career, he hit 755 home runs and accumulated 2,297 RBIs, in 3,298 games
and 12,364 at bats. In 1976, Aaron retired from baseball and turned his attention to his real passion-improving the lives of
ordinary kids with big dreams.
-MORE-
TTAT
relly MICGUIR, Chairman & CEO, Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.
Ms. Wendy Selig Prieb, President & CEO, Milwaukee Brewers
Mr. Leonard Roberts, President & CEO, Tandy & Radio Shack, Fort Worth, Texas
Dr. Harvey Schiller, President, Turner Sports, Atlanta
FEB-05-1999 10:15
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094 P.01
NATIONAL
*****
NATIONAL BASEBALL HALL OF FAME AND
BASEBALL
MUSEUM, INC.
HALL OF FAME
Fax Cover Sheet
To:
Alex Goldsmith
Company:
White House Speechwriting
Fax:
202-456-2505
From:
Bruce Markusen, Senior Researcher
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc.
P.O. Box 590
Cooperstown, New York 13326
direct: (607) 547-0341 fax: (607) 547-4094
Date:
2-5-99
Pages:
Notes:
Dear Alex,
Here is a copy of Hank Aaron's Hall of Fame Induction speech from 1982.
Sincerely,
Bruce Markusen
Senior Researcher
National Baseball Hall of Fame
FEB-05-1999 10:15
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094 P.02
-43-
don't know if that door would've been open again for a long, long time.
I know I couldn't have put up with what he put up with and if that door
hadn't stayed open and it was closed I know for many, many years it would
have been closed to us and I just want all the black players wherever
they are to know that I appreciate what they did for me. To make it
possible for me to play in the major leagues. Thank ya all for coming
today. (applause)
MR. KUHN They called him the Hammer. (cheers) This unassuming man
from Mobile, Alabama. He is quite simply the greatest home-run hitter
in major league history. (applause) And would you believe he batted
cross-handed when he started in professional baseball in the Negroe
Leagues, leading the negro American league with an average .467. The
last player from the Negro Leagues to reach the majors, he became the
first big leaguer to total 3,000 hits and 500 homeruns. He went on
from there. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of
eligibility and in doing so, recieved the highest vote total, 406 votes
in the history of Hall of Fame voting. (applause) His 715th homerun
broke Babe Ruth's record was voted by the media and baseball officials
as the greatest moment in the history of baseball. (applause) Shortly
after his election to the Hall of Fame he reflected on his career by
saying, "the easiest thing for me to do was retire because I have accom-
plished everything I wanted to." And now he is among the immortals here
in Cooperstown and his records are simply phoenominal.
The official language. Henry "Hank" L. Aaron. Milwaukee National
League, Atlanta National League, Milwaukee American League, 1954-1976.
Hit 755 home runs in 23- year career to become majors' all-time homer
king. Had 20 or more for 20 consecutive years, at least 30 in 15 sea-
FEB-05-1999 10:15
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094 P.03
-44-
sons and 40 or better eight times. Also set records for games played
(3, 298), at-bats (12, 364) long hits in (2,297). Paced National
League in batting twice and homers, runs batted in and slugging pct.
four times each. Won most valuable Player award in National League
in 1957. There's only one of these, Henry Aaron. (applause)
HENRY AARON: Thank you very much, Commissioner Kuhn, League Presidents,
other distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. I feel a great sense
of humility, gratitude and appreciation for this day. And for what it
means to me and my family. I'm extremely proud to be joining a group
of men who performed on the baseball field. Epitomized the highest and
the best in professional athletics. I am pleasedto be joining them in
the company of Travis Jackson, Happy Chandler, and Frank Robinson some
of baseballs greatest. Also feel especially proud to be standing here
where some years ago Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella proved the way
and made it possible for Frank and me and for other blacks, hopefull
in baseball. They proved to the world that a mans ability is limited
only by his lack of opportunity. (applause) The sheer majesty of this
occasion and this significant overwhelms me. For truly I reflect on my
life and particularily on my 23 years in baseball. I am reminded of a
statement I once read, and I quote, "the way to fame is like the way to
heaven. Through much tribulation. " It had been for me to quote a very
popular song. The long and winding road. Never the less, I have been
extremely blessed in my life time. I stand here today because God gave
me a healthy body, a sound mind and talent. For 23 years I took the
talent that God gave me and developed it to the best of my ability.
Twenty-three years ago I never dreamed of this high honer would come to
me. For it was not fame I sought, but rather the best baseball player
FEB-05-1999 10:16
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094 P.04
-45-
that I could possibly be. I grew up in a home where there were little in
the way of material goods. But there was an abundance of love and discip-
line. We therefore had much to share. An so too is this occasion is this
an occasion for sharing, an occasion for thanksgiving. For I did not
make this journey alone, A lot of people contributed in a lot of different
ways to my success as a professional baseball player. And to them a deep
debt of gratitude. The list is far to long for me to mention all of them,
however, I must mention a few. I would like to acknowledge the presence
of my parents, Mr. & Hrs. Herbert Aaron. (applause) Without whose love
and encouragement this day could not have been. My wife, Billy. Who
brought an awful lot of sunshine into my life. (applause) And I would
like to introduce my children, Gail, (applause) Hankie, (applause)
Larry, (applause) Dorenda (applause) and cici (applause). Who have been
supportive and understanding of my long absences away from home. My sis-
ters and brothers who have always been some of my biggest fans. My team-
mates of the Milwaukee Braves, Atlanta Braves and the Milwaukee Brewers.
Thank you. (applause) I want to thank the wonderful people of Milwaukee
and Atlanta where I spent my baseball career. I also would like to thank
Mr. John Mullin who was introduced earlier, Mr. Bill Bartholomy and also
my boss, Mr. Ted Turner from the Atlanta Braves. Thank you for coming.
(applause) And we also have, sitting on the front seat, Mr. Al Farnwell,
the executive Vice President. Thank you very much for coming. (applause)
Finally I would like to thank some special friends and family who trav-
eled here to be with me on this occasion. From Atlanta, Dr. Benjamin E.
Mays, an ardent baseball fan, distinguished educator and presidented
meritice of Morehouse College who today celebratedhis 88th birthday.
FEB-05-1999 10:16
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094 P.05
-46-
Thank you very much Dr. Mays. (applause) I would like to thank the
Lockets, Sam Franco. My inlaws, the McDaniels and the Swedes. Permit
me also to express a special thanks to Mr. Walter John and Mr. Carl
Ware and other executives from the Coca Cola company for their presence
and for providing transportation for my children and some of their
friends from Atlanta. Including Marvin Harrington, Former Mayor Maynard
Jackson, and Congressman White Fowler and their are many other friends
here. (applause) And their are many other friends here who I just
cannot mention all of them. All of you have touched my life in a very
postive way. I'm so very grateful to you and so very pleased that you
could share this evening with me. Thank you very much. (applause)
Stacks. - A very serious moment for all of us since last years ceremony there
have been many people who have been connected with baseball on the play-
ing field, or in executive positions, newspaper world, or close friends
of baseball and the Hall of Fame who have departed. I would like to
ask us all to rise for a moment of silence while I read the names of
some of those who have departed.
Two Hall of Famers: Sachel Page and Lloyd Waner. Bob Abby and Fran-
cisco Barush, Les Biedeman, Nester Charlek, Bill Dewitt, Lou Demero, Jerry
Donovan, Joe Dugan, Jim Anwright, Jackie Jensen, John Curan, Joe Lepur,
Fred Lindstrom, Steve Makar, Runt Marr, Webster McDonald, Frank McGowan,
Marvin Miles, Ed Mosler, Edward Mulligan, Art Pacirella, Wally Post,
Mel Queen, Pete Reeser, Ray Starborough, Rex Smith, John Stevens, Bob
Stewart, Jack Tobin, Dixie Walker and Taft Wright. Thank you.
One announcement or a couple announcements before we have a con-
cluding selection on the program. Will Mr. & Mrs. Ralph Millard please
FEB-05-1999 10:16
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094 P.06
-47-
claim their lost son, Kerry at the back entrance of the library building
following the ceremony. At the conclusion of the ceremony their will
be a brief a press conference for the new inductees only, here on the
platform. We ask no one to proceed on the platform but stay in the seats
who would like to participate in the press conference. This is for the
press and media. Ladies and gentlemen it gives me a great deal of pleasure
to introduce to you our next guest. He has become known as the baladere
of baseball for his talk in baseball songs. And today he will perform
two songs. The first, the now famous Willie, Mickie and the Duke and the
second is a tribute to the Hall of Fame. Written especially for this
occasion. It gives me a great deal of pleasure to introduce Terry Cash-
man. (applause)
TERRY CASHMAN: Thank you very much Ed. Vince Scully was saying before
something about a why me? How did I become the closing act for this
array over here. Anyway, if you know this song you can help me out. I
invite you to sing along.
TOTAL P.06
P.01
The Home Run King
607 547 4094
Aaron's Ordeal:
Pursuit of Ruth
By TIM TUCKER
ATLANTA-So vividly, Hank Aaron remembers the small
moments of the big chase.
Chasing Babe Ruth's
He remembers signing autographs for opposing players and
home run record was a
posing for pictures with the children of teammates. He remem-
bittersweet task for
bers being self-conscious about it. "But bow do you turn down
Henry Aaron. Many re-
your teammates and fellow players? Can't do it," he said.
sented him for attempt-
He remembers the extra hotel room on the road-the one
that was registered under his name, but unused, and the one
Ing to dislodge the leg-
registered under a fictitious name in which he found refuge. He
endary Bamblno, and
LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
remembers his teammates' reaction to the unused room, "how
there were tremendous
they'd come to me and say, Hank, could I use the extra room
demands on his personal
for a little while tonight?' Know what I mean? I'd always say,
time. But he held up
Sure, okay with me.'
through " all and recells,
He remembers the bizarre combination of loneliness and
'l got a chance to meel so
lack of privacy, the room-service dinners, the constant search
many wonderful people,
for uncongested paths out of stadiums.
Henry Louis Aaron wishes It weren't so, but he looks back on
people 1 probably
The Chase-his wonderfully successful pursuit of Babe Ruth's
wouldn't have met.'
career home run record-and says, "Really, I guess I don't
have many fond memories of that time. I don't talk about it
unless someone brings it up. So many negatives happened."
Even now, more than eight years after he hit his 715th home
run, almost six years after he hit his last home run (No. 755),
only days before his Induction into baseball's Hall of Fame,
Hank Aaron is pained by The Chase, his 21/2-year ordeal that
ultimately made him baseball's home run king.
The subject was broached in his office at Atlanta-Fulton
County Stadium on a recent morning. The smile that should
permeate his face was absent. The tone of nostalgic excite-
ment that should have dominated his voice was missing. The
"He was still there. I walked into the clubhouse, and he sald,
FEB-05-1999 10:25
got B chance to meet so many wonderful people, people I prob-
ably wouldn't have met, people out of baseball," he said.
"I've got one more question I haven't asked.' I said, 'Oh, no, I
OTHER INDUCTEES
"And another thing," he said, seemingly surprised by the list
thought it was over.'"
of two. "I guess the best thing that happened to me was the way
It would never end, of course.
Travis Jackson-Page 7
the Braves, Eddie Mathews (his former
Happy Chandler-Page 9
teammate and the Atlanta manager in
1974) and my teammates handled the
Henry Louis (Hank) Aaron
whole situation. They were very under-
Born February 5, 1934, at Mobile, Ala.
memories that should have been 50 fond were not.
standing. Never raised hell.
"No matter If somebody pitched a
Height, 6.00. Weight, 190. Threw and batted righthanded
The Chase heightened during the 1973 season, in which
Aaron hit 41 homers to pull within one of Ruth's cherished
one-hitter or a two-hitter or what, all at-
Established following major league records most games, lifetime (3,298), 1976; most at bats, lifetime.
mark of 714 homers. As Hammerin' Hank approached the rec-
tention focused on me. That can create
(12,364), 1976; most home runs, lifetime (755). 1976, most plate appearances, Illetime (13,940), 1976. most
years, 100 or more runs scored (15). 1970; most years leading league, total bases (8), 1969; most years, 300
ord, be was the target of racial taunts shouted from the stands
Jealousy, but it didn't 1 had to appreci-
or more total bases (15), 1971; most years, 150 or more games (14), 1970 (since broken by Brooks Robinson,
and ne received "hate" mail dally.
ate their understanding They were very
1974, with 15); most consecutive years, 20 or more home runs (20), 1974: most extra-Dase hits, Ilfetime
as
Babe
Ruth.
he
would
sav.
tolerant. and I remember not knowing If
(3,085), 1976; most consecutive years, 100 OF more extra bases on long bils (19), 1973; most years, 30 or more
FEB-05-1999
17:22
BASEBALL BRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
"1. Ty Cobb
P.02
2,246
2. Hank Aaron
2,174
Frank McCormick
3
13. Ed Delahanty
185
B. JIMING FULL
Babe Ruth
2,174
Paul Molitor
3
14. Sam Rice
184
7. Emle Banks
512
4. Pete Rose
2,165
Johnny Pasky
3
15, Jesse Burkett
182
8. Dave Winfield
465
5. Willia Mays
2,062
Sam Thompson
3
Ed Konetchy
1B2
9. Dave Kingman
442
-B. Stan Musial
1,949
200-HIT SEASONS
Edd Roush
182
10. Andre Dawson
438
7. Rickey Henderson
1,913
18. Buck Ewing
178
11. AI Kaline
399
1. Pete Rose
10
8. Lou Gchrig
1,868
19. Rabbit Maranville
177
12. Dale Murphy
398
9. Tris Speaker
2. fy Cobb
9
1,882
Stan Musial
177
13. Johnny Bench
389
3. Lou Gehrig
8
10. Mel Off
1,859
Willie Keeler
B
HOME RUNS
14. Mark McGwire
387
11. Frank Robinson
1,829
16. Dwight Evans
385
Paul Waner
8
12. Eddie Collins
1, Hank Aaron
755
1,821
16. Frank Howard
382
6. Wade Boggs
7
13. Carl Yastrzemski
2. Babe Ruth
714
1,816
Jim Rice
382
Charley Gehringer
7
14. Tea Williams
1,798
3, Willie Mays
660
18. Orlando Cepeda
379
Rogers Hornsby
7
15. Charley Gehringer
4. Frank Robinson
586
1,774
Tony Perez
379
9. Jesse Burkett
6
16. Jimmie Faxx
5. Harmon Killabrew
1,751
573
20. Joe Carter
378
Steve Garvey
8
17. Honus Wagner
6. Reggte Jackson
563
1,736
Stan Musial
6
18. Jesse Burkett
7. Mike Schmidt
1,720
546
HOME RUNS, LEFTHANDER
Sam Rice
6
19. Cap Anson
8, Mickey Mantle
536
1,719
1. Babe Ruth
714
Al Simmons
6
Willie Kaeler
9. Jimmie Foxx
534
1,719
2. Reggle Jackson
563
George Sisler
6
10. Willie McCovey
521
3. Willie McCovey.
521
YEARS LEADING LEAGUE IN RUNS
Bill Terry
6
Ted Williams
521
Ted Williams
521
16. Tony Gwynn
S
1. Babe Ruth
B
12. Ernie Banks
512
5. Eddie Mathews
512
Chuck Klein
5
2. Mickey Mantle
6
Eddie Mathews
512
6, Mel Off
511
Kirby Puckett
5
Ted Williams
6
14. Mcl On
511
19. 14 lied with 4
7. Lou Gehrig
493
4. George Burns
S
15. Eddle Murray
504
8. Stan Musial
475
Ty Cobb
5
PINCH HITS
16. Lou Gehrig
493
Willie Stargell
475
Rickey Hendarson
5
17. Slan Musial
1. Manny Mota
475
10. Carl Yastrzemski
150
452
Rogers Hornsby
5
Willie Stargell
475
2. Smoky Burgess
145
11. Billy Williams
426
Stan Musial
5
19. Dave Winfield
465
3. Greg Gross
143
12. Darrell Evans
414
9. Lou Gehrig
4
4. Jose Morales
123
20. Carl Yastrzemskl
452
13. Duke Snider
407
Billy Hamitton
4
5. Jerry Lynch
116
HOME RUNS, A.L.
14. Graig Nettles
390
Pate Rose
4
6. Red Lucas
114
15. Norm Cash
377
1. Babe Ruth
708
Harry Stovey
4
7. Steve Braun
113
16. Barry Bonds
374
13. Hank Aaron
3
2. Harmon Killebrew
573
8. Terry Crowley
108
17. Johnny Mize
359
Eddin Collins
3
3. Roggle Jackson
563
Denny Walling
108
18. Yogi Berra
858
King Kelly
3
10. Gates Brown
107
4. Mickey Mantle
536
19. Harold Baines
339
Chuck Klein
3
11. Mike Lum
5. Jimmie Foxx
524
103
Fred McGrin
339
Paul Molhor
6. Ted Williams
3
12. Jim Dwyer
102
521
Dave Parker
338
Frank Robinson
3
13. Rusty Staub
100
7. Lou Gehrig
493
Boog Powell
339
Ryne Sandberg
3
14. Larry Biittner
95
8. Carl Yastrzemski
452
Duke Snider
Vic Davalillo
95
9. AI Kaline
399
HOME RUNS, SWITCH HITTER
3
Arky Vaughan
3
Gerald Perry
95
10. Eddle Murray
396
1. Mickey Marrile
535
Carl Yastrzemskl
3
17. Jerry Hairston
94
11. Dwight Evans
385
2. Eddie Murray
504
1B. Dave Philley
93
12. Jim Rice
382
3. Chill Davis
328
100-RUN SEASONS
Joel Youngblood
93
13. Norm Cash
377
4. Reggic Smith
314
1. Hank Aaron
15
20. Jay Johnstone
92
14. Carlton Fisk
376
5. Bobby Bonilla
262
2. Lou Gehrig
13
15. Rocky Colavito
371
6. Ted Simmons
248
3. Charley Gehringer
12
SINGLES
16. Cal Ripken
370
7. Ken Singleton
246
Rickey Henderson
12
1. Pele Rose
3,215
17. Mark McGwire
363
B. Mickey Tettleton
245
Willie Mays
12
2. Ty Cobb
3,053
18. Joe DIMagglo
361
9. Ruben Sierra
235
Babe Ruth
12
3. Eddie Collins
2,64S
19. Yogl Berra
358
10. Howard Johnson
228
7. Ty Cobb
11
4. Willie Keeler
2,513
20. Joe Carter
354
11. Kon Caminiti
167
Jimmie Foxx
11
5. Honus Wagner
2,422
HOME RUNS, N.L.
12. Roy Smalley
153
Billy Hamilton
11
6. Rod Carew
2,404
13. Petc Rose
160
Stan Musial
11
7. Tris Speaker
2,383
1. Hank Aaron
733
Roy White
160
George Van Haltren
11
8. Nap Lajoie
2,339
2. Willie Mays
660
16. Tim Raines
159
12. Ed Delahanty
10
9. Hank Aaron
2,294
3. Mike Schmidt
548
16. Devon White
154
Mike Griffin
10
10. Jesse Burkett
2.273
4. Willie McCovey
521
17. Tom Tresh
153
Bid McPhsc
10
11. Sam Rice
2,271
6. Ernie Banks
512
18. Tony Phillips
141
Pete Rose
10
12. Paul Molitor
2,263
6. Mcl on
511
19. Terry Pendiston
137
Sam Thompson
13, Carl Yastrzomski
2,262
7. Eddle Mathews
503
10
20. Ripper Collins
135
17. 10 tied with 9
14. Stan Musial
2,253
8. Stan Muslal
475
15. Lou Brock
2,247
Willle Stargett
475
HOME RUNS, FIRST BASEMAN
HITS
16. Cap Anson
2,246
10. Andre Dawson
409
1. Lou Gehrig
493
1. Pete Rose
4,256
17. Paul Waner
2,243
11. Duke Snider
407
2. Jimmie Foxx
480
2. Ty Cobb
4,189
18. Robin Yount
2,182
12. Date Murphy
398
3. Willie McCovey
439
3. Hank Aaron
3,771
19. Frankie Frisch
2,171
13. Billy Williams
392
4. Eddie Murray
409
4. Stan Musial
3,630
20. Doc Cramer
2,163
14. Johnny Bench
389
5. Mark McGwire
373
5. Tris Speaker
3,514
DOUBLES
15. Barry Bonds
374
6. Norm Cash
367
6. Carl Yastrzemski
3,419
16. Gll Hodges
370
7. Johnny Mize
350
7. Honus Wagner
3,415
1. Tris Speaker
792
17. Orlando Cepeda
358
8. GII Hodges
335
6. Eddie Collins
2. Pete Rose
3,315
746
18. Ralph Kiner
351
9, Fred McGrin
298
9. Willie Mays
3,283
3. Stan Musial
725
19. George Foster
347
10. Orlando Cepeda
293
10. Eddie Murray
4. Ty Cobb
724
3,255
20. Frank Robinson
343
11. Nap Lajole
5. George Breit
665
HOME RUNS, SECOND BASEMAN
3.242
12. Paul Molitor
6. Nap Lajole
657
HOME RUNS, ONE CLUB
3,178
1. Joe Morgan
266
7. Carl Yastrzemski
646
13. George Bren
3,154
1. Hank Aaron, Braves
733
2. Rogers Hornsby
264
14. Paul Waner
8. Honus Wagner
640
3,152
2. Babe Ruth, Yankees
659
9. Hank Aaron
3. Ryne Sandberg
252
624
15. Robin Yount
9.142
3. Willia Mays, Glants
646
4. Joe Gordon
246
10. Paul Waner
605
16, Dave Winfield
3,110
4. Harmon Killebraw, Senators/Twins
559
5. Lou Whitaker
239
11. Rabin Yount
583
17. Rod Carew
3,053
5. Mike Schmidt, Phillies
548
12. Paul Malitor
576
6. Bobby Doerr
223
18 Lou Brock
3,023
6. Mickey Mantle. Yankees
536
13. Charley Gahringer
574
7. Bobby Grich
198
19. AI Kaline
3,007
7. Ted Williams, Red Sox
521
8. Charley Gehringer
181
14. Eddie Murray
560
20. Roberto Clemente
3,000
542
8. Ernie Banks, Cubs
512
15. Harry Heilmann
9. Frank White
156
YEARS LEADING LEAGUE IN HITS
16. Wade Boggs
541
9. Mel Ott, Glants
511
10. Tony Lazzeri
149
8
Rogers Homsby
541
10, Lou Gehrig, Yankees
493
1. Ty Cobb
18. Joe Medwick
540
Eddie Mathaws, Braves
493
HOME RUNS, THIRD BASEMAN
2. Tony Gwynn
7
Dave Wintleld
540
12. Stan Musial, Cardinals
475
1. Mike Schmidt
509
Pete Rose
7
20. AI Simmons
Willie Stargell, Pirates
475
2. Eddie Mathews
486
4. Stan Musial
539
6
14. Willie McCovey, Giants
469
3. Graig Nettles
368
5. Tony Oliva
5
TRIPLES
15. Carl Yastrzemski. Rcd Sox
452
4. Ron Samo
337
6. Ginger Beaumont
4
1. Sam Crawford
309
16, AI Kalinc, Tigers
399
5. Ron Cey
312
Nollic Fox
4
2. Ty Cobb
295
17. Billy Williams, Cubs
392
6. Gary Gaetti
309
Rogers Hornsby
4
3. Honus Wagner
252
18. Johnny Bench, Reds
389
7. Brooks Robinson
266
Harvey Kuenn
4
4. Jake Beckley
243
Duke Snider, Dodgers
389
8. Ken Boyer
260
Nap Lajoie
4
5. Roger Connor
233
20. Jim Rice, Red Sox
382
9. Matt Williams
257
Kirby Pucken
4
6. Tris Speaker
222
10. Tim Wallach
249
12. Richia Ashburn
3
7. Fred Clarke
220
HOME RUNS, RIGHTHANDER
George Bren
3
8, Dan Brouthers
205
1. Hank Aaron
755
HOME RUNS, SHORTSTOP
Dan Browthers
3
9. Joe Kelley
194
2. Willie Mays
660
1. Cal Ripken
345
Jesse Burkett
3
10. Paul Waner
191
3. Frank Robinson
586
2. Emie Banks
277
446
FEB-05-1999
17:23
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.03
1. Ver Stephens
213
Mel On
8
10. Dave Winfield
5,221
8. Honus Wagner
1,732
1. Alan Trammell
177
Ted Williams
8
11. This Speaker
5,101
9. Tony Perez
1,652
5. Joe Cronin
14. Ernie Banks
7
12. Lou Gehrig
5,060
10. Emie Banks
1,636
155
137
Barry Bonds
7
13. Goorge Brett
5,044
11. Nap Lajoie
1,599
Barry Larkin
129
Rocky Colavilo
7
14. Mel Ott
5,041
12. Mike Schmldt
1,595
Eddle Joost
15. Jimmie Foxx
4,956
13. Andre Dawson
1,591
3. Rico Petrocelli
127
Joe DIMaggio
7
3. Pee Wee Rease
122
Reggle Jackson
7
16. Ted Williams
4,884
14. Rogers Hornaby
1,584
122
Ralph Kiner
7
17. Honus Wagner
4,862
Harmon Killebrew
1,584
Robin Yount
Dave Kingman
7
18. Al Kaline
4,852
16. AI Kaline
1,583
HOME RUNS, OUTFIELDER
Willie McCovey
7
19. Reggle Jackson
4,834
17. Harry Hellmann
1,539
1. Babe Ruth
692
Fred McGriff
7
20. Andre Dawson
4,787
18. Joe DiMaggio
1,537
2. Hank Aaron
661
300-TOTAL BASE SEASONS
19. Ed Delahanty
1,464
BALLPARKS HITTING HOME RUNS
20. Cal Ripken
1,453
3. Willie Mays
642
514
1. Ellls Burks
32
1. Mank Aaron
15
4. Ted Williams
Roger Connor
32
2. Lou Gehrig
13
ABIa, LEFTHANDER
5. Mickey Mame
490
Gary Gaelli
32
Willie Mays
13
1. Babe Ruth
2,213
6. Frank Robinson
463
7. Reggle Jackson
Eddle Murray
32
Stan Mustal
13
2. Lou Gehrig
1,995
458
Frank Robinson
32
5. Babe Ruth
11
3. Stan Muslal
1,951
8. Mel Ott
457
Rusty Staub
32
6. Jimmie Foxx
10
4. Ty Cobb
1,937
9. Andre Dawson
404
Harry Stovey
32
7. Joe DiMaggio
9
5. Mel Oth
1,8GO
0. Duke Shider
400
Dave Winfield
400
Dave Winfield
32
Billy Williams
9
6. Carl Yastrzemski
1,844
9. Hank Aaron
31
Ted Williams
9
7. Ted Williams
1,839
HOME RUNS, CATCHER
Chill Davis
91
10. Rogers Hornsby
8
8. Reggie Jackson
1,702
Fred McGriH
31
Frank Robinson
8
9. Goose Goslin
1,609
1. Carlton Fisk
351
12. Ron Fairly
30
12. Hank Greenberg
7
327
10. George Brett
1,595
2. Johnny Bench
Kirk Glbson
30
Mel Off
7
11. Jake Beckley
1,575
3. Yogl Berra
306
Pete Incaviglia
30
Paul Waner
7
12. Willie McCovey
1,555
4. Gary Carter
298
AI Oliver
30
15. 15 tied with 6
295
13. Willie Stargell
1,540
5. Lance Parrish
6. Roy Campanella
239
16. Bobby Bands
29
SLUGGING PERCENTAGE
14. Tris Speaker
1,529
Doron Johnson
29
15. Sam Crawford
1,525
7. Gabby Hartnett
232
Candy Maldonado
29
(Minimum 2,000 total bases)
16. Dave Parker
1,493
8. Bill Dickey
200
Lee May
29
1. Babe Ruth
690
9. Ted Simmons
29
.634
17. Billy Williams
1,475
195
2. Ted Williams
1,466
10. Bill Freehan
185
Gary Shetfield
3. Low Gehrig
632
18. Rusly Staub
HOME RUNS, PITCHER
PINCH-HIT HOME RUNS
.609
19. Eddle Mathews
1,453
4. Jimmie Foxx
20. Yogi Berra
1,430
37
1. CIII Johnson
20
5. Hank Greenberg
605
1. Wes Ferrell
2. Jerry Lynch
18
6. Frank Thomas
600
RBIs, SWITCH HITTER
2. Bob Lemon
35
3. Gates Brown
16
7. Joe DiMaggio
579
Warren Spahn
35
1. Eddie Murray
1,917
Smoky Burgess
16
8. Rogers Homsby
.577
34
.566
2. Mickey Mantle
1,509
4. Red Ruffing
Willie McCovey
16
9, Albert Belle
3. George Davis
1,437
5. Earl Wilson
33
6. George Crowe
14
10. Johnny Mize
.562
4. Ted Simmons
1,389
6. Don Drysdale
29
7. Joe Adcock
12
Ken Griffey Jr.
.582
5. Pete Rose
1,314
7. John Clarkson
24
Bob Cerv
12
12. Stan Musial
.559
6. Chill Davis
1,285
Bob Glbson
24
Jose Morales
12
13. Willie Mays
.557
7. Frankie Frisch
1,244
9. Walter Johnson
23
Graig Nettles
12
Juan Gonzalez
.557
10. Jack Slivetts
20
.567
8. Reggle Smith
1,092
11. Jett Burroughs
11
Mickey Mantic
9. Kan Singleton
1,065
Dizzy Trout
20
Jay Johnstone
11
16. Mark McGwire
556
Candy Maldonado
555
10. Bobby Bonilla
1,061
LEADOFF HOMERS
11
17. Hank Aaron
11. Ruben Sierra
1,036
Fred Whirfield
11
18. Barry Bonds
.551
72
.548
12. John Anderson
976
1. Rickey Henderson
Cy Williams
11
19. Ralph Kiner
35
13. Tommy Tucker
932
2. Babby Bonds
16. 10 tled with 10
20, Hack Wilson
.545
33
14. Terry Pendleton
917
3. Paul Molltor
4. Devon White
30
GRAND SLAMS
EXTRA-BASE HITS
15. Duke Farrell
912
28
23
1. Hank Aaron
1,477
16. Tim Raines
900
5. Davey Lopes
1. Lou Gehrig
Tony Phillips
28
2. Eddle Murray
19
2. Stan Musial
1,377
17. Augie Galan
830
Eddie Yost
28
3. Willie McCovey
18
3. Babe Ruth
1,356
18. Kid Gleason
823
8. Brady Anderson
27
4. Jimmie Foxx
17
4. Willie Mays
1,32$
19. Tom Daly
811
9. Brian Downing
25
Ted Williams
17
5. Lou Gehng
1,190
20. Willie McGes
802
10. Low Brock
24
6. Hank Aaron
16
6. Frank Robinson
1,186
100-RBI SEASONS
11. Tommy Harper
23
Dave Kingman
16
7. Can Yastrzemski
1,157
1. Jimmie Foxx
13
Lou Whitaker
23
Babe Ruth
16
8. Ty Cobb
1,136
13. Jimmy Ryan
22
9. Gil Hodges
14
9. Tris Speaker
1,131
Lou Gehrig
13
14. Felipe Alou
20
10. Joe OlMaggio
13
10. George Brett
1,119
Babe Ruth
13
Barry Bonds
20
George Foster
13
11. Jimmie Foxx
1,117
4. Al Simmons
12
Lenny Dykstra
20
Ralph Kiner
13
Ted Williams
1,117
5. Hank Aaron
11
17. Eddie Joost
19
13, Harold Balnes
13. Eddie Murray
1,099
Goose Goslin
11
12
1,093
7. Joe Carter
10
Dick McAuliffe
19
Ernie Banks
12
14. Dave Winfield
19. Hank Bauer
17
Don Baylor
12
15. Reggie Jackson
1,075
Willie Mays
10
Dan Gladden
17
Rogers Hornsby
12
16. Mel Olt
1,071
Stan Musial
10
Rick Monday
17
12
17. Pete Rose
10. Joe OlMaggio
9
Joe Rudi
1.041
Pete Rose
17
Rudy York
12
18. Andre Dawson
1,039
Harmon Killebrew
9
19. Mike Schmidt
1,015
Mel on
9
19. 10 tied with 11
20-HOME RUN SEASONS
20. Rogers Hornsby
1,011
Mike Schmidt
9
MULTIPLE-HOME RUN GAMES
9
1. Hank Aaron
20
Honus Wagner
2. Willte Mays
17
1. Babe Ruth
72
RUNS BATTED IN
Ted Williams
9
Frank Robinson
17
2. Willie Mays
63
1. Hank Aaron
2,297
16. Emie Banks
8
4. Reggle Jackson
16
3. Hank Aaron
62
2. Babe Ruth
2,213
Joe Cronin
8
Eddie Murray
10
4. Jimmie Foxx
55
3. Lou Gshrig
1,995
Hugh Duffy
8
Babe Ruth
16
5. Frank Robinson
54
4. Stan Muslal
1,951
Harry Heilmann
8
16
6. Eddie Mathews
49
5. Ty Cobb
1,937
Bob Johnson
8
Ted Williams
8. Mel On
15
Mel Olt
49
6. Jimmic Foxx
1,922
Johnny Mize
8
Willie Stargell
15
8. Harmon Killebrew
46
7. Eddle Murray
1,917
Jim Rice
B
Dave Winfield
15
Mickey Mantle
46
8. Willia Mays
1,903
WALKS
14
10. Willle McCovey
44
11. Mickey Mantle
9. Cap Anson
1,879
Eddie Mathews
14
Mike Schmidt
44
10. Mel Off
1,860
1. Babe Ruth
2,056
14
12. Dave Kingman
43
11. Carl Yastrzemski
1,844
2. Ted Williams
2,019
Mike Schmidt
43
3. Joe Morgan
1.865
Billy Williams
14
Mark McGwire
12. Ted Williams
1,839
15. Emia Banks
13
14. Emle Banks
42
13. Dave Winfield
1,833
4. Carl Yastrzemski
1,845
13
Lou Gehrig
42
5. Rickay Henderson
1.772
Andre Dawson
14. AI Simmons
1,827
Lou Gehrig
13
Reggis Jackson
42
15. Frank Robinson
1,812
6. Mickey Mantie
1,733
13
17. Ralph Kiner
40
7. Mel Off
1,708
Harmon Killebrew
39
16. Honus Wagner
1,732
19. 7 tied with 12
18. Andre Dawson
8. Eddle Yost
1,614
19. Stan Musial
37
17. Reggis Jackson
1,702
9. Darrell Evans
1,605
RECORD
30-HOME RUN SEASONS
37
18. Tony Parez
1,652
Ted Williams
1,635
10. Stan Muslal
1,599
19. Emie Banks
1. Hank Aaron
15
TOTAL BASES
11. Pete Rose
1,566
20. Goose Goslin
1,609
2. Babe Ruth
13
12. Harmon Killcbrew
1,559
Mike Schmidt
13
1. Hank Aaron
6,856
RBIs, RIGHTHANDER
13. Lou Gchrig
1,508
4. Jimmie Foxx
12
2. Stan Muslal
6,134
5. Willie Mays
6,065
1. Hank Aaron
2,297
14. Mike Schmidt
1,507
11
3. Willle Mays
2. Jimmle Foxx
1,922
15. Eddle Collins
1,499
11
4. Ty Cobb
5,854
Frank Robinson
16. Willie Mays
1,464
5,793
3, Willia Mays
1,903
7. Lou Gehrig
10
5, Babe Ruth
10
4. Cap Anson
1,879
17. Jimmle Foxx
1,452
Harmon Killebrew
6. Pete Rose
5,752
7. Carl Yastrzemski
5,539
5. Dave Winlicid
1,833
18. Eddle Mathews
1,444
Eddle Mathews
10
10. Mickey Mantle
9
8. Eddie Murray
5,397
6. AI Simmons
1,827
19. Frank Robinson
1,420
9. Frank Robinson
5,373
7. Frank Robinson
1,812
20. Hank Aaron
1,402
11. Mark McGwire
8
447
FEB-05-1999
17:24
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.04
9. Frankle Frisch
1. Rickey Henderson
1,231
19
Jackle Robinson
938
19
2. Lou Brock
9. Billy Hamilton
912
11. Jimmy Sheckard
18
892
Tris Speaker
18
4. Ty Cobb
Joe Tinker
18
5. Tim Raines
795
14. Rod Carew
752
17
6. Vince Coleman
Eddle Collins
17
7. Eddia Collins
744
739
Larry Dayle
17
8. Arlie Latham
17. Tommy Leach
16
9. Max Carey
738
18. Ben Chapman
15
10. Honus Wagner
722
Fred Clarke
15
11. Joe Morgan
689
Lou Gehrig
15
12. Willle Wilson
BB8
13. Tom Brown
657
14. Ben Campaneris
649
PITCHING
15. George Davis
616
16. Dummy Hay
594
GAMES
17. Maury Wills
586
18. George Van Haltren
583
1. Hoyt Withelm
1,070
2. Kant Takulve
1,050
19. Ozzle Smith
580
3. Lee Smith
1,022
20. Hugh Duffy
574
4. Dannis Eckersley
1,021
CAUGHT STEALING
5, Rich Gossage
1.002
1. Lou Brock
307
6. Lindy McDaniel
987
7. Jesse Orosco
956
2. Rickey Henderson
2B8
8. Rollle Fingers
944
3. Brett Butler
257
9. Gene Garber
931
4. Maury Wills
208
10. Cy Young
906
$. Bert Campaneris
199
11. Sparky Lyle
899
6. Rod Carew
187
12. Jim Kast
898
7. Omar Marano
182
13. Jen Reardon
880
8. Cesar Cedeno
179
14. Don McMahon
874
9. Ty Cobb
178
15. Phil Niekro
864
Steve Sax
178
16. Charlle Hough
858
11. Vince Coleman
177
17. Roy Face
848
12. Eddle Collins
173
18. Tug McGraw
624
13. Otls Nixon
172
19. Nolan Ryan
807
14. Bobby Bonds
169
20. Walter Johnson
802
15. Joc Morgan
162
162
GAMES STARTED
Billy North
he majority of outfielder Rickey Henderson's 1,186 career stolen bases came
17. Pete Rose
149
1. Cy Young
815
2. Nolan Ryan
773
uring his three stints with the Oakland A's.
18. Ozzie Smith
148
19. Sam Rice
143
3. Don Sutton
756
20. Ron LeFlore
142
4. Phil Niekro
716
100-WALK SEASONS
10. Harmon Killebrew
1,699
Tim Raines
142
5. Steve Carlton
709
Babe Ruth
11. Dwight Evans
1,697
6. Tommy John
700
13
12. Dave Winfield
1,686
STEAL PERCENTAGE
7. Gaylord Perry
690
Lou Gehrig
11
13. Chill Davis
1,580
1. Eric Davis
86.12
8. Bert Blyleven
685
Ted Williams
11
14. Lee May
1,570
2. Tim Raines
84.85
9. Pud Galvin
681
Mickey Marrile
10
15. Dick Allen
1,558
3. Barry Larkin
84.26
10. Watter Johnson
666
Mel On
10
16. Willle McCovey
1,550
4. Willie Wilson
83.29
11. Warren Spahn
665
Joe Morgan
8
17. Dave Parker
1,537
5. Davey Lopes
83.01
12. Tom Seaver
647
Eddle Yos)
8
1,532
6. Julio Cruz
81.47
13. Jim Kaat
625
18. Frank Robinson
Max Bishop
7
19. Lance Parrish
1,527
7. Rickey Henderson
81.04
14. Frank Tanana
616
Jimmle Foxx
7
20. Willie Mays
1,526
8. Marquis Grissom
80.99
15. Early Wynn
612
Harmon Killebrew
7
9. Joe Murgan
60.96
1G. Robin Roberts
609
100-STRIKEOUT SEASONS
10. Vince Colaman
17. Grover Alexander
500
Mike Schmidt
7
80.95
Frank Thomas
7
1. Reggie Jackson
18
11. Andy Van Slyke
80.59
18. Fergie Jenkins
594
Roy Thomas
7
2. Dave Kingman
13
12. Lonny Dykstra
79.83
Tim Keefe
594
20. Kid Nichols
561
Barry Bonds
6
Willic Stargell
13
13. Ozzle Smith
79.67
Harlond Cliff
6
4. Mike Schmidt
12
14. Kenny LoHon
79.55
COMPLETE GAMES
Rickey Henderson
6
5. Dale Murphy
11
15. Gary Redus
79.51
1. Cy Young
749
Eddle Japst
6
6. Dick Allen
10
16. Paul Molitar
79.33
2. Pud Galvin
639
Ralph Kiner
6
Bobby Bonds
10
17. Roberto Alomar
79.12
3. Tim Keefe
554
Eddle Stanky
G
Frank Howard
10
18. Devon White
78.89
4. Walter Johnson
531
Gene Тепасе
6
10
19. Luis Aparicio
78.82
Greg Luzinsk!
Kid Nichols
531
20. Amos Otis
78.57
Jini Wynn
6
6. Mickey Welch
525
Lee May
10
Carl Yastrzemskl
6
50-STEAL SEASONS
7. Charles Radbourn
489
Tony Perez
10
B. John Clarkson
485
INTENTIONAL WALKS
12. Lou Brock
9
1. Lou Brock
12
9. Tony Mullane
468
Fred McGriff
9
293
Rickey Handerson
12
10. Jim McConnick
466
Hank Aaron
Danny Tartabuli
9
3. Billy Hamilton
9
11. Gus Weyhing
448
Barry Bonds
260
15. Jose Canseco
8
Arlie Latham
9
12. Grover Alexander
437
Willie McCovey
260
Rub Deer
B
5. Ty Cobb
8
13. Christy Mathowson
434
George Brett
229
Mickey Mantic
B
Tim Raines
8
14. Jack Powell
422
Willie Stargell
227
Rick Monday
8
7. Bert Campaneris
7
15. Eddie Plank
410
Eddie Murray
222
Lance Parrish
8
Vince Coleman
7
16. Will White
394
Frank Robinson
218
Doug Rader
6
9. Tom Brown
6
17. Amos Rusie
393
Mike Schmidt
201
Juan Samuel
8
18. VIc Willis
S88
Max Carey
6
Ernic Banks
198
Darryl Strawberry
8
Cesar Cedeno
6
19. Warren Spahn
362
Rusty Staub
193
Eddle Collins
6
20. Jim Whitney
377
192
HIT BY PITCH
Willie Mays
Harry Stovey
6
OPENING DAY STARTS
Carl Yastrzemski
190
1. Hughie Jennings
287
Curt Weich
6
Tony Gwynn
189
2. Tommy Tucker
272
1. Tom Seaver
16
15. Ned Hanion
5
Ted Simmons
188
3. Don Baylor
267
2. Steve Carlton
14
Dummy Hoy
5
Walter Johnson
14
Billy Williams
182
4. Ron Hunt
243
King Kelly
5
Chili Davis
180
230
Jack Morris
14
5. Dan McGann
Kenny Lotton
5
5. Robin Roberts
13
Harold Baines
173
6. Frank Robinson
198
Omar Moreno
$
Cy Young
13
Wade Boggs
172
7. Minnie Minoso
192
Joe Morgan
5
7. Grover Alexander
12
Dave Winfield
172
8. Jake Beckley
183
Dits Nixon
5
Ben Blylaven
12
Dave Parker
170
9. Curt Weich
173
Honus Wagner
$
9. Fergie Jenkina
11
10. Kid Elberfold
166
John Ward
5
Dennis Martinez
11
STRIKEOUTS
11. Fred Clarke
153
Maury Wills
5
11. Bob Glbson
10
Reggie Jackson
2,597
12. Chet Lemon
151
STEALS DF HOME
Juan Marichal
10
Willie Stargell
1,936
13. Carlton Flsk
143
George Mullin
10
Mike Schmidt
1,883
14. Nellie Fox
142
1. Ty Cobb
50
Warren Spahn
10
Tony Peraz
1,867
15. Art Fletcher
141
2. Max Carey
33
15. Phill Niskro
8
Dave Kingman
1,816
16. Bill Dahlen
140
3. George J. Burns
28
Gaylord Perry
9
Bobby Bonds
1,757
17. Frank Chance
137
4. Honus Wagner
27
Stave Rogers
9
Date Murphy
1,748
1B. Dummy Hoy
134
5. Sherry Magee
23
Nolan Ryan
9
Lou Brock
1,730
Nap Lajoie
134
Frank Schulte
23
Rick Sutcliffe
9
Mickey Mantle
1,710
John McGraw
134
7. Johnny Evers
21
Don Sutton
9
448
TOTAL
04
MPERSTARS OF BASEBALL BY BOB BROEG DIAMOND COMM UNICATIONS,
SOUTH BEND, ,EN © 1994
ORIGINAL
755: Henry Aaron leads all the rest in name runs. four times matching in
homers the uniform number he made famous-44.
HANK AARON
Just as Henry Aaron stood a wrist-snapping
To the tune of "You're the Top." it went, in
swing away from THE record, Babe Ruch's 714
part, as a show-stopper.
home runs, which once seemed as safe as the fact
that no one could prove the moon wasn't made of
You 're the top,
green cheese, The Hammer came to Sc. Louis to
You're THE home-run hitter.
accept an award and clear his dinner place rather
You "TC the top,
than the bases.
You're Gaylord's spitter.
It was early in 1974, the year IT happened, and
You're a Bacharach tune, you gave Bowie
the occasion was an annual Baseball Writers' chap-
Kuhn the pox,
ICI dinner of roasts and toasts, songs and skirs. Jim
You the SEC.
Toomey, a reformed sportswriter occasionally hor-
The ITT,
tempered as P.R. person for the Cardinals. prepared
You "re Magnavor.
a Cole Porter parody of salute to Aaron.
1
P.01
607 547 4094
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
FEB-05-1999 17:26
SUPERSTARS OF BASEBALL
You the rop,
and a character that would withstand the slings, ar-
You re this baseball dinner.
rows and obscenities of the racially bigored. the
You 're the top,
black man walking call led not only che baseball al-
You a Series winner.
phabet. Aaron, like Abou Ben Adhem. led all the
You re a cencer-fold chat can : be told to strip.
rest.
You an Egg-McMuffin.
From that moment in early April of '74 at At-
You're turkey and stuffin;
lanta until he finished up in late September of '76
You're skinny-dip.
at Milwaukee, a designated hitter no longer able to
bac, run or field as before, it was all downhill on an
You 're the top,
uphill climb-if you forgive the uneven cypo-
You Bob Gibson ripping.
graphical cerrain.
You're the top.
By the time he'd played largely two seasons as a
You're Jabbar ripping.
designated hitter making $240,000 with the
The ghoss of Ruth has gone, forsooth. ker-plop.
American League Brewers of Milwaukee BEFORE
Though the Braves are near che bottom,
free agency lifted salary lids. In Sudsville's County
You're the top
"
Scadium where he'd also played the first 12 of his
23 years in the majors when the Braves were based
So it went for three more amusing, liking stan-
there, Aaron had shredded the record book
zas, the white teeth of The Hammer widening al-
His home run total. though his last three-season
most as much as when IT finally happened at 9:07
total of 42 just about would match one of his typi-
P.M. (Eastern Standard Time) on a Monday night,
cal years in his prolonged peak. had reached 755.
April 9, 1974 at Adanca's Fulton County Stadium,
His 3.771 base hies were second only to Ty Cobb's
where 2 sellour crowd of 52.870 saw Henry
er,
4,191, prior to Pete Rose's subsequent record, and
Hank, if you prefer connect in the fourth inning
he'd collected the most long hits, 1,477, and total
against Los Angeles lefthander Al Downing.
bases, 6,856, passing both the Babe and The
As the 1-0 pitch sailed over the inner left-field
Hammer's longtime National League rival, Stan
fence into the bullpen, where it was retrieved by
Musial.
Braves' reliever Tom House, Aaron crossed around
Of course, he'd also played the most big league
the bases with characteristically short, choppy
ball games at that point, 3,298, and he'd gone to
strides, not entirely unlike Babe Ruch's quick,
bac the most times, too, 12,364, because you can't
mincing steps.
get a base hit much less a long ball when bench
715.
warming. The rangy, rawhided righthanded hitter
The crowd rose to its feet as one, Aaron's team-
with the career average of 310, which went down
mates poured out of the dugout and bullpen to greet
as his home runs went up, must have been allergic
him at home place, lifted him and carried him a few
to all wood except the kind he swung. He spent
steps toward the bench before he broke away and
precious little time gathering splinters until he ap-
worted to 2 special box adjacent to the Adanta dug-
peared in only 85 games his last year. Previously,
out, where he embraced his wife. Billye, and his par-
favored by a 162-game schedule for 15 seasons,
enes, Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Aaron of Mobile, Ala.
he'd played 150 or more contests 14 times.
So ac 40, as a reward for durability and consis-
For too many seasons, Aaron did his thing al-
tency, strength and scamina. record consciousness
most invisibly, chafing under lack of appreciation 35
2
607 547 4094
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
12:22 6661-90-833
20'd
HANK AARON
an all-around ballplayer, truly one of the best, even
my career, nobody ran on me and I never threw to
more than failure to appreciate him as a hitter. Al-
the wrong base and I could go get the ball."
though he won a National League barring champi-
For a fact, Aaron was underrated by many be-
onship as far back as 1957, hitting .355 when he
cause he lacked the spectacular flair of Mays or the
won his only Most Valuable Player award, he didn't
dynamic dash of Clemente, but he was all-all as a
arrive in many persons' eyes, nationally, until he
ballplayer, a point he proved when, at the urging of
achieved the 3,000-hir goal early in 1970, a year
first Bobby Bragan and then Charley Dressen, he
before he hit a career high of 47 home runs.
opened up as a base-stealer. One year, 1963, he
By chen, he was 37 years old and, again, by then,
joined that rare breed of 30-homer, 30-stolen base
he had hit 40 or more homers six times, including
players, hitting 44 for four bases, and filching 31.
curiously, matching his uniform number-44-
Yeah, and he was thrown our only a couple of
four times. It was when he rebounded with the
times.
high production in '71 that he began to think first
The easy-does-it approach Aaron had. plus the
of Ruth's Mt. Everest of hitting and Musial's Na-
fact that he put on no more than 10 pounds from
donal League hit high. 3,630. a figure he just missed
the time he came up at 20 until he quit at 42, ac-
because he went in a huff to the American League at
counted in part for his knack of escaping pulled
Milwaukee.
muscles. He hit with wrists that were exceptionally
For those who looked upon him as a phlegmacic
chick and which rolled over in his swing so that his
automaton, Aaron's bolc back to the Brewers was
right hand wound up on top of the left. Truth is,
not to return to baseball's equivalent of his achletic
that's the way he'd barred as a kid-cross-handed-
womb, but, rather, because he felt the Braves had
when he joined the Indianapolis Clowns of the van-
capitalized fully on him as a hitter and planned only
ishing Negro National League in 1952.
a token front office future. The financially shaky
"IfI'd had it to do over," said Aaron lare in his
Adanta operation obliged him by dealing him to
career, "I'd have been a switch-hitter. After all, bar-
Milwaukee for outfielder Dave May and pitcher
ting cross-handed from the right side, I was already
Roger Alexander, hardly household words.
part way there."
Aaron's reaction to the "hare" mail, which grew
With his speed, as deceptive as his play in gen-
as figurative brown-shoed, white-soxed, real-life
eral, Henry would have legged our at least a few
Archie Bunker rednecks began to realize he really
more in those 13,940 times he went to home plate
posed a threat to Ruch's career record, was one of
from the time he first faced a big league pitcher,
dismay, then disgust, hurt and finally anger.
Cincinnati righthander Bud Podbielan, at Crosley
"I've always admired Jackie Robinson most be-
Field on April 13, 1954. It was at the same park
cause of what he did. but I didn't appreciate fully
where he dribbled hit No. 3,000 over second base
what he endured until now," said the black man TO
16 years later.
whom the "nigger" put-down had become only a
Ingloriously, Aaron took the collar that opener in
part of the unpleasantness.
'54-"oh, oh for 5"-against Podbielan, Joe
"I'm not trying to make anybody forget Ruth,
Nuxhall and Frank Smith in 2 slugfest won by the
but, instead, to remember Aaron," said Henry, who
Reds, 9-8. Next day the first of those 3,771 hits
was born the year before the Babe hung it up, 1935.
came against Sc. Louis at Milwaukee, a double off
"It's just like the rest of my game. I never said I was
the left-field fence at County Stadium.
Willie Mays defensively or that I threw as well as
The victim was a fast-firing veteran righthander,
Roberto Clemente, but, until I hurt my arm late in
Vic Raschi, a veteran big name from the American
3
P.03
607 547 4094
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
12:22 6661-90-833
SUPERSTARS OF BASEBALL
League and the New York Yankees. Little more
13
27
26
44
30
39
40
34
than a week later, April 23, at St. Louis's
45
44
24
32
44
39
29
44
Sportsman's Park, facing the same Raschi at a time
38
47
34
40
Henry was getting along with .267, he got his first
And after a winter's suspense before the 1974
RBI and his first homer.
season, with Commissioner Bower Kuhn disturbed
Who would have thought, then, that the kid
that Mathews, then managing the Braves, hinted
Charley Grimm had picked to replace broken-
he'd like to keep The Harnmer on the bench 50 that
legged Bobby Thomson in an outfield with Andy
he could tie and break the record at home, Aaron
Pafko and Bill Bruton would his one after another
answered the pressure by reeing off the Reds' Jack
uncil he'd even passed the Babe by what amounted
Billingham opening day at Cincinnati.
to a sizable season's total. 41 homers?
Belatedly, Atlanca had awakened to the signifi-
Sure, Henry went to bat almost 4,000 times
cance at the tail end of the '73 season when, for in-
more than Ruth did, so he's really the greatest bitter
stance, more than 40,000 came out for the final
of home runs rather than the greatest homerun hitter.
game, giving Aaron a warm, encouraging cheer
He bought that distinction from me one time, espe-
when he popped up his last cime up and world out
cially when I pointed out that it meant that the
to left field. So, as mentioned, not only was the
Babe was the most prodigious homerun hitter and
park packed for the home opener on that magical
that he (Aaron) was the most prolific. But for a guy
Monday night in April 1974, but a national relevi-
who hit from 200 to 300 homers MORE than the
sion audience watched a "Monday Night Game of
likes of such muscle men as Ted Williams, Jimmy
the Week" that was far from routine.
Foxx, Mel Ott, Emie Banks, Ed Mathews, Musial,
If thousands say they saw the Babe his No. 60 off
et al. it's a bit galling when suddenly someone starts
counting the home runs Sadarahu Oh is hitting in
Tom Zachary the last day of the 1927 season at
Japan.
Yankee Stadium, exaggerating, millions WILL be
"Over here," said Aaron evenly even before Jim
able to say they saw Aaron's No. 715-and mean it.
Rice at Boscon had become the American League's
Yes, and through the marvel of television's in-
Most Valuable Player in 1978, "I don't think any-
stant replay, they saw it again and again. As cus-
one will break my records, but if anyone can or
tomary, Aaron shuffled rather than walked into the
does, I'd suggest Rice 15 having the best chance."
batter's box, loose-limbed and relaxed until just be-
Rice did have a beckoning target, the Green
fore the ball was pitched. He had a habit of hirting
Monster, 25 Fenway Park's high. close barrier is
off his front foot, dragging the tip of the right shoe
called, but he fell far short. Aaron was favored with
so that he wore out more back-foot shoes than the
high altitude and a left-field fence pulled in for his
front.
benefit at Atlanta in the second half of his career.
Over the years, I thought he'd been a better hit-
But Milwaukee was no piece of cake and, after the
ter at Milwaukee when he went to right field, the
switch to Dixie in 1966, Henry didn't have Eddie
opposite field, more often to the point that the foc
Mathews, forming a tremendous tandem as they
had to play him straight away. Now and then, he'd
combined at Milwaukee.
hit one out of chere the other way, too. His nemesis
The secret of Aaron's success was two-fold. For
then was herky-jerky St. Louis southpaw Curt
20 years he averaged 120 games a year, an incredible
Simmons, who changed-up beautifully on him, dis-
number, and he hit home runs with almost mo-
daining to throw the Fastball, observing:
notonous consistency if not eye-popping quantity,
"Trying to throw 3 fastball past Aaron is like cry-
to wit, en route to 715:
ing to sneak the sunrise past a rooster."
4
607 547 4094
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
17:27
6661-90-833
P.04
HANKAARON
Well said, like The Hammer's remark the time
Although he scill took a king-sized swing, Aaron
Yogi Berra, catching in one of the many All-Star
had what ascure baseball judge Paul Richards called
Games in which Aaron did not distinguish himself,
"che knack of adjusting to the pitch in mid-flight."
showed boch his powers of gabbiness and observa-
And though aware Babe Ruth had been a great
tion when, glancing up at the slugger's bar gripped
pitcher and had not benefired from airconditioning
with the crademark down, he said:
and ocher modem conveniences, Stan Musial noted
"Hey, Hank. you're holding your bat wrong."
that the Babe had proficéd from more small parks
Quote Mr. Aaron, "I don't read 'cm, I just hit
and the infrequent use of relief pitching specialists,
'em."
which was still true through Musial's early years,
He would agree, though, a bit wistfully, that he
too.
had been a better hitter at Milwaukee when he'd go
Furthermore, comparing or contrasting Aaron
to right-field or when, as in exasperation one time
and Ruth. they were as different in their lifestyles al-
against Simmons in St. Louis, he guessed a change-
most as in the color of their skin and their physical
up and, striding onto home plate, stepped into the
appearances as well as habics. To the Babe, baseball
ball and hit it onto the right-field roof. When The
merely was a pleasant interlude from an extra-in-
Hammer came around to "score," he found he'd
ning evening of booze, broads and black cigars,
been foiled again by Simmons. Umpire Chris
from debauchery to devastating digestive mish-
Pelckoudas, working balls and strikes, declared
mash.
Hank our for having stepped our of che batter's box
Aaron would come to town, seek out the best
(onto the plate) to hit the ball.
Polynesian food, if possible, taxi there for dinner,
At Adanca, becoming almost strictly a one-field
and then return to his hotel to watch a television
hitter for whom the foe began to shift by placing
movie uncil past midnight. He drank hard liquor so
three infielders on the left side, Aaron said he'd al-
seldom that, as he put it, smiling, his idea of some-
tered his stance and his swing.
thing strong was an occasional bourbon with sweet
"For one thing," he said, "Mathews left the
soda used as mix. He smoked about half a pack of
lincup and Joe Adcock was gone. At Milwaukee,
cigarettes a day and even when divorced. he re-
they were the power men for whom I could get on
garded himself as conservative in his pursuit of all
base. For another ching, in the move to Atlanta I
pleasures.
felt the quickest way to win the hearts of the base-
"I've found that I need my rest, lucky I wasn't
ball fans in the Soucheast would be to hit the long
hurt too often, and although I could cat anything,
one."
I'd eat only one meal a day so that my weight didn't
Aaron also had heard, too, the old story that over
fluctuare, "said Henry, who would have a couple of
the years the first sign of corrosion of coordination
beers after a night game, then rest until about 12:30
for a batter is decreased ability to pull che ball. In
P.M. the next day. On the road he sent down for
other words, an older player just can't get his bat
coffee and the newspapers. He'd watch an early af-
around quickly enough on a good faseball and-
ternoon soap opera or ancient movie on TV, cac-
The Hammer wouldn't accept the inevitable. "I
nap, then have an early dinner-often in his
adjusted my stance and my barring grip and swing,"
room-before going to the ballpark early.
he said. "I brought my hands down somewhat and
"I wasn't anti-social," he said, "bur I had goals to
also held them closer into my body. The idea was
go and only one body with which to achieve chem."
to shorten my swing. to quicken it in reaction to the
Smart boy. Henry Louis Aaron, middle child of
pitched ball."
seven who lived. He was born to Mobile folks who
5
P.05
607 547 4094
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
17:38 6661-90-833
SUPERSTARS OF BASEBALL
traced their ancestors back to slaves. Hank's facher,
owned when the rail ticket came to report to the
Herbert, had a good job in Mobile 25 a
spring training camp of the Clowns at Winston-
boilermaker's helper at the Alabama Drydock and
Salem, N.C.
Shipbuilding Company. As 1 result, wife Estella
Aware that Aaron got up to nearly a quarter-mil-
and the kids had it a bit better than the average
lion dollars to play ball even before the severing of
black in the suffering Souch of Depression Thirties.
baseball's umbilical cord, the reserve clause. made
By young Aaron's own recollection, Henry hung
free agency possible is impressive, all right. So, too,
pretty close to mom's apron strings. Younger
is the $1,000,000 contract Hank signed with
brother, Tommy, later a fringe big leaguer, was just
Magnavox for Five years of promotion, including
the opposite.
use of baseballs commemorating home runs No.
Born as a 10-pound Piscean, H. Aaron learned
714 and 715 before they would go to the Hall of
loyalty, love and how to take adversity from his fam-
Fame at Cooperstown. Sensitively in his quier way,
ily. When a brocher accidentally belted open
Aaron always felt the Hall of Fame and the commis-
Henry's head with a broomstick and the boy wailed
sioner both were remiss in not making more of
to his father, his facher told him to stop bawling, as
home run No. 700. Sorry, Hank, old friend. I'm
writer Al Stump recorded it, and to take it like a
with you in most instances, but not that milestone.
man.
incidental to IT.
He WAS a man among boys, so good as a 145-
If any would envy Aaron's subsequent financial
pound football player at Mobile's Central High
success, please don't forget that chis was the same
School that, shrewdly, he finally quit. You see,
willowy wanderer who left home with $2, two sand-
Mom Aaron had it figured that he'd get a college
wiches, those extra pair of pants, a cardboard suit-
athletic scholarship, probably from Florida A & M.
case, and his family's well wishes. And in the segre-
and, by then, Henry had made up his mind that
gation of the South on the Clowns' bus trips-the
baseball was his dish of tea leaves. Sure enough,
Supreme Court ruling striking down "seperate but
playing infielder for a kids' team, he caught the eye
equal" evasion of blacks' rights was still two years
of the manager of a black semi-pro team.
distant-the diet was baloncy and crackers, grocery
Aaron soon was a "highly paid," 53-a-game
store cupcakes and cola. Restaurants wouldn't serve
semi-pro, but then he began to look so good for the
men of the different color then.
Mobile Black Bears that the traveling secretary of
Even when the Braves paid $2,500 for a 30-day
the Indianapolis Clowns approached him. The
look-see option and a $7,500 follow-up. on the
black big leagues were disappearing 35 the top play-
okay of their former manager, scout Billy
ers and crowds had begun to flock to see Robinson,
Souchworth, Aaron didn't get a penny of the price.
Roy Campanella, Don Newcombe, Willie Mays,
It went to Sid Pollock, who owned the Clowns.
Larry Doby, Monte Irvin and other black league
Paid $300 a month to play with Eau Claire.
graduates who had made the game better and the
Wis., of the Class C Northern League in 1952,
plight of their people.
strictly on his own and only a 50-50 shortstop, the
A $200-a-month offer dazzled the boy, but his
kid wich che $5 suit. rag-tag glove and blazing .336
mother was firm. Bunny Downs and the Clowns
bat worked his way. Even though Aaron's average
would have to wait until Henry finished high
in the Class A Sally League with Jacksonville, Fla, a
school. Hank had done odd jobs such as cut
year later was .362, is was the RBI production (125)
weeds, crim hedges and pick berries, so he bought a
of the lad moved to second base that excited man-
new sports jacket and the two pair of pants he
ager Ben Geraghty and general manager John
6
90'd
209
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
FEB-05-1999 17:28
4094
547
Henry Aaron
/
51
Rock Hill, South Carolina, of the Tri-State League employed a
black outfielder named David Mobley, but after appearing in the
lineup once, he was banned by the league. The Cotton States
League went one step further when it tried to banish the entire
Hot Springs franchise from its ranks during the Tugerson inci-
dent in 1953. The same year, Jacksonville Beach attempted to
put black players on its Florida State League roster, but the local
chamber of commerce wouldn't permit it. "No race prejudice is
involved," explained a spokesman. "It's just that the patrons of
the team felt they would rather have an all-white team."
There were a handful of players on the fringe of the Deep
South as early as 1952. After Aaron's teammate with the Clowns,
Ray Neil, was rejected in Dallas, the same team signed a black
pitcher-outfielder named Dave Hoskins, who dominated the
Texas League that year. The Florida International League fielded
three black players in 1952-Dave Barnhill of Miami Beach,
Claro Duany of Tampa, and Willie Felden of Fort Lauderdale.
But even so, the prospect of playing in even a suburb of the South
was terrifying to most black players-especially those from the
North, to whom the South was a land of horror stories. An item
from the New York Giants' training camp in 1953 subtly demon-
strates this, as reported by the Pittsburgh Courier: "Doesn't Want
To Go South! Perhaps the hardest-working player in uniform is
Bill White, rookie first baseman. Reason? White wants to go to a
Class C league in the North rather than face discrimination if he
goes into the Carolina League." As it turned out, the future pres-
ident of the National League was dispatched to Danville, Vir-
ginia, of the Carolina League, where he had to be removed from
the field on several occasions for engaging in animated disputes
with objecting white customers.
While the breakthroughs in the Carolinas and Florida were
significant, the two minor leagues that carried the banner of the
Deep South were the Southern and South Atlantic. Their mem-
bers were located in the Jim Crow playing fields of Louisiana,
Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and Northern Florida, where
the notion of interracial athletic competition was unthinkable to
many. In towns like Birmingham and Montgomery, it was
52 / I HAD A HAMMER
against the law for blacks and whites to even play checkers or
dominoes together.
To its very end, the Southern League held out staunchly
against integration. The only black player who ever appeared in
MINOR LOAH LEAVE
a Southern League game was Nat Peeples, who went to bat one
time for the Atlanta Crackers in 1954. He failed to get a hit, and
when the league closed down in 1961-in large part, because of
its racial intransigence-it could say that a black man never
made it to first base in the Southern League.
The South Atlantic League-the Sally League, as they called
it, Mother of the Minors and Cradle of the Great-was made up
of smaller towns than was the Southern. Its members were Mont-
gomery, Alabama; Columbus, Augusta, and Savannah, Georgia;
Columbia and Charleston, South Carolina; and the infamous
Jacksonville. In 1953, the Sally League was observing its fiftieth
birthday, ceremonially formalizing its place in Southern tradi-
tion. In many cultural respects, Aunt Sally represented the South
at its deepest.
It was into this uncharted and forbidding territory that the
Milwaukee Braves sent Henry Aaron, Horace Garner, and Felix
Saly
Mantilla. The three unwitting pioneers were assigned to the
leafe
Braves' Class A farm club in Jacksonville, the very city where
Jackie Robinson had been welcomed with policemen and pad-
locks. At the same time, Savannah signed on a pair of black
players named Fleming Reedy and Al Israel. And so, despite the
efforts of Robinson and the others, it was up to Henry Aaron,
Horace Garner, Felix Mantilla, Fleming Reedy, and Al Israel to
break the color line in the most vividly racial corner of the coun-
try. Baseball wouldn't be truly integrated in America until these
five young men had made it through a season in the Sally
League.
The Boston Braves moved to Milwaukee one day during
spring training in 1953. John Quinn, the general manager, walked
Henry Aaron / 55
As it turned out, it was a good thing I left Kissimmee when I
did, because it gave me time to learn a new position in Waycross.
Felix Mantilla, a Puerto Rican who had played at Evansville the
year before, was easily the best shortstop in the organization, so
right off they moved me across the bag to second base. That way,
Felix and I could play on the same team, which is exactly what
happened-except that we didn't know it would be that way
funtil they announced it. In those days, with so many minor-
league teams, they made assignments the way they gave out tour-
of-duty orders in the army. You had hundreds of guys in camp-
guys with numbers on their backs like 195F-and nobody knew
where they were headed. Finally, they'd put up a list with every-
body's assignment and call it out. It would be like: Henry Aaron,
Bus 5, you're going to Jacksonville. Felix Mantilla, Bus 5. Horace
Garner, Bus 5. They told us to pack our things and be on the bus
the next morning, because we had to get to Jacksonville to play
the Red Sox. They also mentioned that Horace, Felix, and I
would be breaking the color line in the Sally League.
The game against the Red Sox was called a "historic event"
in the Jacksonville newspaper, the Florida Times-Union. Since
Jackie Robinson had been locked out six years before, black play-
ers had participated in games there on four occasions, but never
on Jacksonville's side. As we expected, there were some boos,
and we heard "nigger" and "burrhead" and "eight-ball" and
other friendly greetings, but the biggest problem that day was the
Red Sox. They beat us, 14-1. I could take some satisfaction in the
fact that our one was a home run I hit in the eighth inning-to
right field, naturally-against Ike Delock.
Two days later, we played Tommy Holmes's Toledo team,
and it pleased me to hit a 400-foot home run to center field. The
fact was, we probably had more talent than Toledo, even though
We were two classifications lower. With Horace in right field,
Felix at shortstop, Joe Andrews at first base, Rance Pless at third
base, Jim Frey in center, and Ray Crone and Larry Lassalle pitch-
ng, we had the best roster that Jacksonville had ever seen. Jack-
onville hadn't been blessed with many good teams, and neither
had our manager, Ben Geraghty. Ben was a baseball through
230 / I HAD A HAMMER
the record, but I didn't want to do it batting .240. I wanted to hit
.300, and if the record came along the way, great. If not, it would
come the next year. There was no time pressure. Only two things
could keep me from breaking the record-a serious injury or a
terrible batting average. If I couldn't get my average up to a re-
spectable level, there was a chance I would stop short, because
I'd never been a one-dimensional hitter and I didn't want to be
one at the moment history came knocking. So, as far as I was
concerned, everything was fine and dandy as long as I stayed
healthy and the base hits fell in.
Not everybody shared that opinion, however.
g
Dear Nigger,
Everybody loved Babe Ruth. You will be the most hated man in
this country if you break his career home run record.
Dear Nigger,
In my humble way of thinking, you are doing more to hurt Base-
ball than any other that ever played the game. You may break
the record and you may replace Babe Ruth in the hearts of the
liberal sportswriters, the liberal newspapers, TV and radio, as
well as in the hearts of the long-haired Hippies. But you will
never replace the Babe in the hearts of clear-thinking members
of our Society. So, roll on in your undeserved glory, Black Boy.
Friend Hank,
If you should "break" Babe Ruth's record of 714 home runs,
remember the Babe averaged a home run for every eleven times
at bat. For several years he was pitching. If the Babe had been
playing every day possible, his home runs would be close to
900.
I believe you are a man of high morals and wouldn't want to
be the holder of a title that could be later classified as being
tainted. Think it over Hank.
Dear Black Boy,
Listen Black Boy, We don't want no nigger Babe Ruth.
Henry Aaron
/
231
Dear Super Spook,
First of all, I don't care for the color of shit. You are pretty damn
repugnant trying to break the Babe's record. You boogies will
think that you invented baseball or something.
Dear Mr. Nigger,
I hope you don't break the Babe's record. How do I tell my kids
that a nigger did it?
In May, when our crowds were so pitiful that you could prac-
tically hear somebody crack open a peanut, there was a small
group of rednecks who sat in the right-field stands and heckled
me for three straight nights. At first, it was the same stuff I was
used to hearing, mostly about all the money I was making for
striking out and hitting into double plays, but as they became
drunker and louder they became more obscene and personal, and
I became angrier and angrier. They were using Sally League lan-
guage, and I wasn't going to let anybody take me back to the Sally
League. Finally, in the ninth inning of the third night, I walked
over to the stands and told them I was going to come up there
and kick their asses if they didn't shut up. But before I could do
anything I would later regret, the security police arrived and
escorted them out of the park. I really can't say what might have
happened if security hadn't come. All I know is that I was fed
up.
I didn't expect the fans to give me a standing ovation every
time I stepped on the field, but I thought a few of them might
come over to my side as I approached Ruth. At the very least, I
felt I had earned the right not to be verbally abused and racially
ravaged in my home ballpark. I felt I had earned the right to be
treated like a human being in the city that was supposed to be
too busy to hate. The way I saw it, the only thing Atlanta was too
busy for was baseball. It didn't seem to give a damn about the
Braves, and it seemed like the only thing that mattered about the
home run record was that a nigger was about to step out of line
and break it. I was angry enough that I made a public statement
in which I charged that America was still a racist country and all
Henry Aaron / 233
the all-around player I'd been ten or five or even two years before,
but I did have the best home run percentage in the National
League. My batting average also climbed steadily starting in the
middle of May. All things considered, I thought I was having a
hell of a year.
Dear Nigger,
You can hit all dem home runs over dem short fences, but you
can't take dat black off yo face.
Dirty old nigger man,
Had Ruth played and been at bat as many times as you, old
nigger, he would have hit just short of 1100 home runs. I hope
lightning strikes you for trying to blemish Ruth's record. Retire
old man. I repeat I hope lightning strikes you old man four-
flusher. The worst to you old black man.
Dear Hank Aaron,
How about some sickle cell anemia, Hank?
Dear Jungle Bunny,
You may beat Ruth's record but there will always be only one
Babe. You will be just another Black fuck down from the trees.
Go back to the Jungles.
Dear Brother Hank Aaron,
I hope you join Brother Dr. Martin Luther King in that Heaven
he spoke of. Willie Mays was a much better player than you,
anyway!
Dear Nigger,
You're a real SKUM. You should still be in the Nigger Leagues.
Dear Jungle Bunny,
You have the nerve to try to break the Babe's record. 1st of all
you're black so you have no business even being here. Go back
234
/
I HAD A HAMMER
to Coonsland. You and your people always talk about be treated
bad. Well look what the Krauts and the Romans did to the Jews
and Christians, never giving them a chance. In America we gave
you niggers everything and you want more. Personally I like you
because I don't think your prejudice like them bigots but cause
your black you're un-equal to me the King. In closing I hope
you hit 713 and get a heart attack on the field but your a nice
jig.
Dear Nigger Scum,
Niggers, Jews, Yankees, Hippies, Nigger Lovers are the scum of
the Earth. Niggers are animals, not humans. Niggers do not have
souls because they are animals, have strong backs and weak
minds. The time has come to send the niggers back to Africa,
there is an animal shortage over there. You niggers are no good,
sorry, dirty as cockroaches and a dead nigger is a good nigger.
The nigger loving Jews are sorry as niggers, and a disgrace to the
White Race. These scum should be sent back to Israel.
Boy, I despise, hate and detest you scum. The world is better
off to get rid of you scum-scum-scum-scum-scum.
As the hate mail piled up, I became more and more intent on
breaking the record and shoving it in the ugly faces of those
bigots. I'm sure it made me a better hitter. But it also made my
life very, very difficult. A lot of the letters threatened me, and it
got to the point that the FBI was reading and confiscating some
3,000
of my mail before I ever saw it. My secretary, Carla Koplin, was
000
going through almost 3,000 letters a day at one point. Most of the
lettrr
mail was supportive, and the encouraging words people wrote
day
helped me fight through the hate. The good fans helped keep me
going, and I was grateful to them, but in a different way, they
could be as hard to deal with as the bad ones. In Los Angeles, the
Braves arranged for the bus to pick us up in front of the dugout,
because I could never make it through the autograph hounds to
the parking lot. All over the league, I had to register at our hotels
under fictitious names. I would reserve one room in my name,
where the operator could put calls through and let them ring, and
another in a name like Diefendorfer, where I actually stayed. The
Henry Aaron
/
235
problem was that sometimes my children couldn't get through,
and that worried me because they weren't safe.
My oldest daughter, Gaile, was a student at Fisk University
in Nashville, and she was receiving strange, unsettling phone
calls. Other students told her that a man had been asking them
about her schedule and her habits. One morning, Billye and I
FBI
were having breakfast at home when an FBI agent knocked on
the door and told me there were reports that Gaile had been
kidnapped. It turned out that she hadn't been, but an informer
told the FBI that the kidnapping had been plotted and attempted.
It was enough to scare the hell out of me, and, needless to say, it
was a horrifying experience for Gaile.
My dorm mother came and got me one day and brought me to a
room where four FBI men were waiting for me. That was when
they told me they had received a report that I might be kid-
napped. They told me what to do if it happened, and they told
me how they planned to protect me. There were FBI agents all
over the campus, disguised as yardmen and maintenance men.
That whole year at Fisk, I was never by myself. It was pretty
frightening, and I know my father was worried sick about it. He
flew up to Nashville to visit me almost every time he had an off
day.-Gaile Aaron
We were able to keep closer tabs on the other kids, who were
living with Barbara and going to private schools in Atlanta-
Hankie and Lary at Marist High School and Dorinda just down
the road at a Montessori elementary school. The schools were
very strict about keeping strangers and visitors away from the
kids, but we couldn't protect everybody all the time, and there
were enough crackpots out there to make us constantly nervous.
Once, when the newspaper ran a picture of Dorinda and me at a
Braves father-kid game, somebody clipped it and sent it to me
with the words, "Daddy, please think about us. Please, please!"
Nobody close to me was off limits. People would even call my
parents in Mobile and tell them that they would never see their
boy again. My father would tell them to go to hell and then hang
up.
Henry Aaron
/
237
Dear Hank,
You are a very good ballplayer, but if you come close to Babe
Ruth's 714 homers I have a contract out on you. Over 700 and
pable
you can consider yourself punctured with a .22 shell. If by the
plessom
all star game you have come within 20 homers of Babe you will
be shot on sight by one of my assassins on July 24, 1973.
out!
Dear Hank Aaron,
hand
Retire or die! The Atlanta Braves will be moving around the
sounded
country and I'll move with them. You'll be in Montreal June
gun theats
my2eye
5-7. Will you die there? You'll be in Shea Stadium July 6-8,
ed I was
and in Philly July 9th to 11th. Then again you'll be in Montreal
and St. Louis in August. You will die in one of those games. I'll
e Brave
shoot you in one of them. Will I sneak a rifle into the upper deck
withith
or a .45 in the bleachers? I don't know yet. But you know you
use noth
will die unless you retire!
had beer
Dear Hank Aaron,
out
alled and
I got orders to do a bad job on you if and when you get 10 from
B. Ruth record. A guy in Atlanta and a few in Miami Fla don't
d the cit
seem to care if they have to take care of your family too.
Wardla
as tucke
Hey nigger boy,
Mathew
We at the KKK Staten island Division want you to know that no
inocular
number of guards can keep you dirty son of a bitch nigger
reach for
mother fucker alive.
e, he acci
asn't sup
Dear Nigger,
picture
Beware of the white man's wrath [with picture of Klansman's
other.'
hood].
we were
e lookout
Mr. Aaron,
e spoke
! over hi
We the Ku Klux Klan Knights of America are now going to make
I'm
this something you better pay attention to. If you do not retire
is day,
from the baseball seen (QUIT) your family will inherit a great bit
of trouble. We can't make this sound any clearer (DEATH). We
will be in touch later with something more CONVINCING.
Henry Aaron / 61
I don't recall ever feeling that our lives were in imminent
danger, but we took nothing for granted. When we were leaving
the ballpark after a game, Joe Andrews would carry a bat with
him and tell us to stick close. Ben Geraghty fathered us and kept
us calm, but Joe was our protector. We couldn't talk back to the
fans calling us names, but Joe could, and he damn sure did.
I believe I was arrested three times that year for arguing with
people on Henry's behalf. We'd walk on the field and they
would start up the chants: "Nigger! Nigger!" Places like Macon,
they'd come into the ballpark with coolers of beer and they'd be
half drunk by batting practice. I'd say, "These sick rebel suck-
ers," and every now and then I'd just wander over to the screen
to see what I could do for 'em. It was amazing the way Henry
and Horace and Felix could take it. I'd be standing next to
Henry in the infield and some yahoo would call him a nigger or
something and I'd turn to Henry and say, "Did you hear that?"
He'd look back at me and say, "What do you think, I'm deaf?"
It wasn't just the fans, either. We had a few Southern boys on
our ball club, and they'd say things. Henry came up with a
couple of men on base once when we were down by a run, and
he popped up to end the game. Afterwards, somebody on our
team said, "Well, when pull comes to tug, a nigger's gonna croak
every time." I just started screaming. We didn't need to be wor-
rying about our guys, because we had enough problems with the
rednecks on the other side.
And believe me, there were some mean pitchers in that
league. In Macon they had an old ballpark so big you could land
a 727, and there was a tin fence that circled the park, but it was
too deep for a home run fence, so they had a snow fence inside
it. The first time up, Henry hits one over that snow fence for a
home run. The next time around, I doubled and then Henry
came up. Their pitcher was some old-timer from the Pacific
Coast League or somewhere like that, and when Henry was up
there the second time, the pitcher said, "I got four for your head,
nigger." He threw the first one behind him. Henry just moved
his head a little. Then the pitcher said, "I got three more here."
I was standing on second base, so I just yelled out, "Hey, why
don't you throw one at me?" I would have loved to take that guy
on. But Henry didn't need me. The next pitch was right at his
238 / I HAD A HAMMER
Dear Nigger Henry,
It has come to my attention that you are going to break Babe
Ruth's record. I don't think that you are going to break this
record established by the great Babe Ruth if I can help it. Getting
back to your blackness, I don't think that any coon should ever
play baseball. Whites are far more superior than jungle bunnies.
I will be going to the rest of your games and if you hit one more
home run it will be your last. My gun is watching your every
black move. This is no joke.
Dear Nigger,
You black animal, I hope you never live long enough to hit more
home runs than the great Babe Ruth. Niggers are like animals
and have a short life span. Martin Luther King was a trouble-
maker, and he had a short life span.
Dear Hank Aaron,
I hope you get it between the eyes.
Dear Hank Aaron,
I hate you!!!! Your such a little creap! I hate you and your family.
I'D LIKE TO KILL YOU!! BANG BANG YOUR DEAD.
P.S. It mite happen.
I was the only one of the Braves' officers who actually lived in
Atlanta, so I was technically in charge of Henry's situation that
year. I met with him early on and said, "Look, a lot of this stuff
is going to be coming." He asked me if we would just handle it
for him. He didn't even want to know about the threats unless
we thought there was one serious enough to get the FBI in-
volved. You could tell that most of the letters were cranks. There
was a guy from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, who wrote him all the
time with filthy racial remarks, and another one from Victor-
ville, California. There was a lot of KKK stuff, much of it from
the North. The FBI told us that if anybody was going to do
something to Henry, they probably wouldn't write him first, but
we had to take it seriously when there was a specific threat.
Henry Aaron
/
239
When we would get a letter like that, we would stick it in a
abe
plastic bag and turn it over to the FBI. There were a lot of crazies
out there.
his
When I look back on that whole episode of Henry going after
ing
the Ruth record, that's the most amazing part of it to me. People
ver
had no idea what he was going through. Nowadays, a player
ies.
will get one threat and he won't even go out on the field. Henry
ore
had them practically every day, and for a long time he didn't
ery
say a word about it.-Dick Cecil, former Braves vice president
I asked Carla to save the hate letters that she didn't have to
turn over to the authorities. I didn't read most of them, but I
ore
wanted to have them as reminders. I kept feeling more and more
hals
strongly that I had to break the record not only for myself and for
ble-
Jackie Robinson and for black people, but also to strike back at
the vicious little people who wanted to keep me from doing it.
All that hatred left a deep scar on me. I was just a man doing
something that God had given me the power to do, and I was
living like an outcast in my own country. I had nowhere to go
except home and to the ballpark, home and to the ballpark. I was
a prisoner in my own apartment. Outside my apartment, I could
see a hotel sign that blinked on and off, and it got to where I
nily.
could tell you how many times that sign blinked in a minute.
That whole period, I lived like a guy in a fishbowl, swimming
from side to side with nowhere to go, watching everybody watch-
ing me. I resented it, and I still resent it. It should have been the
d in
most enjoyable time in my life, and instead it was hell. I'm proud
that
of the home run record, but I don't talk about it because it brings
stuff
lle it
back too many unpleasant memories.
aless
You find out who your real friends are during times like that.
I in-
Ralph and Dusty always lifted my spirits, and Billye really came
here
through for me, talking me through a lot of tough times, helping
I the
me keep things in perspective and showing me that there was
ctor
still some love in the world. And I don't think a manager ever
from
meant more to a player than Eddie Mathews meant to me during
0 do
those times. He knew me and understood me as well as anybody
but
in baseball, and he did all he could to take the pressure off me.
reat.
Also, one of Eddie's coaches was my old teammate, Lew Bur-
244 / I HAD A HAMMER
black players? Who would have been the greatest home run hit-
ters if I had not been in the league, or Mays or Banks or Frank
Robinson or Willie McCovey or Orlando Cepeda or Willie Star-
gell or Billy Williams or Richie Allen? I'll tell you. The white
player who hit the most home runs in the National League in the
1960s was Ron Santo, who was almost fifty ahead of the next
white player, Eddie Mathews. With no black players in the game,
Ron Santo-who is not in the Hall of Fame-would have stood
well above all the other home run hitters in the league during his
time. By the same token, if I had played with only whites, as
Ruth did, I would have outhomered every other player in the
National League in the sixties by more than 120 (although Har-
mon Killebrew hit more than I did in the 1960s while playing in
the nearly all white American League). In addition, it would have
been significantly easier to hit in the National League if there
hadn't been black pitchers like Bob Gibson, Juan Marichal, Fer-
guson Jenkins, and Bob Veale. By all of this, I certainly don't
mean to imply that Babe Ruth was no better than Ron Santo, or
that I was better than Ruth, or that Ruth was anything less than
his legend. Like I said, I'm willing to call him the greatest home
run hitter. I just want to show that comparisons go around in
circles. They're like weeds-as soon as you deal with one, an-
other one pops us. And I got damn tired of them.
There was no escaping them, though. One of the popular
bumper stickers around Atlanta said, Aaron Is Ruth-less. On the
radio sports shows, it seemed like every other caller was under a
deep moral obligation to give his reasons why I couldn't carry
Ruth's bat. And the newspaper writers were as bad as the fans
when it came to making comparisons. It seemed that whatever
town we were in, some writer was taking me to task for not being
Babe Ruth. Without meaning to, they only aggravated an issue
that did nobody any good. In general, arguments and compari-
sons are good for baseball. They show the diversity and depth of
opinion that makes the game great. But this was a different case,
because it wasn't harmless, as baseball arguments generally are.
It wasn't just an argument over two players. It wasn't DiMaggio
versus Williams or me versus Mays or even Mays versus Mantle.
Henry Aaron
/
247
Phillies. It was a 400-footer that gave us the lead in the game, but
we lost, which took the thrill out of the whole thing. After the
game, I had my picture taken with a high school kid who won
700 silver dollars for catching the ball. I got the ball back, and
this time I did not send it to the Hall of Fame because it had
never acknowledged receiving the balls from my five hundredth
and six hundredth home runs.
The Hall of Fame thing might seem trivial, but there was a
larger pattern developing. Bowie Kuhn, the commissioner, had
not been in Cincinnati when I got my three thousandth hit in
1972, and he didn't even send a telegram when I hit my seven
hundredth home run. I spoke out about it, because I believed he
would have shown more interest in the record if a white player
had been involved and I also believed it was my duty to call
attention to discrimination in baseball. The commissioner's re-
sponse was that he had been waiting to congratulate me person-
ally at the All-Star Game, which was a few days away. He also
said he would be in the stands ready to jump out on the field
when I hit my 714th and 715th home runs. I still wasn't satisfied,
and Kuhn made a trip to St. Louis to talk to me about the situa-
tion. He said that it was his policy not to send telegrams for
personal feats because there were so many of them that he might
overlook somebody. I didn't think he had to worry about missing
somebody who hit 700 home runs, though, since the only other
person to do it had been dead for twenty-five years. Our little tiff
got a lot of attention in the papers, which naturally prompted
another round of letters.
Dear Nigar Aaron,
It's too bad that the commissioner of baseball didn't send you a
telegram or come over and kiss you for hitting the 700 home run
big deal why you dirty nigar you should thank God that the
white man let you play period. The white people don't owe you
filthy nigars nothing.
Dear Mr. Aaron,
How could a person be a star and great for so many years then
become just another nigger?
248 / I HAD A HAMMER
Dear Hank,
and
whi
When I was a doctor in Montgomery I used to attend Braves
hits
games in Atlanta and was a fan of yours. But after hearing you
lately, I think you should give thanks to your God for the gifts
he gave you and be thankful for every home run and be less
you
critical of the things that you think should come your way and
top
do not. Examine yourself and ask yourself the question if you
off
just might be partly to blame for the situation you are in. Unless
hot
you have a change of heart I would not drive across the street to
ear
see you play or even to see you hit that 714th home run.
the
the
be
Hank Aaron,
ize
With all that fortune,
frc
and all that fame,
You're a stinkin nigger
an
Just the same.
W
re
Dear Hank,
cr
On the day you hit your 700th home run, my sister in Dayton,
te
Ohio, had a baby boy. Because of our great respect for you as a
It
ballplayer and as a person we have chosen the name Aaron, in
tr
your honor.
a
I was affected in a lot of ways by reaching 700. There was
C
something about getting there that made me feel I was almost at
my destination, like I had been traveling the back roads for
twenty years and suddenly I was on Ruth's street, turning onto
his driveway. One of my teammates said he actually saw me
smiling a little when I came around third base on number 700,
which was something I probably hadn't done since the pennant-
winning home run in 1957. I was excited about it, and I guess
I had expected other people to be excited with me, which was
why it was so disappointing not to receive a telegram from the
commissioner. The whole situation took something out of me.
I think I let up for a little while after that, and suddenly I stop-
ped hitting home runs. It was ten days before I hit my 701st
310
/
I HAD A HAMMER
that it was important to get a black man into the position, I'd
have to consider it.
Because I've been in the front office for such a long time, and
because I haven't been timid about expressing my views in recent
years, it has worked out to my satisfaction that whenever a racial
issue comes up in baseball, the press turns to me as an unofficial
spokesman. To his credit, Ted Turner has never tried to censor
me. I appreciate that, because I feel very strongly about the need
for baseball to employ more blacks in the front offices and also
the need to speak up about it. There is no acceptable excuse for
the fact that there have only been a handful of black managers
and no general managers since Bill Lucas. As I write this, the
integration of baseball's coaching staffs and front offices is prob-
ably further behind than was the state of player rosters when I
broke into the game almost forty years ago. Progress seems to be
a dirty word in baseball circles. It makes no sense whatsoever
that black players are still systematically excluded from key ex-
ecutive positions four decades after they began dominating on
the playing field. How long is this going to take?
I've heard all kinds of lame reasons why retired black players
have a harder time finding work in baseball than retired white
players. The reason you hear most often is that black players are
often stars who are unwilling to take pay cuts to start out at the
lower levels of an organization. First of all, that only emphasizes
the point that black players are generally required to be better
than white players to stay in the big leagues, the effect being that
fewer of the fringe players are black. I don't believe that one
discrimination is an excuse for another. Second, it's simply not
true that black players are unwilling to start low and work cheap.
I have too many friends with different stories.
I've sent letters and resumes to everybody I know in baseball.
Some answer, some don't. One of my friends sent back a little
two-line letter saying there was nothing available right now but
he would keep my name on file. Two or three weeks later, he
goes out and hires somebody.
The Dodgers gave me a shot at managing a low minor-league
Henry Aaron / 311
club in Arizona. They gave me the shittiest club they had, but I
believe you can make chicken salad out of chicken shit if you
play baseball the right way. We kicked ass and took names, won
the league with that team. I proved to myself that it could be
done, but it didn't seem to mean a tinker's damn to the powers
that be. I was also a minor-league hitting coach for a while
until my director, Bill Schweppe, invited me to lunch to fire
me. When he said they were not going to renew my contract, I
just laid my credit cards on the table and said no thanks to
lunch. Afterwards, Peter O'Malley, the club president, called me
in and asked me why I reacted that way. They might have had
another spot for me in the organization at some point, but I said
that I wasn't going to sit around for ten or twelve years and keep
watching less qualified people jump right over me. I said,
"Peter, they're not going to kill me the way they did Jim Gil-
liam." Gilliam was one of the headiest baseball men there ever
was, and they put him on first base and left him there for ten
years while they brought in guys like Danny Ozark and Preston
Gomez to coach third base and then Tommy Lasorda to be man-
ager. Gilliam was still a first-base coach when he died. I told
Peter I was getting to the point where I was about to kick some-
body's ass, and if I did that, I would be out of baseball for good.
So Peter said, "John, if you feel that way, maybe it's best that
you do leave." But I still can't get it out of my system. My wife
tells me to give it up, but I can't. My fantasy is to manage
a major-league ball club before I die.former Dodger John
Roseboro
I played professional baseball for twenty years, and when I was
done, I wrote to every club in the major leagues for ten straight
years seeking some kind of employment. I was willing to do
anything, because baseball is my life. I'd have gone to work for
$15,000, maybe less, just to be in baseball. Even today, I'd take
a job in baseball for a lot less money than I'm making out of
baseball, working for Amtrak. I understand that not everybody
is going to be a manager, but do you mean to tell me that I
played twenty years and I can't stand next to third base waving
my arm around for somebody to score? You mean to tell me
there aren't more than two black guys who can swing their arms
around and tell runners when to run? It's just like quarterbacks
THE HANK AARON STORY
Braves pitcher, on the mound for Jacksonville, the
gaine settled down into a pitchers' battle. For six
innings Crone held his 1-0 lead, then a single by Lew
Davis and a homer by Jim Bolger in the seventh gave
5
Columbia a one-run margin. Jacksonville came back
with a run in the eighth to tie the score, but two more
runs by Columbia in the top half of the ninth made the
score 4-2.
FEB-04-1999 17:57
Gamer opened the Tars' ninth by striking out, and
Henry Aaron stood at the plate under the hot Florida
the fans groaned. Rising leisurely and calmly from the
sun, opening day of the 1953 season, and tried not to
on-deck circle, Henry walked up to the plate. Hitless
listen to the chorus of jeers from the stands. If this is
in two attempts after his opening-inning double, he
what I get from the home team fans, he thought fleet-
had heard the jeers renewed with added vigor. His
ingly, what can I expect around the rest of the league?
face was impassive as he dug into the batter's box, bat
Then he shut out everything but the immediate prob-
held slightly away from his body. In spring training
lem-the first pitch due from Corky Valentine, pitcher
manager Ben Geraghty had started to tamper with
for the Columbia, South Carolina, team, later pitcher
that stance, thinking that Henry held the bat too far
for the Cincinnati Reds.
out in front, but when he saw how the youngster's
Columbia, the 1952 Sally League champions, was
powerful wrists whipped the bat around, he wisely
favored to repeat, and Valentine figured to be its lead-
backed off. "I'd have to be crazy to tamper with that
ing hurler. The young pitcher, as it turned out, was top
swing," he told one of his coaches.
man in the league, but at the moment he looked noth-
Now Henry stood in the batter's box on opening day,
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
ing like it as Henry ripped into his fast ball and banged
and through the jeers of the crowd he heard his team-
it off the left field wall for a double, scoring teammate
mates on the bench exhort him to get a rally going.
Horace Garner from first. Henry noted, with some
"Get ahold of one, Hank boy!" he heard one call.
satisfaction, that a few half-hearted cheers could be
He liked that, being called "Hank." Somehow it
heard among the jeers that still echoed in the grand-
made him feel accepted-accepted as just another ball-
stand.
player on the club, which was precisely the way he
Valentine retired the Tars without further scoring
wanted it. Let the fans boo at him, he thought grimly.
in the opening inning, and, with Ray Crone, later a
All I care about is what goes on here on the ball field.
42
43
607 547 4094
P.09
THE HANK AARON STORY
THE HANK AARON STORY
The Columbia right-hander on the mound coiled
hiss of the showers. It augured well to beat the cham-
into a windup, came around and spun a fast curve that
pions from Columbia and their best pitcher on opening
was too wide, for ball one. Henry let the next pitch go
day. Dressing in front of his locker, Hank was gratified
by for a strike. The next serve was a fast ball over the
to find that though there was general diffidence toward
inside corner; he swung and pulled it just fair inside
bim from his teammates-and he understood and ac-
third base, the ball rolled into the corner and he pulled
cepted it-a few did stop by and pat him on the back
FEB-04-1999 17:58
into second base standing up for a double.
for his important role in the victory.
"Attaway, Hankl" came a cry from the Jacksonville
He was not entirely satisfied with his situation on
bench.
the Tars, however. Opening day had found him at a
He felt good. He felt proud. Hank-he couldn't recall
strange position, second base, with Felix Mantilla,
anyone calling him by that name in Mobile, not regu-
later to be a teammate on the Braves, the regular Tar
larly anyway, but he resolved that be was going to be
shortstop.
known as Hank from then on.
Manager Geraghty had explained it to him. "Felix
He took his lead off second as third baseman Bill
won't hit within fifty points of you," he predicted accu-
Porter came up to bat. Valentine stretched, looked
rately, "but he plays a better shortstop. And what I
back at second as Hank widened his lead, pitched to
need is a second baseman. Let's face it, Hank, you
the plate, and Porter looped a single to right field.
didn't win a spot on this club because of your glove.
Holding up several moments to make sure the looping
I think in a month I can have you playing second as
fly ball could not be caught, Hank had to put on extra
well as you ever played shortstop."
speed to score. He came home in a dust-raising slide,
Hank wasn't so sure, but he threw himself into the
beating the outfielder's throw by an eyelash.
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
new position with energy. Geraghty gave him every
That made the score 4-3, with Porter racing to sec-
opportunity to take extra fielding practice, and he used
ond on the play at the plate. Fired up now, the Tars
it to good purpose. He had to learn, all over again, the
jumped on Valentine for successive singles, tying the
pivot at second base for the double play, how to play
score; then a double off relief pitcher John Bebber
the area for left- and right-hand batters, taking the
drove home the winning run for a 5-4 Jacksonville
throw from the catcher on attempted steals, and a host
victory.
of other details, the skills that added up to the differ-
In the clubhouse later the Tars' morale was high:
ence between an adequate second baseman and an out-
there was loud laughter and the sounds of spirited
standing one.
horseplay above the clanging of locker doors and the
When the month Geraghty figured on had passed,
44
45
607 547 4094 P.
10
THE HANK AARON STORY
THE HANK AARON STORY
Hank was an adequate second baseman, and it ap-
had to be awakened at his destination by a teammate.
peared quite likely that he would never be more than
It became a joke with the Tars.
just that. Still, the infield of Joe Andrews at first base,
"Ol" Hank can fall asleep standing up," the players
Hank at second, Mantilla at shortstop, and Bill Porter
kidded.
and Harry Warner sharing third came to be considered
"Most relaxed man I ever saw," another teammate
just about the finest in the Sally League.
laughed. "He even looks like he's asleep at the plate.
FEB-04-1999 17:58
Adding weight to that status was Hank's hitting,
Till the ball comes. Then whaml"
which more than compensated for his merely adequate
Hank let the humor stand. He was pleased with it in
fielding. By the end of May in that 1953 season neither
fact. It could have been worse. He was determined, as
Geraghty, the fans, nor Hank's teammates cared too
a pioneer Negro in the league-a deep South league at
much about his fielding. He was tearing apart the
that-to avoid trouble, and if the innocent image he
league's pitchers with his bat, leading all hitters in
seemed to portray was that of a happy-go-lucky guy,
every department, breaking up ball games with dra-
it was fine with him. He'd keep it that way.
matic hits just the way he had done it with the Mobile
He could in fact embellish it, for he had a dry, dead-
Bears. And in the same way the fans all over the league
pan humor, and, using it sparingly, he rounded out the
were filling the ball parks to see this nineteen-year-old
image he thought everyone around him liked the best.
phenomenon hit.
It worked fine in Jacksonville. Later, however, Hank
Through it all Hank searched for a way to adjust as
would have cause to regret it.
a human being. On the field his status as a ballplayer
As the season rolled into July the Sally League race
narrowed down to three clubs: Jacksonville, Columbia
was secure: the jeers by now were far from non-ex-
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
and Columbus, Georgia. The rest of the league was far
istent, but they were fewer and growing even scarcer
back, comprising Savannah, Macon and Augusta, all in
with each day. Off the field was another matter; he
Georgia, Charleston, South Carolina, and Montgom-
could not eat and sleep with his teammates, and the
ery, Alabama.
light banter of the locker room drifted around him and
In mid-July Columbus came to Jacksonville for a
through him. He had expected nothing more and per-
three-game series, trailing the league-leading Tars by
haps less. He became, in self-protection, laconic in
five games and the second place Columbians by four.
speech; garrulous he never had been, now he retired
They knew they had to win at least two of the three
into greater silence. He became a great sleeper. On the
games to remain seriously in contention. Practically by
long bus rides he invariably fell promptly to sleep and
himself, Hank demolished their chances for the season.
46
47
607 547 4094 P.11
THE HANK AARON STORY
THE HANK AARON STORY
Ron Kump was his first victim. The Columbus
called strike. Keating continued the curves, missing
pitcher was riding along in the series opener with a
twice, making Hank foul one off. Two balls and two
3-1 lead. Then, weakening in the eighth inning, he
strikes. Again Keating went to the outside with a curve
walked a man, the next man singled and Hank belted
-the pitch looked too far out and would have been a
a game-winning homer.
ball, but Hank swung, and with his powerful wrists
In the second game Hank began the scoring in the
pulled the outside pitch to left field, sent it rising up
FEB-04-1999 17:58
first inning when he tripled, then scored on a single.
into the left field stands for a home run. Allowing him-
He wasted a single in the third inning, but a bases-
self a smile at the cheers from the stands, he trotted
loaded double in the sixth turned the score around
around the bases and crossed the plate with the win-
from 42 Columbus to 5-4 Jacksonville. The deter-
ning run.
mined visitors knocked out Tar pitcher Everett Lively
Chief Bender, former major league pitching great
in the seventh, however, regaining the lead, 7-5.
and now manager of the Columbus team, knew that his
The bottom of the ninth came up that way, with
back was to the wall. He had to win the series finale to
Tom Keating on the mound for Columbus. He got the
remain in contention. He started Doug Clark, his top
first man, but Mantilla singled, outfielder Jim Frey
pitcher, and readied a battery of relief pitchers in the
walked and up to the plate came Hank.
bull pen, planning to use them all if necessary. Hank
Joe Ossola, the Columbus catcher, trotted out to the
did make it necessary, continuing his hitting rampage.
pitcher's mound and there was a hurried conference.
Again he began the Tars' offensive, lining a double
"Whattaya think?" he said to Keating. "Better keep em
to left field in the first inning. Porter drove him home
low and away on this guy. He gets ahold of one it's all
with a single and Jacksonville was on the way. In the
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
over."
third inning, with the score tied 1-1, Hank drove
Keating nodded. "There's no book on him. I ain't
home two runs with a second straight double, knocking
found a pitch yet he can't hit. I asked around, too. No-
out Clark. Keating came in for Columbus, stopped the
body has anything."
rally but was knocked out himself two innings later on
"Well, let's try all curves anyway, over the outside."
a walk, two singles and Hank's third home run in three
Keating nodded and turned away, rubbing up the
days. The score was now 7-3 Jacksonville, with their
ball, as Ossola ran back behind the plate.
pitcher Crone breezing along.
With runners at first and second Keating went into
Roland Hubbard was Hank's final victim. The relief
a stretch and delivered the first pitch. The curve broke
pitcher, who had come in to replace Keating, did well
good over the outside corner and Hank took it for a
enough until the eighth iming, but with two out he
48
49
607 547 4094
P.12
THE HANK AARON STORY
THE HANK AARON STORY
walked Frey, giving Hank a last chance at bat. Hub-
by Columbia, on the other hand, would give them a
bard's technique was to pitch him in tight, brushing
three-game lead and practically assure them the league
him away from the plate. The second pitch made Hank
pennant.
duck and fall to the ground. He rose slowly, dusting
On the bus trip from Charleston the keyed-up Jack-
dirt from his hands. Then be hit the next pitch on a line
sonville players chattered nervously, were perhaps
to left center field for a double, making the score 8-3.
overly boisterous. Hank, as usual, slept. "How can he
FEB-04-1999 17:59
Out came Hubbard, but the game was beyond reach.
sleep with those two double-headers coming up?" one
The final score was 10-3, and, by beating Columbus
of the Tars exclaimed. "Don't he know we blow the
three straight, the Tars had sent them eight games be-
season if we lose them double-beaders?"
hind, a blow from which they never recovered. They
Manager Geraghty overheard. "I wouldn't be sur-
finished in third place, twenty-six games behind.
Now there were only Jacksonville and Columbia in
prised if he didn't even know we were in second place,"
the race, The two teams battled heroically through
he said. "Though I got a hunch he knows exactly
August and into September, alternating leads, never
where we stand. But what's he got to worry about?
more than three games separating them. Hitting con-
Hanks knows he's gonna get his share of hits in those
sistently at about the .350 mark, Hank led the Tars'
double-headers, and probably more than his share.
attack, and though he also led the league's second
That's more than you can be sure of, so stop squawkin'."
basemen in errors, manager Geraghty remarked that he
As the bus pulled up at the Columbia ball park
certainly batted in many more runs than he might have
Geraghty mentally crossed his fingers on his assess-
allowed to score through his misplays.
ment of Hank's value in the next two days. The young-
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
In mid-September the Tars came out of a three-
ster had come through consistently, even amazingly,
game sweep in Charleston one game behind Columbia
all season long. Without him, Geraghty knew, the Tars
and with a four-game set due next against the league-
would have been a flop. He knew too that the pressure
leaders-two double-headers in two days due to rained-
on the youngster was tremendous, on and off the field,
out games earlier in the season. The series loomed a
and that a let-down, particularly at the tail end of the
climactic one, with the pressure on the Tars; a split of
season, was only to be expected. Geraghty hoped fer-
the four games, with the season's end barely a week
vently that Hank would keep going strong through the
away, would benefit only the Columbians' one-game
two double-headers. If he slumped now, the Tars were
lead. The Tars, therefore, knew they had to win at
finished.
least three games to regain the lead. A three-gaine win
He shook Hank awake as the other players began
50
51
607 547 4094
P.13
THE HANK AARON STORY
THE HANK AARON STORY
filing out of the bus. "We're here, kid, this is it," he
dous lift. Chattering away in the locker room after the
second game, the excited players could hardly wait for
said.
Hanks eyes flickered open. He yawned, stretched,
the next day's double-header, confident they could not
looked out the window. "Who they starting in the first
be stopped.
game, you know, Skipper?" he said.
The luckless Columbians felt the full weight of the
"Polivka."
Tars' attack the next day. Again led by Hank, who
"Good," Hank said. "The lefty. I hit him good last
managed five hits in the two games despite being
FEB-04-1999 17:59
time."
walked intentionally three times, Jacksonville battered
"Let's hope you hit him good this time," Geraghty
Columbia 12-5 and 9-1. It was all over but the final
said, half to himself, as they left the bus and walked
statistics as far as the pennant was concerned. Jackson-
into the ball park.
ville now had a three-game lead and had destroyed the
morale of its only competitor. The final standings had
Ken Polivka was a seventeen-game winner and one
Jacksonville on top by two and one-half games.
of the toughest left-handers in the league, but Hank hit
There is no World Series in the minor leagues, but
him that day as though he were the Tars' batting prac-
within each league there is a four-team playoff for a
tice pitcher. The entire Jacksonville offense got only
championship. Jacksonville first would play fourth-
eight hits off the Columbia pitcher, but Hank got four
place Savannah, Columbia would play third-place Co-
of them: two doubles, a single, and a game-winning
lumbus in best three-out-of-five series. Then the win-
homer in the eighth inning, the Tars winning 4-3.
ners would meet in a championship playoff, best four
In the second half of the double-header Ray Crone
games out of seven. As expected, Jacksonville and Co-
of the Tars faced Maurice Fisher of Columbia. Fisher,
lumbia won their first playoffs and met for the cham-
LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
another top hurler with sixteen victories, nevertheless
pionship.
suffered a similar pounding from Hank's seemingly un-
This time the winner's role was reversed. Hank was
stoppable bat. Another close ball game was won by
his usual rampaging self at bat, but it was not enough.
the Tars as the young second baseman went three-for-
In a fiercely played series that went the limit of seven
four, driving in four runs in the 6-4 victory.
games, Columbia won the championship, four games to
The double win gave Jacksonville the league lead by
three.
one game, but even more, the incredible hitting of
Just about all the hitting championships possible
Hank Aaron gave an already fired-up team a tremen-
were the personal property of Hank, however. He led
53
607
52
547
4094
THE HANK AARON STORY
THE HANK AARON STORY
the league in batting average with .362, in runs batted
as Luis Arroyo, Charley Neal, Brooks Lawrence, Felix
in with 125, and led also in runs scored, total hits and
Mantilla and Vic Power.
doubles. In home runs and triples he was second. It
The Caribbean baseball season ended late in Febru-
came as a surprise to nobody when Hank was voted the
ary, practically in time to begin major league spring
Most Valuable Player in the South Atlantic League. He
training. Primed and ready to go, his bat still hot from
had broken the color line in the league with a resound-
winter baseball, Hank waited eagerly for some word
00:81 666I-00-87
from the Braves.
ing bang. By season's end what few jeers were heard
were more than outweighed by the chorus of cheers
that greeted his arrival at the plate.
It was a happy fall for Hank. After the playoffs, his
mother and father came down to Jacksonville to see
their young son married. Still several months shy of
twenty, Hank that October married Barbara Lucas, a
Jacksonville girl he met at a dance during the summer.
After a simple ceremony and a short honeymoon the
newlyweds returned to Mobile, where Hank's wife
would remain while he went to play winter baseball
with Caguas-Guayama in the Puerto Rican League.
There, under manager Mickey Owen, former Brooklyn
Dodger catcher, Hank rubbed elbows for the first time
with major leaguers, many of whom played ball in the
Caribbean to keep in shape and earn extra money.
Hank not only held up well in competition with them,
but wound up third in the league in batting with a .322
average. Among his teammates on Caguas-Guayama,
which won the Puerto Rican League title, were major
leaguers Jun Rivera of the White Sox and Ruben Go-
mez of the Giants, and such future major league talent
54
55
the ,t>c L09
1991 Harper Cullins
54 / I HAD A JIAMMER by Han K Aaran Lonnie wheeler
Henry Aaron / 55
do now, and the Braves sent all their players from the Class A
As it turned out, it was a good thing I left Kissimmee when I
607 547 4094 P.16
level or below to Waycross. We slept in barracks, blacks and
did, because it gave me time to learn a new position in Waycross.
whites in the same long room. The camp was far enough from
Felix Mantilla, a Puerto Rican who had played at Evansville the
town that none of the local people paid much attention to us, but
year before, was easily the best shortstop in the organization. so
living together like that was a pretty bold thing for that day and
right off they moved me across the bag to second base. That way,
age. The Reds had a similar place nearby in Douglas, Georgia,
Felix and I could play on the same team, which is exactly what
and they kept the black players' quarters separate from the
happened—except that we didn't know it would be that way
whites'.
until they announced it. In those days, with so many minor-
The camp had almost everything we needed, which wasn't
league teams, they made assignments the way they gave out tour-
much. Food and Ping-Pong were about it. On weekends, a bus
of-duty orders in the army. You had hundreds of guys in camp-
would take us into town so we could do laundry or get a haircut
guys with numbers on their backs like 195F-and nobody knew
or shoot pool. The first weekend I was there, I went in for a
where they were headed. Finally, they'd put up a list with every-
haircut, but somehow I managed to miss the bus back to camp. It
body's assignment and call it out. It would be like: Henry Aaron,
was a long walk, and it was getting dark by the time I got lo the
Bus 5. you're going to Jacksonville. Felix Mantilla. Bus 5. Horace
camp. You had to climb a fence to get onto the grounds and there
Garner, Bus 5. They told us to pack our things and be on the bus
was a long road to the barracks, but it was much shorter to go
the next morning, because we had to get to Jacksonville to play
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
through the woods. I found my way through, and when I came
the Red Sox. They also mentioned that Horace, Felix, and I
out, the guard spotted me. All he saw was a black kid sneaking
would be breaking the color line in the Sally League.
up on the barracks, so, without further ado, he opened fire. Bul-
The game against the Red Sox was called a "historic event"
lets were flying past my ears. 1 could see my career ending right
in the Jacksonville newspaper, the Florida Times-Union. Since
there in the red clay of Waycross, Georgia-to say nothing of my
Jackie Robinson had been locked out six years before, black play-
life. Somehow, I managed to crawl into the barracks without
ers had participated in games there on four occasions, but never
being hit. The next day, John Mullen gave me a Bulova watch
on Jacksonville's side. As we expected. there were some boos,
and told me not to miss the bus anymore.
and we heard "nigger" and "burrhead" and "eight-ball" and
Other than being eaten alive and shot at; Waycross was great.
other friendly greetings, but the biggest problem that day was the
We had four fields, with batting practice and intrasquad games
Red Sox. They beat us, 14-1. I could take some satisfaction in the
going on all the time. I got to bat almost as much as I wanted, and
fact that our one was a home run I hit in the eighth inning-to
nobody seemed to care if I hit the ball 400 feet to right field.
right field, naturally-against Ike Delock.
FEB-04-1999 18:00
Two days later. we played Tonuny Holmes's Toledo team,
There weren't any fences on most of the fields in Waycross, but
and it pleased me to hit a 400-foot home run to center field. The
they had dirt piles out there that served as fences. They were
way out there, deep. I was getting ready to bit one day. and I
fact was, we probably had more talent than Toledo, even though
noticed this little black kid hitting the ball over those dirt piles.
we were two classifications lower. With Horace in right field.
The first time, I didn't pay 100 much attention. because he
Felix at shortstop, Joe Andrews at first base, Rance Pless at third
wasn't a very big kid. But then he hit one over the center-field
base, Jim Frey in center, and Ray Crone and Larry Lassalle pitch-
dirl pile, and 1 thought, hey, nobody else here has been doing
ing, WD had the best roster that Jacksonville had ever seen. Jack-
that: who is this guy? Somebody told me il was II kid who played
sonville hadn't been blessed with many good teams. and neither
shortstop for Eau Cluire the year before.-Jim Frey
had our manager, Ben Coraglity. Ben was a baseball man through
56 / I HAD A HAMMER
Henry Aaron / 57
607 547 4094 P.17
and through, and it meant a lot to him to get to manage a team
I don't know whether it was coincidence or not, but our first
like ours. He knew it was his big chance.
game was in Savannah, against the team that had the other two
Before we started playing games, Ben sat down with Horace
black players in the Sally League. It seemed to Felix and Horace
and Felix and me and said that he would love to have us on his
and me that the whole South had its sights trained on us. and as
team, but we ought to be aware of what we would be up against
we were getting on the bus to leave for Savannah, the mayor of
if we stayed there. It was nothing we didn't already know, but it
Jacksonville came by to tell us that whatever we heard on that
was reassuring to hear that the manager was on our side. Ben
field, or whatever the fans tried to do to us, we had to suffer it
wasn't much to look at-he was a small guy, with a long chin
quietly. It sounded a lot like the speech Branch Rickey gave
and hound-dog eyes-and he didn't speak the King's English. He
Jackie Robinson the first time they met.
was also nervous, he drank too much beer, and he didn't change
There were more than 5,500 people at the ballpark in Savan-
his clothes as often as he should have. But in all the years I
nah-the biggest Opening Day crowd they'd ever had and the
played baseball, I never had a manager who cared more for his
biggest in the Sally League that year. It would be that way all
players or knew more about the game.
summer. Wherever we went, the fans poured out to the park. We
There were a few open days before the season started, and we
set all kinds of attendance records that year, and opened up the
used the time to get acclimated to Jacksonville. Meanwhile, Jack-
Sally League to a whole new group of customers. There were so
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
sonville used the time to get acclimated to us. We went to stores
many black fans that they had to add room to the colored section
and just milled around for a little while, maybe stood in the
in a lot of the ballparks. Columbia had a rickety old park, and
doorway for a few minutes so that people could see us and get
one night the colored section got so full, and the people got to
used to us. We also found a place to live, a house near the ball-
rocking it so hard, that it collapsed. It was like a party every night
park owned by a black man named Manuel Rivera, who ran a
in the colored section. All we had to do was catch a fly ball, and
tavern called Manuel's that was the local hangout.
everybody on the black side of the ballpark would whoop and
A day or two after we moved in, I was lingering around the
holler like we'd won the World Series. Then the people in the
ballpark when I noticed a girl about my age going into the post
white section would start yelling at the people in the colored
office. Our clubhouse man, T. C. Marlin, knew everybody in that
section, and it would go back and forth-sometimes in a friendly
part of town-a black section known as Durkeeville-so I
way, but more often not. There was probably nowhere else in the
fetched him real fast and asked him who the girl was. He told me
South where SO many white and black people could be found in
her name was Barbara Lucas, and she had just returned home
the same place. Horace and Felix and I knew that we had to shut
from Florida A&M to attend classes at a local business college. I
out everything else and play ball, but when we looked up at all
FEB-04-1999 18:01
had him introduce me as one of the next great stars of baseball. I
those black and white faces screaming at us, we couldn't help
don't think she was impressed, but I asked her for a date anyway.
but feel the weight of what we were doing.
She said I'd have to come home and meet her parents before she
could think about going out with me. She lived in the projects
across from the park, and whenever we were in town the rest of
Every park I went in, I was on pins and needles. I just felt it was
the summer you could usually find me on Barbara's front porch
my duty as league president to see what happened to those guys.
eating her mother's coconut cake. And if I was there, more than
Even though Savannah had black players, too, I traveled with
Jacksonville because most of the focus was on Aaron. Aaron
likely Felix was sitting right across from me, having a piece of
probably didn't know it. but all year long I followed Jacksonville
Mrs. Lucas's lemon pie.
and sat in the stands to sort of keep 0 lookout. You were never
Henry Auron / 59
58 / 1 HAD ^ HAMMER
sure what was going to happen. Those people had awfully
Felix never heard that sort of thing growing up in Puerto Rico. It
607 547 4094 P.18
strong feelings about what was going on. I knew, because they
wasn't as easy for him to turn the other cheek. What made it
would call me all hours of the night to tell me. Before I took over
worse was that il seemed like he got beaned almost every night.
as president of the league, I'd worked in Happy Chandler's com-
When it happened, Felix would shout back at the pitcher, mostly
missioner's office in Cincinnati, and to the folks in the South
in Spanish, and Horace and I would tell him to shut up. The
that made me a Yankee. And since Chandler was the one who
papers wrote that he was a crazy Puerto Rican, carrying on like
opened the door for Rickey and Jackie Robinson, I guess I was a
that. Finally, when he was hit one night in Macon, Felix put
damn Yankee. They'd call and tell me to get back up north and
down his bat and went after the pitcher. Horace was in the on-
take my niggers with me. I was living in Columbia, and after
deck circle, and he sprinted out there and grabbed Felix before
word got out that we had blacks in the league, one of my friends
he could get to the mound, put a bear hug on him, got right up to
quit speaking to me. A lot of the whites stopped coming to the
his ear, and said: "You dumb son of a bitch! I know you don't
ballpark. But Henry played SO well that by the end of the year,
they were coming back. My friend in Columbia even started
speak much English. but hear what I'm telling you. You're gonna
talking to me again. Henry made Christians out of those people.
get us all killed!" Meanwhile, the people from the white section
-Dick Butler, former president of the Sally League
along first base were coming over the railing and people from the
colored section were headed over to the white section. It was real
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
We won the opener when Felix drove in a run in the ninth
close to being a race riot. They called the police, and after order
inning, and we kept winning-seven in a row before we lost one.
was restored, the policemen ringed the field and stood there with
We beat Augusta one night, 28-6. The Jacksonville paper wrote
their hands on their guns.
that we might be one of the greatest Class A teams ever assem-
The next night we were in Augusta, and after a couple of
bled. And nobody could doubt that Horace and Felix and I had a
innings the fans in the right-field stands started throwing rocks
lot to do with it. I hit well right from the start, although one of
at Horace. Horace always said he didn't mind the rednecks
my teammates, Joe Andrews, led the league for the first month or
throwing rocks at him, but when they started hitting him. that
so. Horace had a lot of power and one of the best throwing arms
was different. He called time and told the umpire, and the um-
from right field that I ever saw. Felix was a flashy shortstop-
pire made the mistake of grabbing the public address microphone
much better than I was at second base-and a .300 hitter. The
and asking people to stop throwing things at the right fielder.
Braves had counted on the fact that all three of us would fare
That was all the fans wanted to hear. When he came up to bat.
well in the Sally League, or they wouldn't have put us in Jackson-
they were all over him, shouting things like, "Nigger, we're gonna
ville. We had to clear the way for other black players to play
kill you next time. Ain't no nigger gonna squawk on no white
down there, just as Billy Bruton and Garner made it easier for me
folks down here." Ben had to move Horace from right field to
FEB-04-1999 18:01
and Covington at Eau Claire. The Braves knew, and we knew,
left, where the fans couldn't get to him. But we got our revenge
that we not only had to play well, but if we ever lost our cool or
that night. I was five-for-five, and between us. Horace, Felix. and
caused an incident, it might set the whole program back five or
I were on base thirteen times in fourteen times at bat.
ten years. When the pitchers threw at us, we had to get up and
That was the only kind of recourse we had. And laughing.
swing at the next pitch. When somebody called us a nigger, we
After the games, we'd get back to our rooms and say. "Horace,
had to pretend as if we didn't hear it.
what did you hear tonight?" We'd exchange our stories and just
All of that was harder for Felix than it was for Horace and
laugh all night at how stupid people could be. We'd laugh our-
me. We were both accustomed to it, being from the South, but
selves to sleep thinking about those people. They'd sit in the
60 / ] HAD A HAMMER
Henry Aaron / 61
stands with mops on their heads. They'd throw black cats onto
I don't recall ever feeling that our lives were in imminent
607 547 4094 P.19
the field. You'd hear things like, "The big nigger [that was Hor-
danger, but we took nothing for granted. When we were leaving
ace[, he's got to mow the owner's lawn on Saturday. Aaron's got
the ballpark after a game, Joe Andrews would carry a bat with
to feed his hogs. And that other one, I don't know who he is, but
him and tell us to stick close. Ben Geraghty fathered us and kept
he's a nigger to me." Of course, whenever somebody said some-
us calm, but Joe was our protector. We couldn't talk back to the
thing like that, it bounced off the walls and echoed through the
fans calling us names, but Joe could, and he damn sure did.
whole ballpark. It was strange how it worked. Everything would
be normal, then it would get real quiet for a second, and out of
I believe I was arrested three times that year for arguing with
the hush you'd hear something like, "Hey, nigger, why you run-
people on Henry's behalf. We'd walk on the field and they
ning? There's no watermelon out there." Horace hurt himself
would start up the chants: "Nigger! Nigger!" Places like Macon,
running into a fence one night in Macon, and as they were carry-
they'd come into the ballpark with coolers of beer and they'd be
ing him off the field, somebody shouted, "Put that nigger down.
half drunk by botting practice. I'd say, "These sick rebel suck-
He can walk!" Joe Andrews, a white first baseman, was our
ers," and every now and then I'd just wander over to the screen
buddy. and they even yelled at him. They'd say, "Hey, Andrews,
to see what I could do for 'em. 11 was amazing the way Henry
every time you come to town you get blacker. You sleeping with
and Horace and Felix could take it. I'd be standing next to
Aaron's sister?"
Henry in the infield and some yahoo would call him a nigger or
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
My favorite incident was the time Horace caught a foul pop
something and I'd turn to Henry and say, "Did you hear that?"
He'd look back at me and soy, "What do you think, I'm deaf?"
fly running into the crowd. We drew so well that they often filled
It wasn't just the funs. either. We had a few Southern boys on
the stands and put the overflow around the edge of the playing
our ball club, and they'd say things. Henry came up with a
field. Well, one time there was a fly ball right down the line in
couple of men on base once when we were down by a run, and
right field and Horace and I went after it. Horace caught it on the
he popped up to end the game. Afterwards, somebody on our
run, and when he did, it carried him right into the crowd. He was
team said, "Well, when pull comes to tug, a nigger's gonna croak
about to run over this little kid, so to keep from knocking him
every time." I just started screaming. We didn't need to be wor-
down, he just picked the kid up and kept going for a few steps.
rying about our guys. because we had enough problems with the
And before he could put the kid down, this lady started shriek-
rednecks on the other side.
ing: "My God! That nigger's running away with my baby!"
And believe me, there were some mean pitchers in that
Not all of the incidents were quite so funny, though. We had
league. In Macon they had un old bullpark SO big you could land
death threats in Montgomery. People would send us letters say-
a 727. and there was a tin fence that circled the park. but it was
ing things like they were going to sit in the right-field stands with
too deep for a home run fence, so they had a snow fence inside
FEB-04-1999 18:02
a rifle and shoot us during the game on a certain night. Felix got
it. The first time up, Henry hits one over that snow fence for a
home run. The next time around, I doubled and then Henry
one in Jacksonville that said, "Nigger, if you play tonight, they're
came up. Their pitcher was some old-timer from the Pacific
going to carry you away in a casket." He showed it to the lady
Coast League or somewhere like that, and when Henry was up
who owned our house, and she got hysterical. She called the
there the second time, the pitcher said. "I got four for your head.
police, and the police called the FBI, and within about ten min-
nigger." He threw the first one behind him. Henry just moved
utes there were two FBI guys at the door trying to talk to Felix,
his head a little. Then the pitcher said, I got three more here."
who could barely speak English. They told Felix he should go
I was standing on second base, so I just yelled out, "Hey, why
ahead and play, and they would be sitting in the stands. Nothing
don't you throw one at me?" I would have loved to take that guy
happened.
on. But Henry didn't need me. The next pitch was right at his
62 / 1 HAD A HAMMER
Henry Anron / 63
head, and Henry just stepped back a little and tomahawked that
bench brought hamburgers out to us. We used to joke that the
607 547 4094 P.20
thing right over my head. About two seconds later you could
COWS turned and ran when they saw us coming. we ate so many
hear the ball banging against that old tin fence way out there.
hamburgers. Once, we stopped at a little store and the white
When we got to the dugout, Henry said, "Why WUS that boy mad
at me?" I pointed out to the pitcher. who was stomping around
players got out to buy cold drinks. We stayed in the bus, but Felix
the mound, and I said, "If you think he was mod before, take a
wanted to get a drink out of the water fountain. There were two
look at him now."
fountains, white and colored, and Felix took a drink out of the
Henry was just so innocent. and such a nice kid. One time the
colored fountain. But it was hot water. and he spit it out. Then
pitcher was throwing at him and the other team was getting on
he moved over and took a drink from the white fountain. The
him pretty bad und the fans were giving it to him, too, and I
problem was that the store owner saw him do it, and, being a
could tell it was bothering him. I said, "What's wrong, Henry?"
good law-abiding Southerner, he called the sheriff. The sheriff
He just shook his head and said, "I don't want to hurt nobody. I
was there before the team was back on the bus. and he said he
just want to play baseball."
was going to put Felix in jail. Ben talked to the sheriff for a long
The poor kid was only nineteen years old. He was SO naive he
time before he finally convinced him to let Felix come with us.
didn't even know how to pul on his uniform. Hell, he'd never
Whenever we got to the town where we were going, the bus
had anything like sunitary hose before. And he didn't care any-
driver would take the white players to their hotel and Horace and
thing about signs, or that kind of stuff. One time in Columbia he
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
Felix and I would just sit in the bus as the rest of our teammates
came up late in the game with us losing 1-0 and no outs and a
couple of men on base. Ben gives him the bunt sign. and I see
filed out. It got real quiet when the white players had to leave us
Aaron back out of the box and shake his head. Ben flashes bunt
sitting there. I'm sure that if it had been up to them, we'd have
again, and Aaron backs out and walks halfway down to third
stayed in the same hotel that they did. But Jim Crow made the
base to meet him. They talk about something, and then Aaron
rules, and we had to abide by them. Bear in mind, this was a year
gets back in the box and hits a rocket to right center to score
before the civil rights movement got rolling with the Brown vs.
both runs and we win the game. Well, the next day I get to the
Board of Education decision. So after the white players got off
park and Ben calls me over and says, "You know what that son
the bus, we'd ride on to some private home on the other side of
of a bitch told me? He said, 'I know this pitcher and I know what
the tracks. Black people were happy to put us up. because we
he's gonna throw me. Anybody else, I'd bunt, but 1 know this
were big news down there. We were the closest they would ever
pitcher and I know I can hit him.' Well. okay. But then last night
get to Jackie Robinson.
I'm sitting in the lobby of the hotel and he's down there standing
The only place where we stayed in a hotel was Montgomery.
on the street corner waiting for some girl to show up. But the
Otherwise, Montgomery was the worst town in the league for
girl he's waiting for is from Columbus! We're in Columbia. and
FEB-04-1999 18:02
black players. I could tolerate it only because my parents drove
he's waiting for some girl from Columbus to show up! Hell, how
could he have known that pitcher? He didn't even know what
up from Mobile to see me play. When we weren't playing there,
town we were in!"-Joe Andrews
my father would go up about once a week anyway to read about
the Sally League in the Montgomery newspaper. But even with
Mama and Daddy nearby, I couldn't enjoy Montgomery. They
Horace and Felix and I never stayed with the rest of our
had segregation down to an art in that town-the art of keeping
teammates when we were on the road-never even ate with
the niggers down. 11 would be 100 degroes and black people
them. The team would stop at a restaurant, and the three of us
would be standing on the sidewalks watching half-filled buses go
would sit on the bus while Ben or Joe or some guy who rode the
by because there wasn't any more room in the colored section.
64 I [ HAD A HAMMER
Henry Aaron / 65
When I heard two years later that Rosa Parks refused to give up
The crash wasn't his fault, but he took it very hard. People who
607 547 4094 P.21
her seat to a white man, I understood perfectly.
knew him then said that he wasn't the same after the crash-he
The black hotel was called the Ben Moore, and as you might
was nervous and drank more-but as far as I'm concerned, he
imagine, it was not in the high-rent district. It was located over a
still would have made a great big-league manager. Ben was in the
juke joint, and the noise kept us up most of the night. There was
Braves' system for a long time, and he was interviewed at least
no air conditioning, the place smelled from the fish they were
once for the manager's job, but with his wrinkled clothes and
always frying downstairs, and if you opened a window the bugs
plain way of talking. he didn't make much of an impression. I
would invite themselves in for a little picnic. The interior deco-
always thought that, in his way, Ben was discriminated against
rating consisted of a potted plant in the lobby. But after sleeping
every bit as much as Felix and I ever were. He died in 1963. It's
on the bus in the Negro League, the Ben Moore was like the
one of my biggest regrets that he never got a chance to manage in
Waldorf-Astoria to me. It was also a clubhouse to the black play-
the big leagues.
ers, because the Jim Crow laws prevented us from putting on our
As kind as he was with his players, Ben never forgot that he
uniform at the ballpark with the white players. Finally, near the
was the manager, and he knew how to chew a guy out if he made
end of the season, we said to heck with it and dressed at the park.
a mental mistake. He jumped all over Felix and me one night
As far as 1 know, the white players all went on to have normal,
when we let a pop fly fall between us. And he was always on me
healthy lives after that.
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
for missing signs. Once. he wanted to try a squeeze play, but to
Wherever we stayed, Ben Geraghty would always make it a
disguise it he clapped his hands and told me to hit the ball out of
point to come over and see us. He had nothing special to say-
the park. So I believed him and hit the ball out of the park. But
he'd just drink a few beers and talk baseball-but it meant a lot
the worst was the time I got picked off second base three times in
to us that the manager would go out of his way to make us feel
one game. The first time up, I singled and stole second, and the
like part of the team. One day in Columbus, the team was invited
second baseman tagged me out with the hidden-ball trick. The
out to Fort Benning. When it came time to eat, suddenly Horace,
next time, I stole second again, and he used some other hidden-
Felix, and I were shuttled off to the kitchen. As soon as we sat
ball trick and tagged me out again. Ben let it go the first time. but
down, here came Ben to join us. I've known white players and
the second time he was pretty hot. When it happened the third
managers who will try to put on a good face around black players
time, he let me have it. Of course, I deserved it. But Ben did
despite their real feelings, but there wasn't a phony bone in Ben's
something I appreciated-something I've always admired in a
body. He was just a baseball man, and to him, we were just
manager. Instead of screaming at me in front of the whole team
baseball players. Besides that, he liked us. He liked me and Felix
-Lord knows, I was embarrassed enough already-he waited
because he knew we were headed for the big leagues, and he
FEB-04-1999 18:03
until he could get me alone after the game. Then he told me how
liked Horace because, in addition to being the best right fielder
stupid I had been, and I couldn't disagree with him. I was a better
in the league, Horace was a good man who knew where to buy
baserunner from that day on.
beer on Sunday. Horace always managed to find Ben a case of
The only person Ben couldn't handle was Joe Andrews. Joe
Schlitz for the long Sunday bus rides.
was a big guy who might do anything, and Ben was probably
I guess it's not surprising that Ben drank a lot of beer. con-
scared of him. One night, when Joe had been drinking, we
sidering what he had been through. A few years before. he had
stopped the bus at a gas station and Joe put a coin into the vend-
been manager at Spokane when the team bus rolled down a hill
ing machine to try to get a drink. The bottle wouldn't come out,
and some players were killed. Ben climbed up the hill to get help.
and Joe started hitting and rocking that machine like he was
66 / I HAD A HAMMER
Henry Aaron / 67
going to knock it over. Ben didn't want to go out there, SO he sent
607 547 4094 P.22
Horace out. Horace was the one guy who could hold his own
switchblade, and said he was going to return with his money or
with Joe-they were great friends. Horace just put his own
the guy's heart in bis hand. There was another squabble over
money into the machine, and when the bottle came out, he
money when Joe and Horace were playing together in South
handed it to Joe.
America, only that time a guy came looking for Joe with a hunting
Joe would stay out drinking all night on Saturdays, and it got
knife. Joe's drinking and fighting got so bad that he ended up in
jail years later.
to the point where Ben wouldn't play him on Sundays. So when-
ever Joe would get in on Sunday morning, he would go right to
Ben's room and pound on the door and yell, "You son of a bitch!
I finally hit bottom, and when I did, I'll tell you what brought
You'd better play me today!" If any of the rest of us missed
me out of it. It was thinking about Henry. By this time. Henry
curfew, we would be fined, but Ben knew it was useless to try to
was a superstar, going after Babe Ruth's record and everything.
fine Joe. He said once that if he fined Joe every time he missed
and it made me think of all that he went through in Jacksonville.
curfew, they'd have to hold back his salary and Joe would still
I thought, if he can make il through all of that and do what he
owe the team money at the end of the year. Ben arranged for Jim
has done with his life, I sure as hell can do something with my
Frey to room with Joe to try to keep him out of jail. He stayed out
life. That's when I joined Alcoholics Anonymous, and I haven't
had a drink since.
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
of jail all year, but he didn't stay out of trouble. One night about
fifteen of the white players were eating at a café in Columbus,
I've only seen Henry a few times since Ive played together. but
and when they were finished, they went back to the motel and
he always amozes me. A couple years after he broke the record,
he was in Boston, and I went to see him with 0 Mafia guy who
sat around the pool. All except Joe. After a while a car pulled up
wanted to have a ball signed. We weren't there two minutes
and a guy got out and said, "Where's that guy with that big letter
when Henry pulls me aside and says, "Who is that guy?" I said,
jacket with the Indian head on it? He walked out on a seven-
"You mean you could tell?" He said, "The guy reeks. You're not
dollar check." Everybody knew who he was talking about-Joe
involved with him, are you?" I still don't know how the hell
had been a great athlete in high school in Massachusetts, and he
he could tell so fast. He just knew. He has that instinct about
always wore that letter jacket.
people.
Joe's drinking probably kept him out of the big leagues, be-
He had me figured out that first year. Al the beginning of the
cause he was a natural hitter. I was only with him in 1953, but I
season I was butting over .400 and leading the league, and
understand that his drinking got worse before it got better. He
Henry was hanging back in the low or mid-.300s. Then I started
used to arm-wrestle in bars, and that would lead to bets, and the
to drop and he closed the gap. and for a while we had (1 butting
bets would lead to fights. Joe was liable to do anything when he
race going. I thought I had U real chance to win it, but Henry
FEB-04-1999 18:03
was drunk. He went to a black club with Barbara and Horace and
came up to me one day and kind of shook his head and said,
"You'll never last. You drink too much beer. Your hands are
me one night in Jacksonville, and after a while he started making
getting slow." And he was SO right. That's what I mean about
passes at Barbara. I said something to him, and then Horace
Henry's instincts. I've never met anybody like him.-Joe An-
grabbed him and said, "Look, I got you in here and I'll get you
drews
out of here. But after that. you're on your own." When Horace
and Joe were together in the Sally League the next year, Joe had
some problems at a bar in Columbia. He thought the owner had
By the All-Star break, I was leading the league in various
taken some of his money, so he went back to the hotel, got his
things. Five players from each team were selected to play in the
All-Star Game, and I was one of them. But neither Felix nor
68 / ] HAD A HAMMER
Henry Aaron / 69
607 547 4094 P.23
Horace made the team, which I thought was strange. In fact, there
was a Cincinnati franchise and a veteran team with the best
were a lot of curious things about the All-Star Game. The game
pitching in the league. There was a veteran named Barney Mar-
was in Savannah, and there were rumors that the governor of
tin, who was up briefly with the Reds that year, another named
Georgia, Herman Talmadge, was going to ban ine from playing in
Maury Fisher, who made it up in 1955 for a few days. and Corky
it. On one hand, it didn't make sense that he would keep me out
Valentine. I'll never forget Corky Valentine. There were some
of the All-Star Game when blacks had been playing in Savannah
ornery pitchers in that league, but nobody as nasty as Harold
all year. On the other hand, he was Herman Talmadge, the man
Lewis Valentine. He was even nasty when he wasn't pitching.
who conducted a nationwide campaign to prohibit blacks and
The day before he was scheduled to pitch, he'd sit on the dugout
whites from being on the same television show. Also, since the
steps and say, "Have fun tonight, boys, because tomorrow I'm
All-Star Game was the big fiftieth anniversary celebration of the
gonna stick it in your ear." He meant it, too. I'm not saying he
Sally League, it could have been that they wished to uphold a
was a racist; I think Corky Valentine just hated everybody. He
league tradition that had been in place for the first forty-nine
put Joe Andrews in the hospital when he hit him in the shin. Joe
years. Another possible reason for keeping me out of the game
couldn't walk, but he was crawling out to the mound to try to get
was that all the players were invited to a reception at a private
at Valentine. I was lucky, I guess-or quick-because he never
club where blacks were not permitted. Despite all of that, though,
hit me, although I'm sure he tried. But I hit him. I hit him good.
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
I was still intending to play in the game until the day before,
Valentine made it up to the big leagues the next year. when I did.
when I got in a rundown between third and home in a game
and I hit the tenth home run of my career off him. J didn't spare
against Savannah and was spiked on the toe by a 240-pound
the rod on Corky Valentine. The scary thing, though. is that he
catcher. I don't believe it was intentional, but I was never quite
eventually became a policeman somewhere in Georgia. That's
certain.
enough to make you drive fifty-five.
When I got hurt, another player from Jacksonville had to be
Even though I hit him pretty well, Valentine was always
named to take my place. Felix was the obvious guy, since he and
tough on us. Columbia was tough on us. But we never minded
I were both infielders and he was having a great season, but.
playing there-at least, Horace and Felix and I didn't. Horace
instead. they picked another infielder named Billy Porter, who
had a lady friend there who was a mortician. and she always
wasn't near the player that Felix was. So there were no black
managed to find a couple of nice young girls for me and Felix.
players in the All-Star Game. I didn't attend, but I've always
My favorite town to visit. though-at least, for a while-was
regretted that I didn't. I should have at least gone to be intro-
Columbus. I met a girl there who lived across the Alabama border
duced-just to force the issue and see what would happen. As it
in Phenix City, and we had a pretty good thing going until it
FEB-04-1999 18:04
turned out, Talmadge didn't know that I wasn't going to play,
occurred to me that it would be prudent to call it off. Phenix City
and after he had lunch and took his seat, he got up and excused
was wide open, with drinking and gambling in the streets, and I
himself about fifteen minutes before the start of the game, saying
walked through all of that to gel to this girl's house. It wasn't SO
he had a previous engagement. He had been getting a lot of flak
bad until I was walking home one night and a bunch of white
from voters about the black players-it was technically against
guys started calling me names and chasing me. They chased me
the law in Georgia for us to be on the same field as whites-and
all the way across the Chattahoochee River into Georgia. That
this way, he could say that he had never seen a black man play
was the last time I saw that girl. Later on. she canie looking for
in a ballgame in his state.
me in Jacksonville, but by then I'd made up my mind to marry
By the All-Star break, we had just about eliminated every
Barbara.
---- ......................... Calumbie Calumbia
Nous of 11... affect
70 / I HAD A HAMMER
Henry Aaron / 71
607 547 4094 P.24
because I never let anything take my mind off my job as a ball-
newspaper. The State, which wrote: "You will have a difficult
player. I led the Sally League in hitting for most of the second
time convincing Henry Aaron. a solid medium-size hunk of mer-
half of the season. I only had one short slump the whole year, but
chandise, that America is anything other than the land of oppor-
came out of it fine. When Joe Andrews asked me what I did to
tunity. The communists will be unhappy to hear that this 19-
break my slump, I told him I called Stan Musial. I was liable to
year-old colored boy from Mobile, Alabama, is getting along
tell Joe anything, but I guess he believed me, because it started
nicely-and with a bright future ahead."
going around that I was friends with Musial. I'd never spoken to
I didn't know anything about communists and I was still a
a major leaguer in my life, much less Stan Musial. But if some-
foreigner in the land of opportunity, but by the end of the sum-
body had told me that four years later I would beat out Musial
mer I was pretty sure I had a future in baseball. I was also pretty
for Most Valuable Player in the National League, I wouldn't have
sure it wouldn't be as a second baseman. If I was a bad shortstop
thought they were crazy. Even then, I figured I ought to lead any
in Eau Claire, I was a worse second baseman in Jacksonville.
league I played in. I might have been a shy and quiet kid, but I
Somehow, 1 managed to make thirty-six errors, which nearly gave
was a confident shy and quiet kid.
me a clean sweep of all the individual titles in the Sally League.
The only one 1 missed was home runs. I hit twenty-two, but
I was sitting behind Henry and Horace on the bus one night,
Savannah had a guy named Tommy Giordano who hit twenty-
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
and they were talking about hitting. At that time, Henry could
four, a lot of them over the 270-foot left-field fence on the football
turn around any fastball in the world. but he had trouble with
field where they played. I think Giordano's eyes went bad later,
slow stuff. Garner was trying to talk to him about off-speed
and that kept him out of the big leagues. although he is an exec-
pitches, and he was telling him what Jackie Robinson had said
utive now with the Cleveland Indians.
to him about hitting slow stuff. Jackie Robinson was the idol of
My batting average at the end of the year was .362, which was
most of the black players back then, and what he said was
about twenty points ahead of Everett Joyner of Columbus. I had
gospel. But that didn't matter to Henry. He cut Horace off before
125 RBIs, and nobody else in the league had more than 100. But
he could finish and said, "I don't care what Jackie Robinson
I was a butcher at second base. Especially on double plays. I
says. I'm Henry Aaron, and I'll do it my way."-Jim Frey
threw the ball as hard as I could, underhanded, and the shortstop
couldn't see it until it was about to hit him in the nose. Felix
If I ever doubted myself that year, all I had to do to get my
used to say a guy could get killed trying to turn double plays with
confidence back was count my watches or the bonus money in
me. We all knew that my best position was some other position.
my billfold. Our owner, Sam Wolfson, gave out prizes to players
One guy who didn't seem to be worried about my problems
FEB-04-1999 18:04
who had big games. You'd check your locker after a road trip,
at second base, though, was Ben Geraghty. I guess Ben could
and there was liable to be an envelope stuffed with five- and ten-
sense that I was the type of kid who needed to be encouraged,
and maybe twenty-dollar bills. I used that money to buy my par-
because he was always telling me that I was going to make it big.
ents the first television on our side of Toulminville. People came
He told some writers that I'd make people forget Jackie Robinson.
knocking on our door from all over the neighborhood to watch
I knew that was nonsense, but Ben's faith meant a lot to me. He
that TV. There was also a jeweler in Jacksonville who gave out
wasn't saying anything that he didn't believe. either, because he
watches if you hit the first home run of a game or a series, and I
bragged on me to the Braves, too.
was giving away watches to all my friends. Other stores gave us
slacks and sport jackets. I came up in the world that summer-
One day Lou Perini the Braves' owner] called me into his office
causied it quite as for as the Columbia
and said "We lean boaring about this A........ bid down
72 / I HAD A HAMMER
Henry Aoron / 73
607 547 4094 P.25
sonville. When is he going to be ready for Milwaukee?" I said
Cedar Rapids, about 405 feet. We knew Horace could beat that.
that as a hitter. he might be ready next year. But as a second
but he still wouldn't do it. Then we told him they were giving
basemon, it might take a couple more. So we sent Billy South-
away a barbeque grill for first prize, and all of a sudden Horace
worth down there to grade his arm and see if maybe he could
was real interested. He grubbed the ball and threw it out of the
play the outfield. Aaron was still at second base, but it so hap-
ballpark. Then they had the sprints, and there was some guy in
pened that in the next game, there was a little bloop into short
the league who had been a track man at Duke. When they ron
right field, and Henry had to chase it down and turn and gun
the 100-yard dash, this guy got up to the line and dug in like he
the ball to home plate. He threw a strike-overhand-and got
was in the Olympics or something. and Horace walked up there
his man easily. Southworth came back and reported that Aaron
with his hat on backwards and his sweatshirt in his back pocket
had one of the best arms he'd ever seen."-John Mullen
and beat the guy by ten yards.-Joe Andrews
I did have a strong arm, but it was a long way from being the
Horace and Felix and I and several others on our team put up
best on our ball club. I've never seen anybody throw like Horace
big numbers that year, but somehow Columbia stayed right on
Garner-unless it was Roberto Clemente. Horace would put on
our heels all season. The rest of the league was at least twenty-
throwing exhibitions around the Sally League. The fans would
five games behind, but we couldn't scom to shake Corky Val-
come early to watch him stand at home plate and heave balls
entine and company. Finally, we clinched the pennant in
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
over the center-field fence. Horace might have been a little uncer-
Savannah. The night we did, Horace and Felix and I drove in a
tain in the outfield, but he could run and throw and hit with
bunch of runs, and when we came out of the clubhouse. there
anybody. His problem was that he was a little old. He was
was a white man standing there waiting for us. We could tell he
twenty-seven the year we were together in Jacksonville, and I
wanted to talk to us, but he didn't quite know what to say. He
guess the Braves figured he was past the stage of being a prospect.
was kind of shuffling around, trying to find the right words. Fi-
But Horace had a lot of good baseball left. He stayed in the
nally, he blurted it out. He said, "I just wanted to let you niggers
Braves' minor-league system for eight years, and in those years
know you played a helluva game."
the teams he was on won seven pennants. He won batting titles,
The team arranged a celebration party that night at a restau-
home run titles, everything. But he never got a shot at the big
rant in Savannah. The only problem was that Felix and Horace
leagues. One year, the Braves told him they might call him up at
and I weren't allowed in the restaurant. We had to stay in the
the end of the year, but just before he was supposed to go up, he
kitchen while the rest of the team partied out in front. After a
hurt his knee. He still played after that, but his chance was gone.
while, Spec Richardson, our general manager, gave us fifty dol-
When I think about it now. it doesn't seem right that I have all
lars and told us to have our own party. We took fifteen dollars
FEB-04-1999 18:05
these awards and records and I'm in the Hall of Fame, and Horace
apiece for ourselves and bought some beer with the other five.
is driving a school bus in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where ony a few
When we got back to Jacksonville, there was another party for the
people even know that he was a ballplayer.
team at a country club. Somehow. Mr. Wolfson arranged to get
US in, even though black people were never included at affairs
When I played with Horace in the Three-1 League. they had a
like that in the South. It was such a significant occasion that a
contest one day for throwing and running. We kept telling Hor-
writer from a black magazine came out to cover it, but he was
ace to get into it, but he'd just had a tooth pulled and he had 0
stopped at the door.
sore arm. He woudn't do it. Rocky Colavito was in the league,
The Braves also honored the players with a special night
and he threw one that short-hopped the center-field fence in
during the last homestand of the season. Since I led the league in
MAWALDMAN @ aol.com
02/04/99 11:38:47 PM
Record Type:
Record
To:
Joshua S. Gottheimer/WHO/EOP
CC:
Subject: Re: aaron remarks
On Amazon, I found that Hank Aaron wrote a book : "I HAD A HAMMER"!
How can we get it?
According to the blurb on Amazon, Aaron received 900,000 pieces of mail in
oine year - much of it angry and racially charged
Other things I learned on the web -- One letter was written on toilet paper
Michael Waldman
02/05/99 10:14:59 AM
Record Type:
Record
To:
Joshua S. Gottheimer/WHO/EOP
CC:
Subject:
Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec. Herman; Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb.
Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Kweisi Mfume; Rev. William Guy; Bob Costas (MC); Comm.
Bud Selig (Major League Baseball); Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted Turner; Jane Fonda; Tom Johnson
(CEO, CNN); Leonard Coleman; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Dream
Chasers; Ernie Banks; Sammy Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr; Reggie Jackson; Dave
Winfield; Billye Aaron (Hank's wife)
Michael Waldman
02/05/99 10:57:38 AM
Record Type:
Record
To:
Joshua S. Gottheimer/WHO/EOP
CC:
Subject:
Forwarded by Michael Waldman/WHO/EOP on 02/05/99 10:58 AM
Michael Waldman
02/05/99 10:57:20 AM
Record Type:
Record
To:
Paul D. Glastris/WHO/EOP
CC:
Subject:
Draft 2/4/99 9pm
Josh Gottheimer/Michael Waldman
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
ATLANTA, GA
February 5, 1999
Acknowledgments:
p [pron.]
The essayist Jacques Barzun once wrote, "Whoever wants to know the heart
and mind of America, had better learn baseball."
I am here today because the heart and mind of America -- the competition
and craftsmanship, the teamwrok and the sheer individual heroism -- are gloriously embodied
reflected in the career of Hank Aaron. For all the time that Hank was "chasing the
dream," he was doing it not only for himself or his fans -- but for all of us in the
south, and for all Amergians.
It has been said often that baseball, more than any other sport, revels in its
statistics. We all know what they are. Most hits -- Ty Cobb. Most wins -- Cy
"the records. +
who words
them.
for
Eng mendor
we he team tranded evance
14-cream
Mr
Young. Most home runs in a season Mark McGwire, and a man who's with us
today, Sammy Sosa.
And then, the recordson warry 101000
Then it gets somewhat repetitive. Most career home runs Hank Aaron. a little repet
Most RBIs -- Hank Aaron. Most [x?] Hank Aaron. He K.A. holds more major league
records than anyone in history and can look that up
I will never forget that night 2nd when he broke what had seemed to be be the most unbreahable
H.A.
impregnable record of all. He had the presence of mind to do it on opening night,
so we could all plan to watch. had just had my first loss and it wouldn't be my
last. Xxxxx.
" 2
yet
Hank Aaron nad achieved.
We wouldn't be here tonight if that was all. We honor him not only for the
power of his swing but the power of his spirit. Not only for breaking records, but
for breaking barriers.
we all remenber Haulin days of glom, but
When Hank Aaron grew up outside Mobile, the doors of major league
baseball were bolted shut. to black Americans. Alabama
Jackie Robinson whose courage we honored at Shea Stadium two years
was to break through.
He
baid
a
ago those doors. But it takes nothing away from Jackie Robinson's
heard price,
courage to note that when he was preparing for the majors, he was sent to
as we all know,
Mentreal. In his entire career, Jackie Robinson never played further south than
for the progress
he made.
But it some
Saint would Louis shaffered, And game it's amazing game he to newer reckel once that has for to al, play the further stereotypes south we
Date
Time before
your
for all the racism he confronted,
many
others follow Hank Aaron was the first African-American to play in the South Atlantic
Minor League the Saly League -- in the heart of segregation. It's not very easy
for today's young people to understand what that meant. Every youth, other member of
than your
had barriers
the Indianapolis team stayed in one motel. He stayed in another on the other side
of town. At the stadiums, X. X.
Except Hanle Aaron. [use as refrain]
of his own
to breau
When the Hank entered the majors, he played his first dozen years in Milwaukee
the Milw.
as
He wasn't a showman; he was methodical and quiet and strong. He led them to
Braves
two pennants. And then, in 1966, in the nervous aftermath of the civil rights
victories, the Braves moved to Atlanta.
troubled
revolution
There/M.A.
AVOID chased his dream. As he closed in on Babe Ruth's career home run
record, he began to face a new and obstacle not of legal segregation this time, but one much
A
deeper, much darker, in the hearts of too many Americans.
The year he approached that record, he received 900,000 letters. Many of
them angry. Many of them hateful. Death threats so serious that the FBI had to
watch his home. Death threats so serious that every game had the threat of deadly
violence
braven and
the pall of violance hung over
In a feat of stunning concentration, pressed on. He said, "I had a job to
1
H.A.
do, and I stuck with the plan. I was not going to be distracted from my goal."
And according to Hank Aaron, of all the hate mail he recieved, barely any of
it was from Atlanta.
We talk about the New South. We honor the struggles of integration and the
visionary leadership of Mayor Ivan Allen and the businesspeople in the City too
Busy to Hate. But very few moments changed our region and our nation as
indelibly as the night that Hank Aaron broke that record and was cheered by nearly
54,000 Atlantans -- black and white -- all cheering in one voice.
you've kept
ever
Hank / had been 'chasing the dream' in the years since. As a baseball
executive, philanthropist and founder of the Chasing the Dream Foundation, you've
been a champion of opportunity and of aspirations, an advocate of fairness and
a builder of dreams.
and
Hank Aaron, tonight we honor not only the records you have broken but the
path you have blazed, the voice you have raised for equality and fairness, and the
standard you continue to set for all of us out here in the stands. Thank you for all
you have given to your team, your community and your country.
Final 2/5/99 12:30pm
Josh Gottheimer/ Michael Waldman
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
ATLANTA, GA
February 5, 1999
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec.
Herman; Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Kweisi
Mfume; Rev. William Guy; Bob Costas (MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball);
Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted Turner; Jane Fonda; Tom Johnson (CEO, CNN); Leonard
Coleman; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Dream Chasers; Ernie
Banks; Sammy Sosa; Billye Aaron (Hank's wife).
The essayist Jacques Barzun [bahr-zuhn] once wrote, "Whoever wants to know the
heart and mind of America, had better learn baseball."
I am here today because the heart of America -- the competition and craftsmanship, the
teamwork and the sheer individual heroism -- are gloriously embodied in the career of Hank
Aaron. For all the time that Hank was "chasing the dream," he was doing it not only for
himself or his fans -- but for all of us in the south, and for all Americans.
It has often been said that baseball, more than any other sport revels in statistics. We
all know the records and who holds them. Most hits -- [Pete Rose] Most wins -- Cy
Young. Most home runs in a season -- Mark McGwire, and w man who S with us today,
Sammy Sosa.
letsnotforgerthe
the
Most career home runs -- Hank Aaron. Most RBIs Hank Aaron. Second most runs
Hank Aaron Hank Aaron holds more major league records than anyone in history.
But I will never forget that night when Hank Aaron broke what seemed the most
unbreakable record of aN. Ne had the presence of mind to do it on opening night, so we could
all plan to watch.
We wouldn't be here tonight if that was all Hank Aaron had achieved. We honor him
not only for the power of his swing but the power of his spirit. Not only for breaking records,
but for breaking barriers.
When Hank Aaron grew up outside Mobile, Alabama, the doors of major league
baseball were bolted shut to black Americans.
Jackie Robinson -- whose courage we honored at Shea Stadium two years ago -- was
the first to break through those doors. But it was some time before many others would follow.
Hank Aaron had barriers of his own to break as the first African-American to play in the
South Atlantic Minor League the Saly League in the heart of segregation. It's not very
easy for today's young people to understand what that meant. Down South, every member of
the team stayed in one motel. Except Hank Aaron. He stayed in another on the other side of
town. When the team stopped at a restaurant to eat dinner, everyone was served at the
counter. Except Hank Aaron. He had to go to the back entrance of the restaurant.
When Hank Aaron entered the majors, he played his first dozen years in Milwaukee.
He wasn't a showman; he was quiet, methodical and strong. He led the Milwaukee Braves to
two pennants. And then, in 1966, in the troubled aftermath of the civil rights revolution, the
Braves moved to Atlanta.
There, Hank Aaron chased his dream. As he closed in on Babe Ruth's career home
run record, he began to face a new obstacle not of legal segregation this time, but something
much deeper, much darker, in the hearts of too many Americans.
The year Hank Aaron approached that record, he received 900,000 letters. Many of
them angry. Many of them hateful. Death threats so serious that the FBI had to watch his
home. Death threats so serious that the pall of violence hung over every game.
In a feat of bravery and stunning concentration, Hank Aaron pressed on. He said, "I
had a job to do, and I stuck with the plan. I was not going to be distracted from my goal."
And according to Hank Laron, of all the hate mail he received barel any of it was
from Atlanta.
We talk about the New South. We honor the struggles of integration and the visionary
leadership of Mayor Ivan Allen and the businesspeople in the City too Busy to Hate. But very
few moments changed our region and our nation as indelibly as the night that Hank Aaron
you
broke that record and was cheered by nearly 54,000 Atlantans - black and white all
cheering in one voice.
Hank, you've kept "chasing the dream" ever since. As a baseball executive,
philanthropist and founder of the Chasing the Dream Foundation, you've been a champion of
opportunity and aspirations, an advocate of fairness and a builder of dreams.
Hank Aaron, tonight we honor not only the records you have broken but the path you
have blazed, the voice you have raised for equality and fairness, and the example you continue
to set for all of us out in the stands. Thank you for all you have given to your team, your
community and your country.
2
PAGE
4
4TH STORY of Level 2 printed in FULL format.
Copyright 1991 The Time Inc. Magazine Company
Sports Illustrated
March 11, 1991
SECTION: BOOKS; Pg. 65
LENGTH: 792 words
HEADLINE: The Real Hammer Raps about Racism;
In his autobiography, Hank Aaron recounts the glory, but also the frustrations,
of his brilliant career
BYLINE: by RON FIMRITE
BODY:
THE APPARENTLY JOYLESS CAREER OF Henry Aaron puts an athletic spin on the
Shakespearean saw about being "star-crossed. One star or another was always
getting in Hank's way. First, it was Willie Mays outshining him, at least in the
public eye, during Aaron's best seasons, seasons as fine as anyone has ever had.
Then, as he stood on the very brink of baseball immortality, here came the Babe
himself, or at least his ghost, to steal his thunder. The only place Aaron could
finish first, it seemed, was in the alphabetical listings of The Baseball
Encyclopedia. If anyone has a right to sing the blues, it's the man they called
the Hammer, and sing them he does, with a vengeance, in I Had a Hammer
(Harper-Collins, $21.95), an autobiography written with Cincinnati journalist
Lonnie Wheeler. It is an unsettling read.
Aaron was a cross-handed-hitting teenage infielder from Mobile, Ala., when
the Braves signed him out of the old Negro leagues in 1952. He was one of the
last big leaguers to emerge from that suddenly disintegrating talent pool. After
a season in the lower minors at Eau Claire, Wis., he was dispatched with a few
other young blacks to integrate the South Atlantic "Sally" League in the Deep
South. His reception from fans there ranged from merely insulting catcalls
"Hey nigger, why you runnin'? There's no watermelon out there" to crudely
written death threats. Still, Aaron, as focused and coolly methodical a player
as ever swung a bat, tore the league apart. The next year, 1954, at age 20, he
was in the big time. Being with the Milwaukee Braves in the 1950s was as near to
nirvana as he would ever be. The team was on its way to winning two National
League pennants and a World Series, the fans were ecstatic and plentiful, and
most of his teammates were great guys, particularly his slugging mate, Eddie
Mathews. Aaron responded to all this salubrity by leading the league in batting
twice and in home runs and RBIs four times.
But those good times were too good to last. The Braves slipped badly, both on
the field and at the box office, and in 1966 they moved to -- where else? - - the
Deep South. Atlanta considered itself to be a progressive city, far too busy
expanding its horizons to be racially prejudiced, but Aaron found it otherwise.
By this time, he, unlike Mays, had become outspoken on the subject of race, and
he rubbed the tender sensibilities of this allegedly reformed community the
wrong way.
Unheralded elsewhere and disliked at home, Aaron nevertheless kept hammering
away, and when he finally passed Mays in the career home run derby - - leaving
only Babe Ruth ahead of him - - he took the baseball world by surprise. What
1974-
PAGE
5
Sports Illustrated March 11, 1991
was this stoic man doing in such charismatic company? It was bad enough that he
had passed the popular Willie; now he was nearing the sacred Babe's
unapproachable lifetime record of 714 home runs. In 1973, as the Hammer bore
down on the Babe, the "Dear Nigger" letters, as he calls them, began pouring in
"Dirty old nigger man
Had Babe Ruth played and been at bat as many
times as you, old nigger, he would have hit just short of 1,100 home runs
11 Aaron collected the most scurrilous of these disgusting missives to remind
him in years ahead of his tremendous ordeal. Altogether, according to the U.S.
Postal Service, he received 930,000 letters in '73, by far the most sent to a
nonpolitician. Dinah Shore finished second, with 60,000. "It should have been
the most enjoyable time in my life," he writes, "and instead it was hell.'
Aaron missed tying the Babe that year by one homer. He could conceivably have
gotten the record within the first three games of '74, all of which were to be
played in Cincinnati. The Braves wanted to hold him out of those three games so
he could pass Ruth at home, but commissioner Bowie Kuhn ordered Atlanta to play
him at least twice to protect the game's integrity. What was to have been his
crowning achievement was already sullied by controversy. And when killer
tornadoes struck the countryside around Cincinnati on Opening Day, he was
further upstaged by tragedy. He went ahead and hit number 714 anyway. And in the
home opener, off the Dodgers' Al Downing, he hit the record breaker. "I felt a
deep sense of gratitude,' he writes, "and a wonderful surge of liberation all at
the same time. I also felt a stream of tears running down my face. " When
President Nixon, awash in Watergate, tried to telephone his congratulations, he
was accidentally disconnected. Commissioner Kuhn wasn't even in the ballpark.
At 57, Aaron tells us, he's still fighting for respect, both for himself and
for all African-Americans. And yet it's significant, perhaps, that the most
famous Hammer in America today is a rap singer.
GRAPHIC: Picture, Aaron's Milwaukee years approached nirvana. descColor
illustration: Hank Aaron., ROB DAY
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH
Henry Aaron
/
63
a little and tomahawked that
bench brought hamburgers out to us. We used to joke that the
two seconds later you could
cows turned and ran when they saw us coming, we ate so many
that old tin fence way out there.
hamburgers. Once, we stopped at a little store and the white
said, "Why was that boy mad
players got out to buy cold drinks. We stayed in the bus, but Felix
who was stomping around
wanted to get a drink out of the water fountain. There were two
think he was mad before, take a
fountains, white and colored, and Felix took a drink out of the
ınd such a nice kid. One time the
colored fountain. But it was hot water, and he spit it out. Then
the other team was getting on
he moved over and took a drink from the white fountain. The
giving it to him, too, and I
problem was that the store owner saw him do it, and, being a
I said, "What's wrong, Henry?"
good law-abiding Southerner, he called the sheriff. The sheriff
"I don't want to hurt nobody. I
was there before the team was back on the bus, and he said he
was going to put Felix in jail. Ben talked to the sheriff for a long
years old. He was so naive he
time before he finally convinced him to let Felix come with us.
his uniform. Hell, he'd never
Whenever we got to the town where we were going, the bus
before. And he didn't care any-
driver would take the white players to their hotel and Horace and
of stuff. One time in Columbia he
Felix and I would just sit in the bus as the rest of our teammates
us losing 1-0 and no outs and a
filed out. It got real quiet when the white players had to leave us
him the bunt sign, and I see
sitting there. I'm sure that if it had been up to them, we'd have
shake his head. Ben flashes bunt
stayed in the same hotel that they did. But Jim Crow made the
ind walks halfway down to third
something, and then Aaron
rules, and we had to abide by them. Bear in mind, this was a year
a rocket to right center to score
before the civil rights movement got rolling with the Brown vs.
Well, the next day I get to the
Board of Education decision. So after the white players got off
says, "You know what that son
the bus, we'd ride on to some private home on the other side of
tnow this pitcher and I know what
the tracks. Black people were happy to put us up, because we
else, I'd bunt, but I know this
were big news down there. We were the closest they would ever
Well, okay. But then last night
get to Jackie Robinson.
and he's down there standing
The only place where we stayed in a hotel was Montgomery.
some girl to show up. But the
Otherwise, Montgomery was the worst town in the league for
blumbus! We're in Columbia, and
black players. I could tolerate it only because my parents drove
Columbus to show up! Hell, how
up from Mobile to see me play. When we weren't playing there,
tcher? He didn't even know what
my father would go up about once a week anyway to read about
the Sally League in the Montgomery newspaper. But even with
Mama and Daddy nearby, I couldn't enjoy Montgomery. They
stayed with the rest of our
had segregation down to an art in that town-the art of keeping
the road-never even ate with
the niggers down. It would be 100 degrees and black people
restaurant, and the three of us
would be standing on the sidewalks watching half-filled buses go
Joe or some guy who rode the
by because there wasn't any more room in the colored section.
64
/
I
HAD A HAMMER
When I heard two years later that Rosa Parks refused to give up
The crash wasn't his fault, b
her seat to a white man, I understood perfectly.
knew him then said that he .
The black hotel was called the Ben Moore, and as you might
was nervous and drank mor
imagine, it was not in the high-rent district. It was located over a
still would have made a great
juke joint, and the noise kept us up most of the night. There was
Braves' system for a long tin
no air conditioning, the place smelled from the fish they were
once for the manager's job,
always frying downstairs, and if you opened a window the bugs
plain way of talking, he did
would invite themselves in for a little picnic. The interior deco-
always thought that, in his v
rating consisted of a potted plant in the lobby. But after sleeping
every bit as much as Felix ar
on the bus in the Negro League, the Ben Moore was like the
one of my biggest regrets that
Waldorf-Astoria to me. It was also a clubhouse to the black play-
the big leagues.
ers, because the Jim Crow laws prevented us from putting on our
As kind as he was with h
uniform at the ballpark with the white players. Finally, near the
was the manager, and he kne'
end of the season, we said to heck with it and dressed at the park.
a mental mistake. He jumpe
As far as I know, the white players all went on to have normal.
when we let a pop fly fall bet
healthy lives after that.
for missing signs. Once, he v
Wherever we stayed, Ben Geraghty would always make it a
disguise it he clapped his har
point to come over and see us. He had nothing special to say-
the park. So I believed him a
he'd just drink a few beers and talk baseball-but it meant a lot
the worst was the time I got p
to us that the manager would go out of his way to make us feel
one game. The first time up,
like part of the team. One day in Columbus, the team was invited
second baseman tagged me (
out to Fort Benning. When it came time to eat, suddenly Horace,
next time, I stole second agai
Felix, and I were shuttled off to the kitchen. As soon as we sat
ball trick and tagged me out a
down, here came Ben to join us. I've known white players and
the second time he was preti
managers who will try to put on a good face around black players
time, he let me have it. Of
despite their real feelings, but there wasn't a phony bone in Ben's
something I appreciated-so
body. He was just a baseball man, and to him, we were just
manager. Instead of screamin
baseball players. Besides that, he liked us. He liked me and Felix
-Lord knows, I was embar
because he knew we were headed for the big leagues, and he
until he could get me alone a:
liked Horace because, in addition to being the best right fielder
stupid I had been, and I could
in the league, Horace was a good man who knew where to buy
baserunner from that day on.
beer on Sunday. Horace always managed to find Ben a case of
The only person Ben cou
Schlitz for the long Sunday bus rides.
was a big guy who might de
I guess it's not surprising that Ben drank a lot of beer, con-
scared of him. One night,
sidering what he had been through. A few years before, he had
stopped the bus at a gas static
been manager at Spokane when the team bus rolled down a hill
ing machine to try to get a dr
and some players were killed. Ben climbed up the hill to get help.
and Joe started hitting and
Bartholomaus
78
Pronouncing Dictionary
of Proper Name
Bartholomaus
Bashevis
1. pers. name, Dutch
BAHR-TÓ-lō-MÁ-ues
,bar,to:lo:'me:ys
pers. name (I.
2. German
BAHR-TÔ-lō-ME-us
,bar,to:lo:'meus
Bashkir
Bartholomeu
republic, Asic
pers. name, Portuguese
BAHR-too-loo-MA-u
,ba:rtu:lu:'me:u
Basho
Bartholomeus
poetic name
pers. name, Dutch
BAHR-TÓ-lō-MÁ-ues
,bar,to:lo:'me:ys
Japanese p
Bartholomew
Basie
pers. name
bahr-THAHL-uh-MYOO
Count, US be
bar'eala,mju:
Bartleby
Basil
story, H. Melville
BAHRT-I-bê
'bart|bi'
pers. name
Bartlesville Wesleyan
Basilius
College, OK
BAHRT-uhlz-VIL WEZ-le-uhn,
1. pers. nam.
'bart|z,vil 'wezli:on,
WES-lē-uhn
'wesli:on
Bartlett
2. Latin
pers. name
BAHRT-luht
Basingstoke
'bartlet
Bartók
town, Engla
Bela, Hungarian composer
Baskerville
BAHR-TAHK, BAHR-TAWK
'bar,tak, 'bar,to:k
Bartolome
John, Englis
pers. name, Spanish
bahr-tō-lō-MA
typefont
barto:lo:'me:
Basie
Bartolomeo
alternate sp
1. pers. name, Italian
BAHR-tō-lō-ME-ō
,barto:lo:'meo:
Switzerlar
2. Spanish
bahr-tō-lō-MÃ-ō
barto:lo:'me:o:
Basotho
Bartolommeo
people, Lesc
pers. name, Italian
,barto:lo:m'meo:
Basov
Barton
Nikolai Genr
Clara, US founder of Red Cross;
BAHRT-n
'bartn
physicist (
Derek H. R., English organic
Basque
chemist (Nobel 1969)
lang., people
Baruch
Basra
1. Old Testament book; pers.
buh-ROOK, BAHR-OOK
be'ru:k, 'bar,u:k
prov & town
name
Basrah, AI [B
2. Bernard, US statesman
buh-ROOK
be'ru:k
prov & town
Baruj
pers. name, Spanish
BAHR-ookh
'baru:x
Bas-Rhin
Baryshnikov
dept. Franc
Mikhail, ballet dancer
buh-RISH-ni-kuhf,
be'rifnikaf, $ be'rifni,ko:f,
Bass
$ buh-RISH-ni-KAWF,
-,ko:v
Saul, graph
Barzun
tdmk for
Jacques, US author
bahr-ZUHN
borzan
shoes
Basa
Basse-Norm
lang., Africa
BAHS-uh
'base
region, Fra
Basant Panchami
Bassist
Hindu festival
VUHS-uhnt PUHN-chuh-mē
'Basont 'pentfami'
College, OI
Basari
Bast
lang., Guinea, Senegal, Gambia
buh-SAHR-è
ba'sari'
Egyptian SI
Bascomb
Bastet [Bast]
pers. name
BAS-kuhm
'bæskam
Egyptian Si
Basel
Bastiano
city, Switzerland
BAHZ-uhl
'bazel
pers. name
Basenji
Bastille
dog breed
buh-SEN-jē, buh-ZEN-jë
ba'sendzi', ba'zendzi
French pri:
Basherawa
Bastogne
lang., Nigeria
buh-SHER-uh-wuh
be'Jerewe
district, Be
Key (col. 2): a: fad a: fade ah: father ar: Mary aw: law e: fed e: feed er: merry i: hid i: hide o: coat 00: boot
Foreign Sounds:
oi: boy ow: now u: put uh: above uhr: bird ch: chop ng: ring sh: show th: thick th: this zh: measure
hl: Welsh Llanelli.
Joshua S. Gottheimer
02/05/99 12:25:54 PM
Record Type:
Record
To:
Jeffrey A. Shesol/WHO/EOP
CC:
Subject:
Final 2/5/99 12pm
Josh Gottheimer/ Michael Waldman
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
ATLANTA, GA
February 5, 1999
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec.
Herman; Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Kweisi
Mfume; Rev. William Guy; Bob Costas (MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball);
Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted Turner; Jane Fonda; Tom Johnson (CEO, CNN); Leonard
Coleman; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Dream Chasers;
Ernie Banks; Sammy Sosa; Billye Aaron (Hank's wife).
The essayist Jacques Barzun [bahr-zuhn] once wrote, "Whoever wants to
know the heart and mind of America, had better learn baseball."
I am here today because the heart of America -- the competition and
craftsmanship, the teamwork and the sheer individual heroism -- are gloriously
embodied in the career of Hank Aaron. For all the time that Hank was "chasing the
dream," he was doing it not only for himself or his fans -- but for all of us in the
south, and for all Americans.
It has often been said often that baseball, more than any other sport, revels
in its statistics. We all know the records and who holds them. Most hits -- Ty
Cobb. Most wins -- Cy Young. Most home runs in a season -- Mark McGwire, and
a man who's with us today, Sammy Sosa.
Most career home runs -- Hank Aaron. Most RBIs -- Hank Aaron. Second
most runs -- Hank Aaron. Hank Aaron holds more major league records than
anyone in history.
I will never forget that night when Hank Aaron broke what seemed the most
unbreakable record of all. He had the presence of mind to do it on opening night,
so we could all plan to watch.
We wouldn't be here tonight if that was all Hank Aaron had achieved. We
honor him not only for the power of his swing but the power of his spirit. Not only
for breaking records, but for breaking barriers.
When Hank Aaron grew up outside Mobile, Alabama, the doors of major
league baseball were bolted shut to black Americans.
Jackie Robinson -- whose courage we honored at Shea Stadium two years
ago -- was the first to break through those doors. But it was some time before
many others would follow. Hank Aaron had barriers of his own to break as the first
African-American to play in the South Atlantic Minor League -- the Saly League -- in
the heart of segregation. It's not very easy for today's young people to understand
what that meant. Down South, every member of the team stayed in one motel.
Except Hank Aaron. He stayed in another on the other side of town. When the
team stopped at a restaurant to eat dinner, every one was served at the counter.
Except Hank Aaron. He had to go to the back entrance of the restaurant to eat with
the other black players.
this underents the "everyone
except"
When Hank Aaron entered the majors, he played his first dozen years in
Milwaukee. He wasn't a showman; he was quiet, methodical and strong. He led
the Milwaukee Braves to two pennants. And then, in 1966, in the troubled aftermath of
the civil rights revolution, the Braves moved to Atlanta.
There, Hank Aaron chased his dream. As he closed in on Babe Ruth's career
home run record, he began to face a new obstacle not of legal segregation this
time, but one much deeper, much darker, in the hearts of too many Americans.
something
H.A.
The year approached that record, he received 900,000 letters. Many of
them angry. Many of them hateful. Death threats so serious that the FBI had to
watch his home. Death threats so serious that the pall of violence hung over every
game.
In a feat of bravery and stunning concentration, Hank Aaron pressed on. He
said, "I had a job to do, and I stuck with the plan. I was not going to be distracted
from my goal."
And according to Hank Aaron, of all the hate mail he received, barely any of
it was from Atlanta.
We talk about the New South. We honor the struggles of integration and the
visionary leadership of Mayor Ivan Allen and the businesspeople in the City too
Busy to Hate. But very few moments changed our region and our nation as
indelibly as the night that Hank Aaron broke that record and was cheered by nearly
54,000 Atlantans -- black and white -- all cheering in one voice.
Hank, you've kept chasing the dream ever since. As a baseball executive,
philanthropist and founder of the Chasing the Dream Foundation, you've been a
champion of opportunity and aspirations, an advocate of fairness and a builder of
dreams.
Hank Aaron, tonight we honor not only the records you have broken but the
path you have blazed, the voice you have raised for equality and fairness, and the example
standard you continue to set for all of us out here in the stands. Thank you for all
you have given to your team, your community and your country.
PAGE
12
169TH STORY of Level 1 printed in FULL format.
Copyright 1995 The Times Mirror Company
Los Angeles Times
April 9, 1995, Sunday, Bulldog Edition
SECTION: Sports; Part C; Page 1; Sports Desk
LENGTH: 648 words
HEADLINE: THE HAMMER;
REMEMBERING WHEN AN AMERICAN HERO CHASED THE DREAM
BYLINE: By HAL BOCK, ASSOCIATED PRESS
BODY:
The way Hank Aaron sees it, America would have preferred someone else to
break Babe Ruth's home run record.
Someone white.
"No question about that, Aaron said, chuckling a little. "Back then, if they
had a choice, they would have preferred Mickey Mantle. Or Stan Musial. or Ted
*
Williams. If it had to be someone black, I think they would have preferred
Willie Mays."
Instead, they got Aaron, a low-key slugger with lightning fast wrists who,
6N BREKEING
one writer observed, did everything that Mays did and kept his hat on too.
THE RECAD
As he chased the home run record, Aaron got letters, ugly letters,
threatening letters, hate-filled letters, letters that are a permanent
embarrassment.
And he saved every one of them.
"I had a lot of problems," Aaron said, understating the anguish the
hate-mongers put him through. "It was something that happened and it happened
not that long ago in America. People say, 'Why do you keep the letters? Why not
tear them up?' You can't do that. Eventually, my children and my grandchildren
should see them because they are history.
"It's like the Holocaust. People hear the story and they say, 'Show me
evidence. Well, this happened to me and here's the evidence. All the letters
are in a safe deposit box."
The story of Aaron's long, lonely pursuit of Ruth's record is revisited in
"Chasing The Dream,' a documentary produced by Turner Broadcasting and
premiering Wednesday. Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington was one of the
executive producers in the project.
MAJORT IN
Aaron's career began at a time when the civil rights movement was in its
1954
infancy. He came to the majors in 1954, the year the U.S. Supreme Court struck
down the concept of separate but equal in the case of Brown vs. the Board of
Education.
yr
BROWN
V
PHOTOCOPY
preservation
Runs
Ty Cobb ('05-128)
2,246
At Bats - Pete Rose (163-86)
14,053
-
PAGE
16
189TH STORY of Level 1 printed in FULL format.
Copyright 1994 Globe Newspaper Company
The Boston Globe
August 4, 1994, Thursday, Edition
SECTION: SPORTS; Pg. 39
LENGTH: 2625 words
HEADLINE: HAMMERIN' HANK;
BASEBALL'S LIVING LEGENDS
BYLINE: By Larry Whiteside, Globe Staff
DATELINE: ATLANTA
HAMMONIN HAVE AARIN
BODY:
His desire for respect has always been intense. It began in an era of racial
hatred; it survives as a matter of racial and personal pride.
After a 23-year playing career, highlighted by a roller-coaster ride to the
major league career home run record Hammerin' Hank Aaron is not resting on his
laurels as a baseball celebrity.
At 60, Aaron could roam the country as a Hall of Famer, a living reminder
that he holds baseball's most prestigious record - 755 career home runs.
Instead, he travels the globe as an international ambassador for amateur
baseball on behalf of the Turner Broadcasting System, where he is a vice
president for business development.
Henry Aaron is what baseball legends are all about HANK-YOU ARE WHAT BASEBALL
"I feel that I have had a very good career,' says Aaron. "Both in and out of
baseball. It's been great at TBS. I think baseball has finally come around to
recognizing some of the contributions I've made."
Nge age
Along the way, Aaron rose from the ashes of the dying Negro leagues as a
skinny shortstop with a habit for hitting line drives, to a home run and RBI
machine, to a place in history and a plaque in Cooperstown.
By the time his career ended in 1976, he was the most prolific home run
hitter in major league history. But he was also baseball's most abused and
maligned player. Some people still haven t forgiven him for eclipsing Babe
Ruth's home run record of 714
In addition to breaking the home run mark, Aaron owns the record for runs
batted in (2,297) and is second in runs (2,174) and at-bats (12,364) and third
in hits (3,771) and games (3) 298).
native of Mobile, Ala. Aaron was a black pioneer, along with Larry Doby, BORN
Roy Campanella, Willie Mays and Frank Robinson, all of whom came to the majors MOBILE
in the years after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. All but Doby reached
the Hall of Fame, but Aaron's climb was special. He was the best. And he had
ALA
The Boston Globe, August 4, 1994
the highest obstacle to climb: racial bigotry.
Longevity was the key to his career. Aaron played 21 years with the Braves,
(AROON
starting in Milwaukee and moving with the club to Atlanta. At the urging of
Brewers owner Bud Selig, he returned to Milwaukee to finish his career in the
city in which he led the Braves to their only World Series championship (1957).
Aaron's .305 career average may not match Ruth's .342. But Aaron, who played
one year longer than the Babe, had 898 more hits.
"He was sort of like a machine in everything he did, recalls Montreal Expos
manager Felipe Alou, who was a teammate in both Milwaukee and Atlanta. "You knew
he was going to deliver. He didn't care about hitting the ball far; he wanted to
hit it hard and let everything else take care of itself.
"He was a man of his time, although this was not an era when players were
really active. Management had tremendous power. But he survived and became a
great, great player."
Boston missed out
Aaron almost played for Boston. He signed with the Boston Braves and spent
1952 with the Eau Claire, Wis., minor league team. But in 1953, with Aaron still
a year away from making his major league debut, the Braves moved to Milwaukee.
Aaron played 122 games for Milwukee in 1954 and spent 11 more years there before
the Braves moved to Atlanta after the 1965 season. Although Aaron returned to
Milwaukee in 1976 and finished his playing career with the Brewers, he has ended
up back in Atlanta, where he has been a part of the Braves organization ever
since.
Aaron served in a variety of roles with the franchise in the '70s and '80s,
from farm director to director of player personnel. His world these days
revolves around a desk in the CNN Center, where he works as a vice president for
TBS and the Braves, both owned by Ted Turner, and is a member of the board of
directors of both corporations.
Rather than retire on his laurels in 1976, Aaron spent the next 13 years
CNN
deeply involved in player development, something no black executive had done
before. His benefactor was Turner, who didn't even own the Braves when Aaron was
at his peak.
"I owe an awful lot to Ted," says Aaron. "He didn't owe me nothing. I played
for other Braves owners for 21 years and I had finished my contract. He didn't
have to hire me.
"I could have had a career in Milwaukee, where they offered me a job after I
finished my career there. But I am a Southerner. My roots are here. Ted gave me
the opportunity to work at a higher level. I'll always appreciate that."
His rise to executive status in Atlanta is what separates Aaron from other
legends, black and white. As a black player, he knew prejudice firsthand. But
never did he expect an outpouring of racial hatred just because he was a black
man taking away Ruth's cherished home run title.
PAGE
18
The Boston Globe, August 4, 1994
Aaron hit No. 715 against the Dodgers and lefthander Al Downing on April
8
AL
1974. But he had to pay a dear price that left scars. Fans turned against his
efforts, writing scathing letters, and police protection was required at one
DOWNIN
point. During the height of the frenzy over his quest for the record, Aaron was
said to have received about 930,000 pieces of mail. The most threatening were
turned over to the FBI.
"This was supposed to be the greatest time of my life,' says Aaron. "They cut
a piece of my heart out."
Aaron has never compared himself to Ruth, physically or otherwise. He no
longer gets hate mail, but he must choose his words carefully during interviews,
lest the insults start all over again.
In April, major league baseball decided to have a week-long celebration of
the 20th anniversary of Aaron's 715th home run. Ceremonies were held in
ballparks throughout the country. "A lot of people didn't understand me," Aaron
told a reporter at the time. "Some of them still don't understand me. Some of
them view me as a very angry person. That is just not true. I try to tell people
I don't have time for that.
"Somebody asked me if baseball was good to me. I was as good to baseball as
baseball was to me. I think I was better to baseball than baseball was to me.
But my life has moved up to another level."
Aaron's executive days started in October 1976. He took the job of farm
director for Atlanta, joining his brother-in-law, Bill Lucas, who would soon
become baseball's first black general manager. After Lucas died in 1978, some
felt Aaron would quickly disappear from the game.
Instead, he became even more active, helping to build the foundation that led
to the 1982 Braves club that won the National League West. The best Brave of
that era was outfielder Dale Murphy, who won Most Valuable Player Awards in 1982
and '83. Murphy constantly credits the patience of Aaron and his brother Tommie,
a Triple A manager, as the key to his success.
He helped build Braves
HALL OF MAT FAME
Aaron was voted into baseball's Hall of Fame in 1982. He turned down several
attractive offers, choosing to remain with the Braves.
"I could have been a lot of things," says Aaron. "I was offered the manager's
job and turned it down. I chose to stay in player development, where I was very
happy. I know a lot of other people have been credited for the Braves' success
in the last three years. But many of those players were in the system when I
stepped away from the baseball operation in 1990.
"The decision to leave was mine. I felt I had made some progress and wanted
to go up a notch to the corporate level. Things have worked out fine. I stay
very busy.'
But Aaron stays out of current Atlanta leadership. He worked under Bobby Cox,
who had managed the Braves from 1978 to '81 before coming back in 1986 as
general manager. In October 1990, the Braves hired John Schuerholz as executive
vice president and general manager, with Cox returning to the field. The more
PAGE
19
The Boston Globe, August 4, 1994
success the team enjoyed, the less visible was Aaron.
Again, that was his decision.
"I had only brief contact with Hank in the early days," says Schuerholz.
"There were a lot of the young guys he saw come up through the organization, so
I wanted to get the benefit of his judgment. We visited more often because he
was around that first year. In the last three years or so, he really hasn't been
here. He's been over at TBS."
The young players included pitchers Tom Glavine and John Smoltz, outfielders
David Justice and Ron Gant, and infielder Mark Lemke. Aaron had made an
impresssion on them.
"When I signed," says Justice, "I thought it was great just knowing Hank was
in the organization. If you had a problem, you could go to him with that
problem. I see him like I see Dr. J Julius Erving, like Willie Stargell, like
Jackie Robinson - great men who were great players in their respective sports,
and great men off the field.
Adds Smoltz, "I never really understood his total role, but I liked him. He
was a vice president in player development, and I knew he was part of the group
that influenced things. He was more than a hero. He was a guy I just couldn't
imagine pitching to. That's the thought that kept coming into my mind when I met
him."
Schuerholz points out that under Cox, the Braves' farm system grew because of
the efforts of both Aaron and Paul Snyder, then director of scouting. Schuerholz
and Cox make it clear that Aaron played a key role in Atlanta's recent success,
but add that credit usually goes to the organization, not just one individual.
"Every general manager in baseball knows that the Braves in Bobby Cox' regime
had acquired and accumulated a very talented corps of players," says Schuerholz.
"Hank was on that staff, as was Snyder.
"I never really knew Hank, and still don't in some respects. But I'm a
baseball fan. My view is one of great admiration and respect for one of the
greatest players in the game. He is a legend.
"The Braves truly appreciate Henry Aaron, not only for what he has meant to
the Braves but to baseball with his contributions. There is a great admiration
and respect that is pretty well signified by Ted Turner's decision to have him
on the boards of both corporations."
Says Cox, "Hank was great when I came back here
very supportive. But
he's changed jobs, and I don't see him now but maybe once a month. We'd love to
see him come around more often. But he's busy.
Aaron has been more active in other roles, including participation in
programs run by the International Baseball Association, the world governing body
for amateur baseball. He has represented TBS at the Goodwill Games. He
consistently has spoken out for racial justice in baseball.
In 1991, Aaron helped bring about a reunion that brought the Negro league
players to Cooperstown. "That reunion was the greatest moment I've ever been a
PAGE
20
The Boston Globe, August 4, 1994
part of, " he says. "We knew about Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson and Ernie Banks. I
was happy for the guys that day, because many of them were SO talented, yet
never got a chance to play in the major leagues. The Negro leagues were great,
but it was still moving up a notch to come to the major leagues. I think many of
them could have made it."
Commissioner Aaron?
From time to time, Aaron has attempted to step into a larger arena. After
the departure of the past three baseball commissioners - Peter Ueberroth, Bart
Giamatti and Fay Vincent - he has offered his services for the job. Each time,
he has been politely turned down by the screening committee.
One day, maybe.
"I was disappointed that I wasn't even considered,' says Aaron. "But I wasn't
surprised. Ironically, we talked about some of the things that were on the table
today. A salary cap, expansion and expanded playoffs. I still think there should
be a strong commissioner."
Aaron believes the '50s, when he led the Braves to pennants in Milwaukee, the
'60s and even theet leader of great athletes in a time when players really
needed one.
"Hank was such a dedicated person," says Alou. "I mean, really loyal to the
game, despite what was going on around him. We were all, for the most part, like
that. Guys who didn't say much, who showed up every day, played for very little
money, who played hard and tried to entertain the fans. That was Hank every
day."
People should never underrate his skills, adds Alou.
"His strength was that he was a career .305 player who hit almost 800 home
runs," says Alou. "And he was a very good defensive outfielder. Maybe he never
hit 50 homers in a season, but not too many are going to do that, except for
maybe this year. That shows you how consistent he was.
"There still is no one like him as a hitter. You could never tell he was
going for a home run. He had a good swing, which he showed on every at-bat.
Sometimes he just hit line drives. Sometimes he hit it out. Hank was a
legitimate home run hitter, but also a legitimate good hitter."
And there may never be anybody like him again.
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
Born Feb. 5, 1934, in Mobile, Ala. - Batted right and threw right. - During
his playing career, Aaron stood 6 feet tall and weighed 180 pounds. - He is the
leading home run hitter in major league history. He surpassed Babe Ruth's mark
of 714 when he hit one out against Los Angeles' Al Downing on April 8, 1974 at
Atlanta. - He is first in career RBIs, second in runs scored, third in hits,
third in games played and ninth in doubles. - Holds the career record for total
bases (6,856) - Named National League Most Valuable Player in 1957. - Led
league in homers four times (1957, 1963, 1966, 1967) - Led league in RBIs four
times (1957, 1960, 1963, 1966) - Hit .300 or better 14 times and captured two
PAGE
2
1ST STORY of Level 1 printed in FULL format.
Copyright 1999 The Atlanta Constitution
The Atlanta Journal and Constitution
February 4, 1999, Thursday
CONSTITUTION EDITION
SECTION: SPORTS; Pg. 01D
LENGTH: 1039 words
SERIES: Home
HEADLINE: Joy in record came slowly to Aaron;
Healing for Hank: Homer king gets tribute Friday in what he says could be his
"happiest" moment.
BYLINE: Carroll Rogers
BODY:
It's hard to imagine now how little that Hank Aaron liked to talk or think
about The Record in the years after he surpassed Babe Ruth as baseball's
home-run king.
Though he had 755 reasons to feel he was on top of the world, he often just
wanted to get away from the world and the racial hatred that marred his climb to
break Ruth's career mark of 714 home runs. "A lot of things went on back then
you want to erase," Aaron said. "That's one of the reasons I don't talk about it
as much as I should. But it's over with, done with. Now maybe some good things
can come out of it."
Twenty-five years later, Aaron is ready to embrace that time, place and
accomplishment and the sport that allowed him to achieve it. And the feeling is
mutual.
Beginning with a 65th birthday gala on Friday night in Atlanta, Major League
Baseball will pay tribute to Aaron this season and to the 25th anniversary of
About
the year he broke Ruth's career record. Friday's expected guests at the Hyatt
Regency Hotel include President Clinton, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, Gov. Roy
Gales
Barnes, former Gov. Zell Miller, Mayor Bill Campbell, former Mayor and U.N.
Ambassador Andrew Young, Larry King, Bob Costas, Frank Robinson, Ernie Banks, Al
Downing, Sammy Sosa and baseball commissioner Bud Selig.
"This is probably going to be the happiest moment of my life, Aaron said.
And, yes, it will help make up for what should have been one of the happiest
times of his life, when he hit his 715th home run off Downing on April 8, 1974.
A crowd of nearly 54,000 in Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium and countless fans
watching on TV saw the two fans jog alongside Aaron on his home-run trot, the
one
embrace between Aaron and his mother at home plate and the joy of his Braves
teammates But what they couldn't see was Aaron's overwhelming sense of relief,
day
and the lingering pain, pounded into his memory by a barrage of racially charged
hate mail and threats.
His wife, Billye, knew it well. She knew that her husband felt the rejection.
Princeton University Phone Book - Query Results
http://www.princeton.edu/cgi-bin/P.isher&Odepartment=&Qemail-&Qphone=
Kristin Wheat Fisher
Student_phone: n/a
Student_address: n/a
Department: Undergraduate Class of 2001
Email: [email protected]
Emailbox: [email protected]
Voicemailbox: 35894
Alias: 000927348
Return to the top.
Rebecca Fisher Haarlow
Student_phone: n/a
Student_address: n/a
Department: Undergraduate Class of 2001
Email: [email protected]
Emailbox: [email protected]
Voicemailbox: 37163
Alias: 000954142
Return to the top.
Doris R Fisher
Phone: 609-258-4201
Fax: 609-258-1367
Address: 306 Fine Hall
Department: Mathematics
Email: [email protected]
Emailbox: [email protected]
Alias: 010002521
Return to the top.
Heidi A Fisher
Phone: 609-258-5415
Fax: 609-258-0441
Address: Firestone Library
Department: Library
Email: [email protected]
Emailbox: [email protected]
Alias: 010003044
3 of 4
2/5/99 11:06 AM
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
Date: 2/4/99
ACTION / CONCURRENCE / COMMENT DUE BY: 9:30a.m. TOMORROW
Subject: MICROENTERPRISE REMARKS
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
NASH
PODESTA
REED
ECHAVESTE
RUFF
RICCHETTI
SOSNIK
LEW
SPERLING
BEGALA
STEIN
BERGER
STERN
BLUMENTHAL
STREETT
FRAMPTON
TRAMONTANO
IBARRA
VERVEER
KLAIN
WALDMAN
LANE
YELLEN
LEWIS
ORSZAG
LINDSEY
KATZEN
LOCKHART
SPECTOR
MARSHALL
MOORE
REMARKS:
COMMENTS To JUNE SHIH
RESPONSE:
Staff Secretary's Office
staffing WPD 1/4/99
Ext. 62702
Draft 2/4/99
Shih
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR EXCELLENCE IN MICROENTERPRISE AWARDS
THE WHITE HOUSE
FEBRUARY 5, 1999
For more than two centuries, America has drawn its strength from the entrepreneurial
spirit of our people. From the T-shirt vendors here on the streets of Washington to the software
engineers of Silicon Valley to the bankers of Manhattan, we are a nation built by people of talent
and vision, people with the courage to take risks and pursue their dreams.
These Presidential Awards for Excellence in Microenterprise Develepment celebrate that
spirit. And even more important, they underscore our national commitment to unleashing the
spirit of enterprise in every corner of every community in America -- especially those long closed
off from credit, jobs and economic opportunity.
Today, we have a rare opportunity and an obligation to make good on that commitment.
We are living in a time of unprecedented prosperity. It is the longest peacetime economic
expansion in American history. [Job numbers TK] The lowest peacetime unemployment rate
since 1957; wages rising at twice the rate of inflation; the highest home ownership in history.
For the past six years, we've worked to bring prosperity to some of our most distressed
communities with a new vision of government. It is a vision focused on one fundamental goal --
to empower our people with the tools to make the most of their own lives. Nothing better
embodies this new vision of government, nor better conveys our faith in the entrepreneurial spirit
of our people, than our efforts to promote microenterprise. For more than a decade -- ever since
we met a remarkable man from Bangladesh named Mohamed Yunus -- Hillary and I have been
convinced of the revolutionary possibilities of a simple idea: That small amounts of credit can
enable citizens to start small businesses and lift their families out of the margins of society into
the economic mainstream.
Through our network of community development banks, or CDFIs, a strengthened and
streamlined the Community Reinvestment Act, and empowerment zones, we have worked to
kindle the spark of private enterprise in depressed communities across America. We have helped
thousands of Americans who wouldn't qualify for a commercial loan secure credit to start new
businesses fixing cars, making jewelry, selling cookies -- businesses that could free a family
from welfare, create jobs for neighbors, and reclaim communities of empty storefronts from
decay and decline.
We must build on all these efforts. Last month, I announced a New Markets Initiative to
spur even more private investment in our underserved areas, building a bridge from Wall Street
to Harlem to Appalachia to Pine Ridge, S.D. Today, I am proud to announce a new plan in my
balanced budget that more than doubles our support for microenterprise in America -- and to
continue our efforts to promote microenterprise abroad -- especially in nations hard hit by the
global financial crisis and natural disaster.
First, we must recognize that for the vast majority of microentrepreneurs, good ideas and
credit are just the beginning. A little guidance -- lessons on accounting, billing, planning -- is
essential for any business to thrive in our complex economy. That is why my balanced budget
doubles the Small Business Administration's capacity to provide such assistance to borrowers
through its Microloan Program; and triples support for the SBA's One-Stop Capital Shops --
which offer microlending advice and other economic assistance to citizens living in
disadvantaged communities. I am also proud to support the bipartisan Program for Investments
in Microentrepeneurs -- the PRIME Act sponsored by Sen. Domenici and Kennedy, and Reps.
Rush and Leach -- so that we can expand technical assistance programs through the Treasury's
CDFI fund.
Second, we must make even more credit available to low-income Americans with good
business ideas. That is why I am proposing to double our support for the SBA's microloan
program so that it can leverage more than $75 million dollars in new microloans across the
country.
Third, we must expand our efforts to encourage Americans to save for their own futures.
Last year, I was proud to sign new Individual Development Accounts into law, fulfilling a
campaign pledge from 1992. IDAs are special accounts that provide federal matching funds to
low-income Americans who save money to start a new businesses, buy a first home, pay for a
college education. I propose doubling support for these accounts in my balanced budget.
Next -- we will continue leading the world, through USAID, in promoting
microenterprise as a tool for lifting millions of families out of poverty. The recent global
financial crisis and the hurricanes in Central America and the Caribbean have upended the lives
of thousands. Small loans to start new businesses can make all difference in helping families get
back on their feet. My balanced budget will target extra microenterprise assistance to these
countries. And to break down the bureaucratic walls that block microenterprise in many
developing countries, we will also continue to work with the World Bank and other financial
institutions to reform regulatory structures and make more microloans available.
Finally, we must continue to shine a spotlight on all the good work that is being done to
help more Americans experience the transforming power of credit and self-employment. That is,
of course, the reason we are here today. Hillary and I are very pleased to present these
Presidential Awards for Excellence in Microenterprise Development to six organizations whose
innovation, vision and commitment have made a difference in the lives of thousands.
First, for excellence in the category of "Access to Capital," the Microcredit Industry
Rural Organization of PPEP [pep] Microbusiness and Housing Development Corporation. Since
1987, MICRO [MEE-crow] has provided some $5.5 million in loans to more than 1,000
entrepreneurs living in some of the most distressed Hispanic communities of rural Arizona.
Nearly 80 percent of these businesses are still thriving. Accepting this award is Executive
Director Frank Ballesteros [Buy-uh-STAIR-ose] and entrepreneur Maria Jesus Gaxiola [HAY-
soos Guh-HYOH-lah] -- a MICRO client and former migrant farm worker who used a $1500
loan to build her own cosmetics business.
Next, for excellence in "Developing Entrepreneurial Skills," the Detroit Entrepreneurship
Institute. Founded at Wayne State University, the Institute has worked to teach low-income
clients the full range of business skills: from reading financial statements to buying insurance to
managing time and stress. Clients can also take advantage of a free computer center, tax
preparation service and graphic design department to help launch and expand their businesses.
Accepting this award is Cathy McClelland, President and CEO, and entrepreneur Jacqueline
[Jack uh lin] Tucker, who started a successful catering business after training at the Institute.
Also for excellence in "Developing Entrepreneurial Skills," the Northeast Entrepreneur
Fund of Virginia, Minnesota. Serving rural communities throughout a 20,000-square mile area,
the fund offers one-on-one counseling to clients, helping them gain the specific skills they need
to make their businesses thrive. Accepting this award is the fund's president Mary Mathews,
and entrepreneur Carol Willoughby.
For excellence in "Poverty Alleviation," the Institute for Social and Economic
Development of Iowa. One of the earliest statewide microenterprise efforts in the nation, the
institute has helped 90 percent of its welfare clients free themselves from lives of dependency
through self-employment. Accepting this award today is John Else, Founder and President of
ISED and entrepreneur Rhonda Auten, a former welfare recipient who started her own dance
school with help from ISED.
For excellence in "Private Support for Microenterprise Development," the Corporation
for Enterprise Development. For 20 years now, CED has had one mission: Closing the poverty
gap in America. Through research, public advocacy and technical assistance to microenterprise
organizations, the Corporation has fostered so much of the progress we see today -- including the
success of three of this years' award winners, the Detroit Entrepreneurship Institute, The Institute
for Social and Economic Development, and the Northeast Entrepreneurship Fund. Accepting
this award is Robert Friedman, Founder and Chairman.
Also for "Excellence in Public Support for Microenterprise Development," The Montana
Microbusiness Finance Program. As part of the Montana Department of Commerce, this
program has helped launch and sustain a dozen microlending organizations serving communities
throughout their vast state. Accepting this award are Program Officer Robyn Hampton, and
entrepreneurs Kevin and Heidi Snyder, who used a microloan to start their racquetball and fitness
center.
I congratulate each and every one of you on your success. The great entrepreneur Henry
Ford said that the best Americans were those with "an infinite capacity to not know what can't be
done." You are those Americans -- testaments to power of the American spirit of enterprise. Let
us all work together in the years to come to awaken that spirit in every single citizen of this land.
distracted from my goal."
Hank, that is why we're here today -- n it only to honor your records, but to recognize
your commitment to your Atlanta Braves. your community, and to all of us for whom you are
still a hero. Thank you, Henry, for that exampl : for your steady voice for equality, integrity and
change -- and for the standard you continue to set for all of out here in the stands.
JAN-26-1999 16:41
FAX
2024561907
01/29/19
FEL
COS
002
Suggested text for videotaped greeting from President Clinton to Henry Aaron:
Thank your Iam. I'm proud to join in this evening of celebration and tribute to
one of my heroes. Like all of you, I grew up admiring Henry Aaron from a
distance bridged mostly by radio and television and newspapers. When I think
of him then, I remember myself much younger, waiting for him to come up in
the batting order, holding my breath as the ball left the pitcher's hand, hoping
that magic swing would connect, and the record number would climb by one
more run. It was a wonderful time for baseball, and a wonderful time to be a bid
in love with the game and awed by its gients.
In recent years, I've come to know Henry as a personal friend. He is still a hero
of mine, as a business leader; as the guiding spirit of the Chasing The Dream
Foundation: and as a gentle but steady voice for equality, integrity and change.
Hillary and I have been proud to host Billye and him in the White House on
numerous occasions. But I have to admit that every time I see Heruy, for just a
second or TWO, I'm a kid again. and he is on some distant field, waiting, bat in
hand, to define greatness for me one more time.
Thank you, Herry, for that example, and for the standard you continue to set for
all of us out here in the stands.
TOTAL P.02
Draft 2/4/99 7pm
Josh Gottheimer
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
ATLANTA, GA
February 5, 1999
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec.
Herman; Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Mfume; Bob
Costas (MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball); Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted
Turner; Jane Fonda; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Ernie
Banks; Sammy Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr; Reggie Jackson; Dave Winfield
It is a privilege to be with you this evening to celebrate Hank Aaron's 65th Birthday --
and to launch Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic moments in
sports history -- Hammerin' Hank Aaron's 715th homerun.
America's favorite pastime was built on legendary feats -- Ty Cobb's 4,189 hits; Cal
Ripkins' 2,632 consecutive games, and, just this year, Mark McGwire's 70 homeruns and
Sammy Sosa's 66th.
But who could forget that historic night on April 8, 1974 before a sold-out crowd at
Atlanta's Fulton County stadium, when Hank Aaron launched number 715 -- and smashed Babe
Ruth's 38-year-old record.
That night might have marked Hank Aaron's crowning achievement. But it was only one
feat in a career full of accomplishment. Hank continues to hold more Major League batting
records than any other player in history -- from 2,297 RBIs to 3,771 career hits to 755 career
home runs.
But perhaps the most impressive thing about Hank Aaron is not what he did in the
majors. It was the way he got there. Hank's mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to
Major League home-run king represents American greatness in the face of adversity. He was
determined to reach the Majors. Nothing was going to hold him back. Not an opposing pitcher,
not an outfield full of all-stars, and -- least of all -- not the prejudice that prevailed during his
earliest days at bat.
Hank Aaron was the first African-American to play in the South Atlantic League -- the
Saly League -- deep in the heart of the segregated South. Although Jackie Robinson had broken
the color barrier into the Majors less than a decade before, there were still only a few blacks in
baseball. But, in 1954, Hank Aaron's dedication and skill catapulted him into the professional
ranks -- the same year the Supreme Court struck down the practice of separate but equal in
Brown V. Board of Education. Hank spent his first 12 years in Milwaukee, and helped lead the
Braves to two pennants, before the franchise relocated to Atlanta for the '66 season.
He made it all look so easy on the field. So effortless. But few of us knew the challenges
Hank Aaron faced off the diamond. Throughout his career, Hank was often forced to drink from
"colored only" water fountains; sleep in hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated
restaurants. And even as he neared Ruth's record, Hank Aaron received thousands upon
thousands of death threats. But as Hank himself said, "I had a job to do, and I stuck with the
plan. I was not going to be distracted from my goal."
Your career didn't end when you hung up your jersey in 1976. You're still breaking
barriers even today. Since then, as an executive and with your Chasing the Dream Foundation,
you've been a tireless advocate for fair treatment both to baseball players and to all Americas.
Hank, that is why we're here today -- not only to honor your records, but to recognize
who you are as a person -- your steady voice for equality, integrity and change -- and the
standard you continue to set for all of us out here in the stands. Thank you for all you have given
to your team, your community and your country.
2
Draft 2/4/99 7pm
Josh Gottheimer
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
ATLANTA, GA
February 5, 1999
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec.
Herman; Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Mfume; Bob
Costas (MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball); Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted
Turner; Jane Fonda; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Ernie
Banks; Sammy Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr; Reggie Jackson; Dave Winfield
It is a privilege to be with you this evening to celebrate Hank Aaron's 65th Birthday --
and to launch Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic moments in
sports history -- Hammerin' Hank Aaron's 715th homerun.
America's favorite pastime was built on legendary feats -- Ty Cobb's 4,189 hits; Cal
Ripkins' 2,632 consecutive games, and, just this year, Mark McGwire's 70 homeruns and
Sammy Sosa's 66th.
But who could forget that historic night on April 8, 1974 before a sold-out crowd at
Atlanta's Fulton County stadium, when Hank Aaron launched number 715 -- and smashed Babe
Ruth's 38-year-old record.
That night might have marked Hank Aaron's crowning achievement. But it was only one
feat in a career full of accomplishment. Hank continues to hold more Major League batting
records than any other player in history -- from 2,297 RBIs to 3,771 career hits to 755 career
home runs.
But perhaps the most impressive thing about Hank Aaron is not what he did in the
majors. It was the way he got there. Hank's mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to
Major League home-run king represents American greatness in the face of adversity. He was
determined to reach the Majors. Nothing was going to hold him back. Not an opposing pitcher,
not an outfield full of all-stars, and -- least of all -- not the prejudice that prevailed during his
earliest days at bat.
Hank Aaron was the first African-American to play in the South Atlantic League -- the
Saly League -- deep in the heart of the segregated South. Although Jackie Robinson had broken
the color barrier into the Majors less than a decade before, there were still only a few blacks in
baseball. But, in 1954, Hank Aaron's dedication and skill catapulted him into the professional
ranks -- the same year the Supreme Court struck down the practice of separate but equal in
Brown V. Board of Education. Hank spent his first 12 years in Milwaukee, and helped lead the
Draft 2/4/99 7pm
Josh Gottheimer
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
ATLANTA, GA
February 5, 1999
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec.
Herman; Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Mfume; Bob
Costas (MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball); Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted
Turner; Jane Fonda; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Ernie
Banks; Sammy Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr; Reggie Jackson; Dave Winfield
It is a privilege to be with you this evening to celebrate Hank Aaron's 65th Birthday --
and to launch Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic moments in
sports history -- Hammerin' Hank Aaron's 715th homerun.
America's favorite pastime was built on legendary feats -- Ty Cobb's 4,189 hits; Cal
Ripkins' 2,632 consecutive games, and, just this year, Mark McGwire's 70 homeruns and
Sammy Sosa's 66th.
But who could forget that historic night on April 8, 1974 before a sold-out crowd at
Atlanta's Fulton County stadium, when Hank Aaron launched number 715 -- and smashed Babe
Ruth's 38-year-old record.
That night might have marked Hank Aaron's crowning achievement. But it was only one
feat in a career full of accomplishment. Hank continues to hold more Major League batting
records than any other player in history -- from 2,297 RBIs to 3,771 career hits to 755 career
home runs.
But perhaps the most impressive thing about Hank Aaron is not what he did in the
majors. It was the way he got there. Hank's mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to
Major League home-run king represents American greatness in the face of adversity. He was
determined to reach the Majors. Nothing was going to hold him back. Not an opposing pitcher,
not an outfield full of all-stars, and -- least of all -- not the prejudice that prevailed during his
earliest days at bat.
Hank Aaron was the first African-American to play in the South Atlantic League -- the
Saly League -- deep in the heart of the segregated South. Although Jackie Robinson had broken
the color barrier into the Majors less than a decade before, there were still only a few blacks in
baseball. But, in 1954, Hank Aaron's dedication and skill catapulted him into the professional
ranks -- the same year the Supreme Court struck down the practice of separate but equal in
Brown V. Board of Education. Hank spent his first 12 years in Milwaukee, and helped lead the
Braves to two pennants, before the franchise relocated to Atlanta for the '66 season.
He made it all look so easy on the field. So effortless. But few of us knew the challenges
Hank Aaron faced off the diamond. Throughout his career, Hank was often forced to drink from
"colored only" water fountains; sleep in hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated
restaurants. And even as he neared Ruth's record, Hank Aaron received thousands upon
thousands of death threats. But as Hank himself said, "I had a job to do, and I stuck with the
plan. I was not going to be distracted from my goal."
Your career didn't end when you hung up your jersey in 1976. You're still breaking
barriers even today. Since then, as an executive and with your Chasing the Dream Foundation,
you've been a tireless advocate for fair treatment both to baseball players and to all Americas.
Hank, that is why we're here today -- not only to honor your records, but to recognize
who you are as a person -- your steady voice for equality, integrity and change -- and the
standard you continue to set for all of us out here in the stands. Thank you for all you have given
to your team, your community and your country.
2
Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream Aaron Interview
http://tbssuperstation.com/hankaaron/Aaron7.htm.
Aaron's work with the Braves really began to pay off in 1990, when one of his prospects, David Justice,
was named Rookie of the Year, and the farm system pitching was considered some of the best in
baseball. The following year, that phenomenal pitching and several other key players took the Braves to
the World Series for the first time since 1958, and although they lost to the Minnesota Twins, the 1991
World Series is considered by many baseball fans to be the best ever played.
TMAT AARON
Today, Aaron divides his time among many jobs. For Turner Broadcasting, he serves
as corporate vice president of community relations and as a member of the TBS Board
of Directors. He also serves as vice president of business development for The Airport
Network, which provides customized news and information programming at airports
around the United States. And he continues to serve as senior vice president and
assistant to the president for the Atlanta Braves.
Aaron also spends a great deal of time working with young baseball hopefuls from underprivileged
Atlanta communities. The Hank Aaron Rookie League, coordinated with the Atlanta Housing Authority,
has gotten many youngsters off the street and on the playing field. He has also worked extensively with
the Big Brothers and Big Sisters organizations. "Many young people are frustrated when they can't be
successful in sports. How many times have you seen some of our gifted young athletes go and play for
two or three years and then get into drugs or something? I'm really proud that I've been able to go
beyond just being a baseball player and help young people. It gives me a chance to broaden my scope
and let people know that I am concerned about the next generation."
But Aaron, in his ever-humble way, insists on not classifying himself as a role model simply because of
his athletic abilities. "Role models are something you have to be careful about. Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. is a role model; Abraham Lincoln is a role model. A teacher can be a role model. My mother is a role
model to my seven brothers and sisters. I played baseball. I just happened to have a gift that I was
blessed with. But Henry Aaron the baseball player is not necessarily a role model."
In 1993, as the 20th anniversary of Aaron's 715th home run approached, writer-producer-director Mike
Tollin of Tollin/Robbins Productions began developing an idea to bring the Aaron story to the screen in
a documentary told through Aaron's own words. Tollin took the idea first to Mundy Lane Entertainment,
Oscar®-winning actor Denzel Washington's production company headed up by producer Debra Martin
Chase.
Washington said he would only go forward on the project if he had a chance to sit down and talk with
Aaron face-to-face. The two had met some years earlier during an awards ceremony at Morehouse
College.
After Washington's meeting with Aaron, HANK AARON: CHASING THE DREAM was given the
green light. TBS Productions joined the project in early 1994, as did Television Production Partners,
who helped secure a number of sponsorship deals-including AT&T, Campbell's, Clorox, MacDonald's
and General Motors--to make the project a success.
"HANK AARON: CHASING THE DREAM really sets the record straight on who Henry Aaron is,
where he came from, what kind of person he is, what trials and tribulations he had to go through," Aaron
says. "I think this is a tremendous documentary for people to see and really get to know who I am and
what I stand for."
(Biography
I
A Candid Talk with Hank
I
Cool Links
I
Hank
&
Denzel
I
Hank
Aaron
and
the
Philly
Filmmaker
Multimedia Gallery
Oscar® Nomination
Production Bios
Production Credits
Quotations
Synopsis
Timeline
Trivia
3 of 4
1/29/99 2:24 PM
POTUS - offers prayer or Rep. Hall does it
0:35- 10:45 Briefing
All CLOSED PRESS
World Leaders - List
Maureen Shea
Acknowledgements-
Draft 2/4/99 7pm
Josh Gottheimer
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
ATLANTA, GA
February 5, 1999
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec.
Herman; Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Mfume; Bob
Costas (MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball); Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted
Turner; Jane Fonda; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Ernie
Banks; Sammy Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr; Reggie Jackson; Dave Winfield
It is a privilege to be with you this evening to celebrate Hank Aaron's 65th Birthday --
and to launch Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic moments in
sports history -- Hammerin' Hank Aaron's 715th homerun.
America's favorite pastime was built on legendary feats -- Ty Cobb's 4,189 hits; Cal
Ripkins' 2.632 consecutive games, and, just this year, Mark McGwire's 70 homeruns and
Sammy Sosa's 66th.
But who could forget that historic night on April 8, 1974 before a sold-out crowd at
Atlanta's Fulton County stadium, when Hank Aaron launched number 715 -- and smashed Babe
Ruth's 38-year-old record.
That night might have marked Hank Aaron's crowning achievement. But it was only one
feat in a career full of accomplishment. Hank continues to hold more Major League batting
records than any other player in history -- from 2,297 RBIs to 3,771 career hits to 755 career
home runs.
But perhaps the most impressive thing about Hank Aaron is not what he did in the
majors. It was the way he got there. Hank's mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to
Major League home-run king represents American greatness in the face of adversity. He was
determined to reach the Majors. Nothing was going to hold him back. Not an opposing pitcher,
not an outfield full of all-stars, and -- least of all -- not the prejudice that prevailed during his
earliest days at bat.
Hank Aaron was the first African-American to play in the South Atlantic League -- the
Saly League -- deep in the heart of the segregated South. Although Jackie Robinson had broken
the color barrier into the Majors less than a decade before, there were still only a few blacks in
baseball. But, in 1954, Hank Aaron's dedication and skill catapulted him into the professional
ranks -- the same year the Supreme Court struck down the practice of separate but equal in
Brown V. Board of Education. Hank spent his first 12 years in Milwaukee, and helped lead the
Braves to two pennants, before the franchise relocated to Atlanta for the '66 season.
He made it all look so easy on the field. So effortless. But few of us knew the challenges
Hank Aaron faced off the diamond. Throughout his career, Hank was often forced to drink from
"colored only" water fountains; sleep in hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated
restaurants. And even as he neared Ruth's record, Hank Aaron received thousands upon
thousands of death threats. But as Hank himself said, "I had a job to do, and I stuck with the
plan. I was not going to be distracted from my goal."
Your career didn't end when you hung up your jersey in 1976. You're still breaking
barriers even today. Since then, as an executive and with your Chasing the Dream Foundation,
you've been a tireless advocate for fair treatment both to baseball players and to all Americas.
Hank, that is why we're here today -- not only to honor your records, but to recognize
who you are as a person -- your steady voice for equality, integrity and change -- and the
standard you continue to set for all of us out here in the stands. Thank you for all you have given
to your team, your community and your country.
2
FEB-04-1999
17:54
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.03
BALL
continued from Page 1A
wrote in "God's Country and Mine" in
1954.
At 88, even this man's faith in base
bull has been shaken by recent events.
So shaken that the native Frenchman
has come to question his own words.
"My original remark refers hack to
an ideal that's been pretty tarnished."
Barzun told The Sun. "Like many oth-
ers, 1 am very much
dis-
Illusioned. The gaine has really lost ils
original charin.
"We are reading more about busi-
ness than about games. It's hard to say
who is more responsible but it seems to
be the general attitude, part of the
whole culture that's sunk to greed, dis-
honesty and corruption."
Barzun seldom takes in a major
league game anymore and only occa-
sionally catches one on television in his
Fifth Avenue apartment In Manhattan.
He is not alone. Fans are staying
away from big league parks in growing
numbers.
"Everyone's disgusted with it," says
longtime Macon sportswriter Harley
Bowers.
Perhaps Barzun's words are more
important today than when first
penned.
In Columbus, Macon, Augusta and
Savannah, just maybe the players play
as much for their hearts as their wal-
lets and "owners" field a team on a
dream and a promise from one year to
the next, They all play host to Class A
teains in the South Atlantic League.
In Columbus, one might stroll the
River Walk along the Chattahoochee
before walking the few blocks to 100
Fourth Street and Golden Park to
watch a Redstixx game. One might
even decide to watch the game from
the hot tub, where a rental fee of $100
includes eight tickets and M bottle of
champagne.
Then there's 11 kid named Andruw
(not Andrew) Jones from Curacao,
Netherland Antilles, who has wowed
crowds in Macon with a rocket arm
and 50 runs batted in In 50 games.
Macon also is where sportswriter
Bowers has toiled since the 1950s and
takes full credit for getting professional
baseball back in Macon four years ago.
"The mayor left it all up to me," Bow.
ers sald.
Luther Williams Field in Macon is
the second-oldest minor league
ballpark (Greensboro, N.C., is oldest)
so ithas to have a team. Judge Kenne-
saw Mountain Landis, who as a hard-
nosed commissioner of baseball for
almost four decades, Is credited with
restoring the game's integrity after the
Black Sox Scandal, threw out the first
ball when that park opened in 1929.
In Augusta, for some strange reason,
the Greenjackets are named after the
most prestiglous prize in golf - victory
at the Masters tournament. No matter,
attendance is up 50 percent, partly be-
cause of the major league strike and
partly because there's a new stadium.
Down State Road 25 there's a group
of oldtimers, ranging in age from 70 to
90, who have been attending Savannah
Cardinals games at Grayson Stadium
(buill in 1941) for as long as they can
remember. They have a general man-
ager there named Rick Sisler, who
comes from a long line or baseball
Sislers. And a top relief pitcher named
Frank Garcia who doesn't say much,
just "smiles a lot." according to team
spokesman Mitch Mann.
Maybe these are among those small
towns alluded to by Barzun where
baseball continues to be the way he
remembers it, the way It was taught to
him by his fellow students at Columbia.
The way he remembers It when he be-
came a U.S. citizen In 1933.
As Bowers said, "They don't catch
every ground ball and strike every-
body out."
Sounds like fun and games.
FEB-04-1999 17:54
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.04
FARM TEAM HAS INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
Future Braves nurtured in Macon
Sun staff writer Jud Magrin is visiting small
Braves and, for the time being, Ed and Mary
cities in Georgia that are home to minor
Holtz.
league baseball teams. This is the third in a
Ed and Mary have been kicking around
series of reports from Macon, Columbus, Su-
minor league baseball for 32 years, their
vannah and Augusta.
latest stop as general managers of the Macon
By JUD MAGRIN
Braves, the team in the South Atlantic League
owned by the parent Atlanta ball club.
Sun staff writer
"This is the classification (Class A) 1 like,"
M
ACON. Ga. - College Hill, the heart of
Ed Holtz said. "I'm so disgusted with
the Intown Historic District, rises
multiyear contracts."
gracefully out of the Ocmulgee River
The Holtzes have raised five children in
A League
Valley in this town where music once ruled.
minor lengue parks. They started in 1965 in
Starting from the 1840 Victorian cottage
Appleton, Wis., In the Midwest League. They
of Our Own
where poet and lawyer Sidney Lanter was
were in Sumter, S.C., until the Braves moved
born, it's about two miles down Cherry Street,
that club to Macon in 1991. Once their chil-
by old Terminal Station and across the Otis
dren were old enough. the family ran the
Redding Memorial Bridge to picturesque Lu-
entire operation.
ther Williams Field. It is home to the Macon
See BASEBALL on Page GA
The Gainesville Sun, Thursday, June 15, 1995
6A
Jones, who, like teammate Sherton
see him run a football," Holtz chuckled.
BASEBALL
Baseball: A road trip
Rubenxy Saturnino, is from Curacao.
On this night (the Braves lost 10-6 in
He was discovered when he was a 14-
l5 innings), Lombard had a roller-
coaster performance. He hit a long
Macon, Ga., at a glance
year-old playing in Puerto Rico and
continued from Page 1A
Macon,
was grabbed by the Braves out of T.C.
home run, but he also dropped a foul
Population: 120,000.
"It's an entirely different ball game
251 miles
SL Paulus Collegia High School. Jones
pop that would have ended the game
than working for a local owner," Holtz
from Gainesville
speaks English, Dutch, Spanish and a
for a Macon victory - all as his father
Minor league team: The Macon Braves, owned by the
said as the Braves went to work Tues.
local dialect of three Caribbean
looked on.
day night against the Albany Polecats.
islands.
The Macon Braves are a team of
parent Atlanta Braves. Experts peg them as one of the most
"We just send the bills to Atlanta and
Atlania
"They don't want to take me any
incredible young talent. Experts say as
talent-rich.and diverse teams in minor league ball. Telephone:
20
more in high school," Jones said in the
many as eight of these guys have a
(912) 745-8943. League: South Atlantic League. Baseball Park:
they pay them," Holtz said. It also
Macon dugout prior to Tuesday's
legitimate shot at the major leagues. It
Luther Williams Field, the second oldest park in minor league
means, he said, that the local club has
to take a lot of corporate guff with it.
85
16
game. "T'm only back there about a
is the job of former major league
baseball, built in 1929. It is in the National Historical Register.
"Either way," he says, "it's a continu-
month and return to West Palm Beach
shortstop Nelson Norman to develop
ous cycle. The name of the game is
for the Instructional League."
them.
Major attractions: The soon-lo-be completed Georgia
It's Jones' second professional
Norman, a native of the now-farnous
Music Hall of Fame with an impressive list of inductees set for
sell."
season.
San Pedro de Macoris in the Domini-
Luther Williams Stadium has held up
95
September. And be sure to stop and see Kitty Oliver, executive
75
well and just got a $400,000 face lift
In all, the Macon Braves have play-
can Republic, said. "I have to do a lot of
director of the Middle Georgia Historical Society housed in
following the 1994 flood that put it three
GEORGIA
ers from four foreign countries and 11
babysitting."
Sidney Lanier's birthplace on High Street. The society has
feet under water. It's a simple park
N
states.
San Pedro de Macoris produces
And George Lombard, the high
shortstops, lots of major league short-
done an outstanding job of preserving old homes.
(the kind being copied throughout the
JONI SCHMIDT/The Gainesville Sun
major and minor leagues) where one
school star out of Atlanta, must be
stops. "All the kids concentrate on
mentioned. He chose to sign a $400,000
playing short," the 38-year-old Norman
can enjoy good baseball and a pitcher
sional baseball, particularly in the
of beer from the Suds Shack off the left-
South Atlantic League.
bonus with Atlanta instead of attending
said. "When the scouts are down there,
season, he managed the equivalent of a
bridge named for him), Lena Horne
Just last week 17-year-old Australian
the University of Georgia, where foot-
they say, 'I need an infielder. Let's go to
Triple A team in the Dominican Re-
and Cab Calloway.
field foul line.
The stadium is plopped down along
shortstop Glenn Williams was shipped
ball coach Ray Goff hoped to revive
San Pedro.''
public that has seven American
Just B couple of blocks from High
off to the Eugene (Ore.) Emeralds, B
the Bulldogs with him.
Norman is the father of 12-year-old
players.
Street and Sidney Lanier's birthplace is
the still-busy railroad tracks in Central
short-season Class A Braves club. The
Gator fans can breathe a sigh of
twins and an 8-year-old boy. He former-
"I just do this day by day. The
the Pleasant Hill section of Macon. It is
City Park where people also play soft-
Atlanta Braves gave him an $800,000
relief.
ly managed for the Montreal Expos
advantage is I'll always have a job," he
where "Little Richard" Penniman
ball, sell cattle at the large Livestock
Arena and attend the Georgia State
bonus, but he wasn't quite ready for the
Lombard can go from first to third
team in West Palm Beach but switched
said.
grew up and was home to some of
to the Braves because "I got a promo-
Long before the Class A Braves,
Macon's most influential black leaders.
Fair.
SAL competition. "He has all the tools,
before you can pop a peanut in your
but has to build up some confidence,"
mouth and he's built like the brick
tion and a raise." But Norman harbors
though, there were people like Otis
Just downtown on Cotton Avenue
Until recently the Macon Braves had
Holtz said.
facade at Luther Williams
no illusions about making it to the
Redding Little Richard and Ronnie
there remains a sign on a building for
an international flavor the likes of
which aren't normally seen in profes-
There's 18-year-old Andruw Rudolph
"It would have been something to
major leagues as a manager. In the off-
Milsap who put this city on the map. It
Capricorn Records, formerly owned by
is for this rich musical history that
Bill Walden.
Macon and the state are building the
It was Walden who signed the
Georgia Music Hall of Fame just up
Allman Brothers band and sent them
Martin Luther King Boulevard from
on their way to stardom along with
the Otis Redding Bridge.
other local calent The Allmans used to
Redding died in a 1967 plane crash.
hang out on a ranch near here.
He and other musical legends per-
Historian Kitty Oliver says the com-
formed at the old E. Douglas Theatre
pany is defunct now and Walden has
at Broadway and King Boulevard that
gone to Nashville.
is now being restored after some 60
The Macon music industry has tad-
years as host to famous black perform-
ed. But the songs of the hometown
ers, including Gladys Knight, Count
stars can still be heard during Macon
Basie, James Brown (who also has a
Braves home games.
FARM TEAM CLAIMS DEVOTED FANS
Big-time dream
Baseball: A road trip
Columbus,
lands tycoon
272 miles
from Gainesville
20
in bush league
85
16
Sun staff writer Jud Magrin is visiting
several small cities in Georgia that are
75
95
home to minor league baseball teams. He
GEORGIA
is writing from Columbus, Macon, Sa-
N
vannah and Augusta, where baseball
JONI SCHMIDT/The Gainesville Sun
flourishes.
By JUD MAGRIN
Sun staff writer
OLUMBUS, Ga: - As a full moon rose over the right-field fence at
League
C
Golden Park on Monday, Charlie Morrow sipped a gin and tonic and
pondered how a year ago the family business called Fannie May
Candles had been sold. "Financially. I could do anything I wanted,'
of Our Own
Morrow said.
What the 40-year old millionaire wanted was to own a golf course or a
professional baseball team. "Golf is a little poring as far as the marketing
goes, Morrow said So the former Chicagoan and his wife, Martha, started
scouting the South. On opening day 1994, Morrow closed a $2 million deal to
purchase the Columbus RedStixx, a struggling Class A team in the South
Atiantic - or Sally - League
See DREAM on Page 3A
FILE- LEAGUES : SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE
FEB-04-1999 17:56
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.07
The Gainesville Sun, Wednesday, June 14, 1995
DREAM
RedStixx tidbits
continued from Page IA
"Everyone thinks I am living my
The RedStixx aren't the major
ing Fort Benning and Phenix City,
dream That may be," Morrow said,
leagues, but they managed to
Ala across the Chattahoochee. Mi-
"but it's hard work."
attract time attention, The Ex-
nor League team: The Columbus
Morrow has sunk another $1 million
xon Corp. wants the team to cease
RedStixx, B Class A affiliate of the
into Golden Park. That, combined with
using the interlocking Xs in its.
American League's Cleveland Indi-
about $4 million from taxpayers, gave
nickname Attorneys are working
ans Telephone: 1-706-571-8886.
the park a new facade, skyboxes and
on
B resolution
The
RedStixx
League: The South Atlantic League
clubhouses for the players. Morrow
name is taken from the Muscogee
Baseball park: Golden Park on Vic-
took his own money and added a two
Indian people, who roamed the
lory Drive. One of the deepest cen-
story building along the right-field line
Chaftahoochee River Valley
No
terfields in minor league ball at 415
that houses his and other offices as well
foul language in the stands or you
feet Newly renovated at a cost of $5
as a hot tub and bar on the second
put out of the ballpark
Golden
million, complete with hot tub and
floor.
Park was built in 1951 and the first
bar along the right-field line. Seat-
Golden Park is just yards from the
home run was hit by the later St
ing capacity, 5,000. Major attrac
Chattaboochee River and will soon
Louis Cardinal star Red
tions The Riverwalk on which
take its rightful place as part of the
Schoendlenst
The crepe myr-
construction began In 1992 and con
impressive Riverwalk that starts at
tles are in full bloom along the
Inues Several museums including
Bay Avenue and 10th Street in down-
median of Rt 280 called Victory
the old Columbus Iron Works and
own Columbus near where a slave
Drive locally
several textile mills remain along
named Horace King built the first
COLUMBUS, GA
the walk The Springer Opera
oridge across the river to what is now
Population About 250,000 Includ
House was established in 1871
Phenix City, Ala. King was emancipat-
ed and became a member of the Ala-
ama Legislature in 1868 and was one
of the state's most accomplished
said
with the game, Richardson laments
builders
that It has become "too much
The Riverwalk, begun in 1992, fronts
business."
the several textile mills and old Colum-
John and Jeannette Elben have lived
"We used to have a lot of fun," he
JUS Iron Works, which serves now as a
in Columbus for 23 years and have yet
said. "Nobody has any fun any more."
convention center. Eventually it'll
to attend an Atlanta Braves game.
Richardson recalled when Golden
tretch some nine miles all the way to
They have been season-ticket holders
Park was all wood and fans would dis-
Fort Benning.
at Golden Park since 1986 when the
card cigarettes between the wooden
Just a long, long home run over the
club was affiliated with the Houston
floor slats and start fires.
ight-field fence at Golden Park, the
Astros. The RedStixx are now a farm
While Richardson recalled the old
ity is building a new civic auditorium.
club of the Cleveland Indians.
days, a young kid came up to the plate
Morrow sees more opportunity. He's
The Elbens, retired from their mill-
and rocked a double down the left-field
going to bring in a minor league hock-
tary jobs. like the ncw ballpark here
line. No. 28 had already tripled to
y team Next door to that Is the foot-
and once were members of a booster
straight-away center in his first at bat,
all stadium and a brand-new softball
club. The members served as adoptive
more than 410 feet away.
complex that the city built.
parents for players.
The kid's batting only .260, but he's
It's all part of a grand plan. Colum-
"I don't watch baseball on television
been hot "I'm seeing the ball a lot bet-
us will play host to the Olympic soft-
anymore," Mrs Elben sald In fact, the
ter and I'm more relaxed," he sald.
all competition next summer and,
Elbens have little use for major league
Early in the season a freak accident
rior to that, the NCAA women's soft-
baseball "This is much, much better,"
busted his nose, A pitched ball hit the
all tournament
she said, as a local resident sang the
corner of home plate and jumped up
At best, Morrow has mixed feelings.
national anthem and peewee
Into his face.
That's because Golden Park playing
ballplayers got to stand on the field
This kid was on Cloud 9 this particu-
eld will be razed and changed to ac-
next to their favorite players.
lar Monday, even If only 1,700 people
ommodate softball and 8,500 people.
For a maximum of $6 a seat, you can
were in the park.
he RedStixx will be out of a home for
sit close enough to hear the pop of the
His name is Chan Perry, and he's a
he entire 1996 season. He stands to
catcher's mitt and see the faces of the
former University of Florida standout
se his season-ticket base and
young hopefuls. And when you call out
Just hours earlier he'd been told his
dvertisers.
their names, they'll even crack you a
brother, Herb, had been called up from
The RedStixx may play at Columbus
smile,
the Class AAA club in Buffalo to the
follege or even at the town of
Seated In one of those $6 chairs, not
Cleveland Indians to replace aging su-
ouglasville.
far from the Elbens, was Spec Richard-
perstar Dave Winfield, who had gone
"It's not a good deal, but in the spirit
son, the former general manager for
on the disabled list.
1 everything. I'm going on," said Mor-
the San Francisco Giants and Houston
Generally, Perry likes his Class A gig.
)W. "Maybe I can get most of It back
Astros Richardson, a Columbus resi-
but some of the ballparks are "subpar."
1997."
dent, helps Morrow out and at times
he said. He likes Columbus. It reminds
Such is life in the minor leagues,
goes on assignment for the commis-
him of his Lafayette County home.
lorrow reasoned.
sioner of major league baseball: De-
"I like it a lot. The people are down
"I want it to be a success story," be
spite a long and infimate relationship
to earth just like in Mayo."
Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream Aaron Interview
http://TBSsuperstation.com/hankaaron/Aaron7.html
League baseball, giving me the opportunity to play.' And I was not going to let any kind of letters or
threats or anything distract me from the job I had to do."
Aaron had risen fast in the ranks of the Braves organization, following Robinson's lead by breaking the
color barrier in the Sally League, the deep-South league for which he played with the Braves'
Jacksonville team. Aaron moved to Milwaukee after one year in Jacksonville, making the Major League
roster after teammate Bobby Thomson broke his ankle.
All the while, Aaron and the Braves played both great and not-so-great baseball. They made it to two
World Series, winning in 1957, and suffered through hard times when it seemed they just couldn't make
it back to championship status.
Aaron did not hate the thought of moving to Atlanta with the Braves in 1966, as has often been reported
(though he did hate seeing Milwaukee lose its team). He had begun with the Braves playing for the Eau
Claire, Wisc., farm club, and he loved the people of Wisconsin.
Coming to Atlanta was a big change for Aaron and the Braves. The sold-out crowds they had become
used to in Milwaukee, even during losing seasons, were nowhere to be seen. And it wasn't until 1969
that the Braves got back in the running, winning the National League West, but losing the Championship
Series in three straight to the "Miracle Mets."
The next four seasons were dominated by something more personal and more individual, however. "The
thing I like about baseball is that it's one-on-one," Aaron says. "You stand up there alone, and if you
make a mistake, it's your mistake. If you hit a home run, it's your home run." And that's what Aaron did.
Steadily, he began chipping away at Babe Ruth's home run record, and by the end of the 1973 season, he
was just one run away from tying Ruth.
He hit number 714 during his first at-bat of the 1974 season, tying Ruth and setting the stage for a
historic moment.
Then on April 8, 1974, before a sold-out
crowd at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium,
Aaron hit home run number 715 off of Los
Angeles Dodgers pitcher Al Downing. To
everyone's relief, there were no shots fired
from the stands, no mobs out to kill Aaron
for besting Ruth--just cheers and adulation,
and a pair of hippie kids who ran out onto the
field to join Aaron in his home run trot. For a
moment, it seemed that Major League
Baseball had finally completed the long road
to total integration begun when Jackie
Robinson first played with the Brooklyn
Dodgers in 1947.
When he retired from the baseball field in 1976, after 23 years playing in the Major Leagues, Aaron
found that baseball still had a long way to go. The field was integrated all right, but the front office was
not. At the time of his retirement, there was only one black manager of a Major League team (Frank
Robinson of the Cleveland Indians), and once Aaron signed on with the Braves to help develop their
farm system, there were only two black executives, both in Atlanta (Aaron and Bill Lucas, the Braves'
personnel manager).
"I don't think that baseball has done enough for minorities," Aaron contends. "I speak out and talk about
it simply because it's wrong. It's wrong for baseball to take black baseball players, put them on the field
and after 10 years or so, say, 'See you later.' But they don't treat the white players like that. They give
them opportunities that allow them to continue to grow in the game. It happens all the time, and it would
be wrong for me to sit back and not voice my opinion about it."
2 of 4
2/3/99 7:03 PM
HOME 429
actually outdo the game's most revered star was more than some could bear. Aaron
received warnings he would be killed. His children, away at college, were threat-
ened with kidnapping. Guards had to escort him in and out of ballparks. He was del-
uged with racist mail:
THE MODERN ERA
Dear Nigger: You black animal, I hope you never live long enough to hit
more home runs than the great Babe Ruth.
Dear Hank Aaron: I hope you get it between the eyes.
Dear Brother Hank Aaron: I hope you join Brother Dr. Martin Luther King
in that Heaven he spoke of.
Dear Nigger Henry: It has come to my attention that you are going to break
Babe Ruth's record.
I will be going to the rest of your games and if you
hit one more home run it will be your last. My gun will be watching your
every black move.
Hank Aaron,
With all that fortune,
and all that fame,
You're a stinkin nigger, just the same.
Aaron kept right on hitting home runs, and he kept the threats to himself. Paul
Casanova recalled his private distress:
ik Aaron
He almost never mentioned Babe Ruth
One time he said to me, "Cassy,
I'm not trying to break any record of Babe Ruth. I'm just trying to make one
of my own." It was terrible the way people hated him for trying to break the
record. The whole thing must have been eating him up. One day in
Philadelphia we walked across the street from the hotel to eat breakfast and
that was the first time he told me about the letters he had been getting. 1
couldn't believe what be was telling me. I said, "What?" He said, "Cassy,
these people are crazy. I don't know what's going on, I really don't." But he
was worried. As hard as he was to read, you could tell he was worried.
Word of the hate mail Aaron was getting eventually got out, and he began to be
flooded by letters of support:
Dear Mr. Aaron: I am twelve years old, and I wanted to tell you that I have
read many articles about the prejudice against you. 1 really think it's bad. I
don't care what color you are
It's just some people can't stand to see
someone a bit different from them ruining something someone else more like
them set.
What do these fans want you to do? Just quit hitting?
Aaron had never felt especially close to the Atlanta fans before whom he'd played
so long. His unshakable stoicism-his teammates said they only thought they'd seen
him start to smile as he rounded the bases after his 700th home run-had some-
thing to do with that. So, one black teammate believed, did his refusal to remain
silent about racial matters off the field: "You've got to realize
that in Atlanta a
lot of our crowds came from small towns around the South. Those people were
accustomed to blacks behaving a certain way, and that wasn't Henry. Henry did
not shuffle."
428 BASEBALL
In the autobiography he completed shortly before his death, Robinson recalled
playing in his first World Series game:
There I was the black grandson of a slave, the son of a black sharecropper,
part of a historic occasion, a symbolic hero to my people
[but] I must tell
The pitcher has got only a
you that it was Mr. Rickey's drama, and that I was only a principal actor. As
I write this, twenty years later, and sing the anthem, I cannot salute the flag;
ball I've got abat So the
I know that I am a black man in a white world. In 1972, in 1947, at my
percentage in weapons is in
birth in 1919, I know that I never had it made.
my favor and I let the fellow
with the ball do the fretting.
It would take three more years for Frank Robinson to be named manager of the
Cleveland Indians, and nine more before the San Francisco Giants hired him as their
Hank Aaron
manager, making him the first African American to manage in the National League
as well.
For twenty years, right fielder Henry Aaron had been the quietest of superstars, self-
assured, utterly reliable in the field and at bat, but intensely private, and celebrated
among his fellow players both for his all-round skill and for the implacable calm he
displayed in the face of every sort of provocation. Once, early in his career, Los
Angeles pitcher Stan Williams hit Aaron in the head so hard and so gratuitously that
Williams's own teammate, Gil Hodges, playing first basè, urged Aaron to "go get
him." "My mama didn't raise no fools," Aaron answered, and got his revenge the
next time up by hitting a Williams pitch out of the park.
Born in Mobile, Alabama, Aaron was seasoned in the Negro Leagues, helped in-
tegrate the Sally League in the South, then joined the Braves. He would play for
them, first in Milwaukee and then Atlanta, in all but two of his twenty-three major
league seasons. He was steady and solid, and before he was through he would build
an amazing record of achievement: lifetime records in runs batted in (2,297) and
total bases (6,856; 722 more than his nearest competitor, Stan Musial); two bat-
ting titles; four RBI crowns; 14 World Series games and 24 All-Star games without
a single error.
His relentless hitting was the despair of the pitchers. Once, the Dodger pitching
staff was going over the whole National League, discussing just how they would han-
dle each hitter. When they reached Hank Aaron's name, there was a long silence.
"Make sure," someone finally said, "there's no one on when he hits it out."
For the most part, Aaron did it all while attracting less attention than many of
his less skilled but more showy contemporaries. The Cuban-born catcher, Paul
Casanova, was one of his few confidants:
Hank kept almost everything to himself You couldn't read him, because he
wouldn't let anything show. It was the same as when he was batting. If he hit
a home run or struck out, there was no difference. If he was in a slump you
knew it had to be killing him, but be would just walk out to the dugout and
sit down, or maybe go in the tunnel and have cigarette and think about
what he had to do the next time. That was part of his strategy.
But as the 1973 season drew to a close, Aaron gradually became the focus of even
more unwelcome attention than Roger Maris had endured twelve years earlier: Babe
Ruth's lifetime record of 714 home runs was within Aaron's reach.
Maris's challenge to Ruth's record had been an affront to some of the Babe's old
fans, but at least he had been white. The notion that an African American might
MAWALDMAN @ aol.com
02/04/99 11:47:00 PM
$10
Record Type:
Record
To:
Joshua S. Gottheimer, Michael Waldman
CC:
Subject: proposed structure for aaron
Isn't there a quote re: baseball (from Ken Burns book?) about if you want to
know about America, look at baseball.
We honor him because his ## homeruns are the highest mountaintop in the game,
a record that may never be broken voted the most notable moment in
baseball history by sportswriters when he was inducted into hall of fame
but we honor him as well not only because of the power of his swing but the
power of his character - not only the
Last player to move from negro leagues to majors
On XX date, Hank Aaron began to play in majors. It takes nothign away from
Jackie Robinson when i note that he was sent to Montreal to prepare. Hank
aaron played his way through the deep south - at the height of the struggle
over integration.
When he travelled with his team, they slept in one motel - he slept in
another. They drank at one bar - he drank in another. [true?]
Story statistics
Sheer courage and concentration in the face of remarkable pressure. 900,000
letters, many angry, one on toilet paper
quote from him
ulca wase my prease Said to whin's
Nejo an leye
broker up 1948
vides
not proby. scouts say?
???
after Robinson,
campanella,
fation
ouby, t Paije
actim
Life
had integated be
majors
( Robinan
Dodps to 47)
FEB-04-1999 17:53
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.01
NATIONAL
NATIONAL BASEBALL HALL OF FAME
BASEBALL
AND MUSEUM, INC.
HALL OF FAME
Fax Cover Sheet
To:
Melissa
Company:
White House - speechwriting
Fax:
(202)456-2505
From:
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc.
P.O. Box 590
Cooperstown, New York 13326
direct: (607) 547-0330 fax: (607) 547-4094
Date:
2/4/99
Pages:
Notes:
FEB-04-1999 17:54
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.02
SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE
LEAGUE OFFICE
president/secretery-treasurer
Teams (affiliation)
Fayettaville Crocks (Expos)
John Moss
Asheville Tourists (Rockies)
Greensboro Bats (Yankees)
Address
Augusta Greenjackets (Pirates)
Hagerstown Suns (Blue Jays)
P.O. Box 38
Capital City Bombers (Mets)
Hickory Crawdads (White Sox)
Kings Mountain, NC 28086
Charleston (S.C.) Riverdogs (Devil Rays)
Macon Braves (Braves)
Charleston (W.Va.) Alley Cats (Reds)
Piedmont Bollweevills (Phillies)
Phone
Columbus Redstbox (Indians)
Savannah Sand Gnats (Dodgers)
704-739-3466
Delmarva Sharebirds (Grioles)
1996 FINAL STANDINGS
FIRST HALF
NORTHERN DIVISION
CENTRAL DIVISION
Taem
W
L
T
Pct.
QB
Team
W
L
T
Pet.
GB
Delmarva (Expos)
47
23
0
671
....
Asheville (Rockles)
47
20
0
701
Fayertoville (Tigers)
35
33
a
515
11
Columbia (Mets)
37
30
0
522
10
Hagerstown (Blue Jays)
33
35
o
478
13½
Pledmont (Pnillies)
38
31
o
.551
10
Charleston (W.Va.) (Reds)
29
41
0
414
18
Charleston (SC) (Rangers)
33
36
0
478
15
Greensboro (Yankees)
29
41
0
414
19'/2
Hickory (White Sox)
18
53
0
232
32
SOUTHERN DIVISION
Team
W
L
T
PEL
GB
Augusta (Pirates)
37
32
0
538
Columbus (Indians)
36
34
0
514
1½
Savanhah (Dodgers)
34
38
0
488
3½
Macon (Braves)
32
37
0
464
5
SECOND HALF
NORTHERN DIVISION
CENTRAL DIVISION
Team
W
L
T
Ptt.
GB
Team
W
L
T
Pet.
GB
Fayettaville (Tigers)
41
30
0
.577
....
Columbia (Mcis)
45
27
0
625
Hagerstown (Blue Jays)
37
35
0
514
4½
Hickory (White Sox)
39
32
0
549
5½
Delmarva (Expos)
36
36
D
500
5½
Ashaville (Rockles)
37
32
0
536
61/2
Charleston (W.Va.) (Reds)
29
43
0
403
12½
Piedmont (Phillies)
34
35
D
493
9½
Charleston (SC) (Rangers)
30
42
0
417
15
Greensboro (Yankees)
27
45
0
.375
18
SOUTHERN DIVISION
Team
W
L
T
PcL
GB
Columbus (Indians)
43
29
0
597
Savannah (Dodgers)
38
33
0
535
4 1/2
Augusta (Pirates)
34
38
0
472
9
Macon (Braves)
29
42
0
408
131/2
COMPOSITE
Team
And
C'ta
Del.
C'us
Fay.
Pie.
Sav.
Aug.
Hag.
CBC
Mas.
CWV
Gbr.
Hck.
W
L
T
Pet.
BB
Asheville (Rockles)
1
7
1
10
g
2
2
11
4
3
10
12
12
84
52
0
818
Columbia (Muts)
3
0
12
5
4
9
13
2
12
11
4
4
3
82
57
0
590
3½
Delmarva (Expos)
3
4
-
2
9
7
3
2
16
4
3
10
12
B
83
59
0
585
4
Columbus (Indians)
3
8
2
....
2
4
12
9
0
15
16
2
3
3
79
63
0
.556
8
Fayetteville (Tigura)
5
3
14
2
8
1
2
9
2
B
8
10
76
63
0
547
9½
....
4
Piedmont (Phillies)
11
2
7
0
3
...
2
2
7
2
2
11
8
15
72
56
0
522
13
Savannah (Dadgers)
1
10
1
12
3
2
....
a
3
14
12
I
2
3
72
69
0
511
14½
Augusta (Pirates)
2
7
2
11
2
5
9
....
1
9
11
3
5
4
71
70
0
504
15½
Hagerstown (Blue Jays)
3
2
a
4
8
7
1
3
2
1
16
6
9
70
71
0
496
16½
Charleston (S.C.) (Rangers)
D
9
D
0
1
2
10
10
2
...
10
2
4
4
63
78
0
447
23½
Macon (Braves)
1
5
1
6
0
2
14
13
2
12
79
****
1
3
1
61
0
436
25
Charleston (W.Va.) (Reds)
4
0
5
2
12
5
3
1
5
2
3
13
3
58
84
0
408
29
Greensboro (Yankees)
6
a
4
1
0
8
2
1
6
D
1
7
1D
56
86
0
394
31
Hickory (White 5px)
10
2
8
1
4
3
1
4
7
0
2
7
6
55
85
0
393
31
Major league affiliations In parentheses.
South
PLAYOFFS: Savannah deleated Columbus, two games to none: Delmarva deleated Asheville. two games to one; Savannah deleated Delmarva. three games
to one, to win league championship.
REGULAR SEASON ATTENDANCE: Ashoville, 145.798: Augusta. 157,487: Columbia, 158,921: Charleston (S.C.). 100,426: Charleston (W.Va.). 87,189:
Columbus. 45,110; Delmarva. 315,011: Fayetteville. 73,149: Greensboro, 168,534: Hagerstown, 102,765: Hickory. 207,069: Macon. 117,042: Piadmont,
CLASS
102,983: Savannah. 122,486 Total-1,901,974; Playotts (8 games)-18.518: All-Star Game-3,872.
MANAGERS: Asheville. P.J. Carey: Augusta. Jay Loviglio: Charleston (S.C.), Gary Allenson: Charleston (W.Va.). Tommy Thompson (through July 2), Donnie
Scott (July 3 through end of season): Columbia, Howie Freiling: Columbus, Joal Skinner: Delmarva, Doug Sisson; Fayettaville, Dwight Lowry: Greensboro,
Rick Patterson (through May 2). Jimmy Johnson (May 3 through end of season); Hagerstown, J.J. Cannon; Hickory. Chris Cron: Macon, Paul Runge,
Piedmont, Roy Maltyka: Savannah, John Shoemaker. Managerial records of teams with more than one manager. Charleston (W.Va.), Thompson, 34-50, Scott,
24-34; Greensboro, Patterson. 14-12. Johnson, 42-74.
The sporting News 533 Baseball Guide 1997
FEB-04-1999 18:08
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.31
14
OILNVILV HLOOS
000
S
from "The Minor leagues: A celebration oFthe
Wynwood Press in 1991.
Little Show "by Mike Blake, published by
The current South Atlantic League, first established in
1948 (it ran until 1952) and reestablished in 1960, has run
consecutively for thirty-one years. Previous tries at loops
called the South Atlantic League began in 1888 and oper-
ated sporadically. Those circuits were affectionately
known as "The Sally League" in earlier morphoses, which
eventually became the Southern League.
The current league sprang up during the postwar boom,
but collapsed during the period of increased interest in TV
and the Major League mishandling crisis of the early '50s.
This led to poor attendance and failed clubs. Revived in
1960, attendance has steadily swelled until the 1989 sea-
son saw the S.A.L. draw more than one million fans.
The South Atlantic League is a Class-A circuit with
twelve teams covering North Carolina, South Carolina,
Georgia, and West Virginia.
Running a 144-game schedule from April 5 to August
30, the South Atlantic League team roster currently in-
cludes: Asheville Tourists (Astros), Augusta Pirates,
Charleston Rainbows (Padres), Charleston Wheelers
FEB-04-1999 18:08
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.32
South Atlantic League
199
(Reds), Columbia Mets, Fayetteville Generals (Tigers),
Gastonia Rangers, Greensboro Hornets (Yankees), Myrtle
Beach Blue Jays, Savannah Cardinals, Spartanburg Phil-
lies, and Sumter Braves.
In 1990, the Charleston (Reds) took the second-half
crown in the Northern Division, after the Fayetteville (Ti-
gers) grabbed the first half. In the Southern Division, Sa-
vannah (Cardinals) ran away with the second half after
Columbia (Mets) nabbed the first half.
00
00
00
What is the South Atlantic League?
Well, it is the only league with two teams representing
two different cities of the same name-Charleston. The
Charleston Rainbows hail from South Carolina and the
Charleston Wheelers come from West Virginia.
00
00
00
Inside the South Atlantic League (including earlier
leagues bearing the same name):
Pitcher Bugs Raymond went 35-11 for Charleston in
1907.
Maurice Archdeacon, who later starred for the Interna-
tional League's Baltimore Orioles, stole 42 bases for
Charleston in 1919 and 44 the next year.
George Rhinhardt had back-to-back seasons of quality in
1923-34 with Greenville. The outfielder put together
years of .370, 100 RBI, 22 steals, 40 doubles and 28
triples in 1923; and .404, 92 ribbies, 32 steals, 45 doubles
the following campaign.
In 1927, Walter Tauscher, a right-handed pitcher who
won 259 Minor League games during a twenty-five-year
career, lost 19 games for Columbia despite a solid 3.04
ERA. His earned runs seemed to matter to scouts more
than his losses, as the Pittsburgh Pirates snatched him
up for the 1928 season.
607 547 4094
P.33
200
The Minor League
The 1930 season belonged to twenty-one-year-old out
fielder for Greenville, Murray "Red" Howell. Howell led
the league in RBI (147) to follow up his league-leading
135 in 1929 and also was number one in hits (193) and
runs scored (123), while maintaining his batting
consistency-he hit .341 in 1929 and 340 in 1930.
In 1939, forty-five-year-old journeyman pitcher Red
McColl found his way to the South Atlantic League and
walked only 21 batters in 154 innings on his way to a
2.81 ERA.
Greensboro entered the South Atlantic League in 1980,
and outfielder-first baseman Don Mattingly was named
MVP as he led the league with a .358 batting average 2
while bashing 32 doubles and driving in 105 runs.
In 1981, for Spartanburg, Jeff Stone swiped 123 bases
00
00
)(
1990 Players to Watch
Cincinnati Reds No. 1 choice Dan Wilson, catcher, made
Charleston, West Virginia, his home and hit .248 with 2 homers
and 15 RBI in 31 games. A contact hitter, he struck out only 18
times in 109 at bats.
Tim Howard, with Columbia (Mets), had knocked out 112 hits by
late August.
Brian Cornelius, Fayetteville (Tigers), had slammed 11 triples,
Austin Manahan, Augusta (Pirates), had hit 10 triples.
Pat Howell, Columbia (Mets), had stolen 58 bases.
Jeff Hoffman, Greensboro (Yankees), fashioned a 1.47 ERA.
FEB-04-1999 18:09
BASEBALL LIBRARY&ARCHIVE
607 547 4094
P.34
SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE
LEAGUE OFFICE
President/secretary-iraasurer
Teams (affiliation)
Fayetteville Crocks (Expos)
John Moss
Asheville Tourists (Rockies)
Greensboro Bats (Yankees)
Address
Augusta Greenjackets (Pirates)
Hagerstown Suns (Blue Jays)
P.O. Box 38
Capital City Bombers (Mats)
Hickory Crawdads (White Sox)
Kings Mountain, NC 28086
Charleston (S.C.) Riverdogs (Devil Rays)
Macon Braves (Braves)
Phone
Charleston (W.Va.) Alley Cats (Reds)
Piedmont Bollweevils (Phillles)
Columbus Redstixx (Indians)
Savannah Sand Gnats (Dodgers)
704-739-3466
Delmarva Shorebirds (Orioles)
1996 FINAL STANDINGS
FIRST HALF
NORTHERN DIVISION
CENTRAL DIVISION
Team
W
L
T
Pd.
GB
Team
W
l
T
Pm.
GB
Delmarva (Expos)
47
23
0
.671
Ashaville (Rockies)
47
20
0
701
Fayettaville (Tigers)
35
33
D
.515
11
Columbia (Mats)
37
30
0
522
10
Hagerstown (Blue Jays)
33
36
0
478
13 1/2
Piedmont (Phillies)
38
31
0
551
10
Charleston (W.Va.) (Reda)
29
41
0
414
18
Charleston (SC) (Rangers)
33
36
0
478
15
Greensboro (Yankees)
29
41
0
414
19½
Hickory (White Sox)
16
53
0
.232
32
SOUTHERN DIVISION
Team
W
L
T
Ptt.
GB
Augusta (Pirates)
37
32
0
.536
Columbus (Indians)
36
34
0
514
1½
Savannah (Dodgers)
34
36
0
486
3'/2
Macon (Braves)
32
37
0
464
5
SECOND HALF
NORTHERN DIVISION
CENTRAL DIVISION
Team
W
L
T
Pa.
GB
Team
W
L
T
Pd.
GB
Fayertaville (Tigers)
41
30
0
.577
Columbia (Msts)
45
27
0
625
Hagerstown (Blue Jays)
37
35
0
514
4½
Hickory (White Sox)
39
32
0
549
5½
Delmarva (Expos)
38
36
0
.500
5½
Asheville (Rockles)
37
32
0
.536
6'/2
Charleston (W.Va.) (Reds)
29
43
0
.403
12 1/2
Pledmont (Phillies)
34
35
0
.493
9½
Charleston (SC) (Rangers)
30
42
0
417
15
Greensboro (Yankees)
27
45
0
375
18
SOUTHERN DIVISION
Team
W
L
T
Pet.
GB
Columbus (Indians)
43
29
0
.597
Savannah (Dodgers)
38
33
0
535
4½
Augusta (Pirates)
34
38
0
472
9
Macon (Braves)
29
42
0
408
13 1/2
COMPOSITE
Team
Ash.
C'la
Del.
C'us
Fay.
Pie.
Sav.
Aug.
Mag.
CSC
Mac.
CWV
Gar.
Hck.
W
L
T
Pa.
GB
Asheville (Rockies)
1
7
1
10
g
2
2
11
4
3
10
12
12
84
52
0
618
Columbia (Mets)
3
0
12
5
4
9
13
2
12
11
4
4
3
82
57
0
.590
3½
Delmarva (Expos)
3
4
2
9
7
3
2
16
4
3
1D
12
B
63
59
0
.585
4
Columbus (Indians)
3
8
2
2
4
12
9
0
15
16
2
3
3
79
63
D
.556
8
Fayetteville (Tigers)
5
3
14
2
....
8
1
2
9
2
4
8
8
10
76
63
0
.547
8½
Pledmont (Phillies)
11
2
7
0
3
2
2
7
2
2
11
8
15
72
66
0
.522
13
Savannah (Dodgers)
1
10
1
12
3
2
8
3
14
12
1
2
3
72
69
0
511
14½
Augusta (Pirates)
2
7
2
11
2
5
9
1
9
11
3
5
4
71
70
Q
504
15½
Hagerstown (Blue Jays)
3
2
6
4
6
7
1
3
...
2
1
18
6
9
7D
71
0
496
16 1/2
Charleston (S.C.) (Rangers)
0
9
0
9
1
2
10
10
2
----
10
2
4
4
53
78
0
447
23½
Macon (Braves)
1
5
1
6
0
2
14
13
2
12
1
3
1
61
79
0
436
25
Charleston (W.Va) (Reds)
4
0
5
2
12
5
3
1
5
2
3
"
13
3
58
B4
0
408
29
Greensboro (Yankees)
6
4
4
1
6
8
2
1
6
0
1
7
are
10
56
B6
0
.394
31
Hickory (White Sex)
10
2
8
1
4
3
1
4
7
0
2
7
6
55
85
D
.393
31
Major league affiliations in parentheses.
PLAYOFFS: Savannah deleated Columbus, two games to none: Delmarva defeated Asheville, two games to one: Savannah deleated Delmarva. three games
to one, 10 win league championship.
REGULAR SEASON ATTENDANCE: Asheville, 145,798: Augusta, 157,487; Columbia, 156,921; Charleston (S.C.). 100,428; Charicston (W.Va.), 87,189;
Columbus, 45,110; Delmarva, 315,011; Fayatteville, 73,149; Greensboro, 188,534; Hagerstown. 102,765; Hickory, 207,089; Macon, 117,042; Piedmont,
CLASS
102,983; Savannah, 122,488; Total-1,901,974; Playons (8 games)-16,516; All-Star Game-3,872
MANAGERS: Asheville, P.J. Carey; Augusta, Day Loviglio: Charleston (S.C.). Gary Allenson: Charleston (W.Va.), Tommy Thompson (through July 2), Donnie
Scon (July 3 incough end of season): Columbia. Howle Freiling: Columbus, Joel Skinner: Delmarva, Doug Sisson; Fayatteville, Dwight Lowry; Greensboro,
Rick Patterson (through May 2). Jimmy Johnson (May 3 through end of season); Hagerstown, J.J. Cannon: Hickory, Chris Cron: Macon, Paul Runge:
Picdmnnt, Roy Maltyka: Savannah. John Shoemaker. Managerial records of teams with more than one manager: Charleston (W.Va.). Thompson. 34-50, Scott,
24-31; Greensboro, Patterson, 14-12. Johnson, 42-74.
The Sporting News 533- Baseball Guide 1997
TOTAL P.34
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
Date: 2/4/99
ACTION / CONCURRENCE / COMMENT DUE BY: 9:30a.m. TOMORROW
Subject:
HANK AARON REMARKS
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
NASH
PODESTA
REED
ECHAVESTE
RUFF
RICCHETTI
SOSNIK
LEW
SPERLING
BEGALA
STEIN
BERGER
STERN
BLUMENTHAL
STREETT
FRAMPTON
TRAMONTANO
IBARRA
VERVEER
KLAIN
WALDMAN
LANE
YELLEN
LEWIS
B. JOHNSON
LINDSEY
LOCKHART
MARSHALL
MOORE
REMARKS:
COMMENTS To JOSH GOTTHEIMER
RESPONSE:
Staff Secretary's Office
staffing. WPD 1/4/99
Ext. 62702
Draft 2/4/99 7pm
Josh Gottheimer
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
ATLANTA, GA
February 5, 1999
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec.
Herman; Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Mfume; Bob
Costas (MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball); Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted
Turner; Jane Fonda; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Ernie
Banks; Sammy Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr; Reggie Jackson; Dave Winfield
It is a privilege to be with you this evening to celebrate Hank Aaron's 65th Birthday --
and to launch Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic moments in
sports history -- Hammerin' Hank Aaron's 715th homerun.
America's favorite pastime was built on legendary feats -- Ty Cobb's 4,189 hits; Cal
Ripkins' 2,632 consecutive games, and, just this year, Mark McGwire's 70 homeruns and
Sammy Sosa's 66th.
But who could forget that historic night on April 8, 1974 before a sold-out crowd at
Atlanta's Fulton County stadium, when Hank Aaron launched number 715 -- and smashed Babe
Ruth's 38-year-old record.
That night might have marked Hank Aaron's crowning achievement. But it was only one
feat in a career full of accomplishment. Hank continues to hold more Major League batting
records than any other player in history -- from 2,297 RBIs to 3,771 career hits to 755 career
home runs.
But perhaps the most impressive thing about Hank Aaron is not what he did in the
majors. It was the way he got there. Hank's mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to
Major League home-run king represents American greatness in the face of adversity. He was
determined to reach the Majors. Nothing was going to hold him back. Not an opposing pitcher,
not an outfield full of all-stars, and -- least of all -- not the prejudice that prevailed during his
earliest days at bat.
Hank Aaron was the first African-American to play in the South Atlantic League ---- the
Saly League -- deep in the heart of the segregated South. Although Jackie Robinson had broken
the color barrier into the Majors less than a decade before, there were still only a few blacks in
baseball. But, in 1954, Hank Aaron's dedication and skill catapulted him into the professional
ranks -- the same year the Supreme Court struck down the practice of separate but equal in
Brown V. Board of Education. Hank spent his first 12 years in Milwaukee, and helped lead the
Braves to two pennants, before the franchise relocated to Atlanta for the '66 season.
He made it all look so easy on the field. So effortless. But few of us knew the challenges
Hank Aaron faced off the diamond. Throughout his career, Hank was often forced to drink from
"colored only" water fountains; sleep in hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated
restaurants. And even as he neared Ruth's record, Hank Aaron received thousands upon
thousands of death threats. But as Hank himself said, "I had a job to do, and I stuck with the
plan. I was not going to be distracted from my goal."
Your career didn't end when you hung up your jersey in 1976. You're still breaking
barriers even today. As an executive and with your Chasing the Dream Foundation, you've been
a tireless advocate for fair treatment both to baseball players and to all Americas.
Hank, that is why we're here today -- not only to honor your records, but to recognize
who you are as a person -- your steady voice for equality, integrity and change -- and the
standard you continue to set for all of us out here in the stands. Thank you for all you have given
to your team, your community and your country.
2
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
Date: 2/4/99
ACTION / CONCURRENCE / COMMENT DUE BY: 9:30 a.m. TOMORROW
Subject:
AMERICORPS ACTUALITY
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
NASH
PODESTA
REED
ECHAVESTE
RUFF
RICCHETTI
SOSNIK
LEW
SPERLING
BEGALA
STEIN
BERGER
STERN
BLUMENTHAL
STREETT
FRAMPTON
TRAMONTANO
IBARRA
VERVEER
KLAIN
WALDMAN
LANE
YELLEN
LEWIS
LINDSEY
LOCKHART
MARSHALL
MOORE
REMARKS:
COMMENTS TO lowell WELLS
RESPONSE:
Staff Secretary's Office
staffing.WPD 1/4/99
Ext. 62702
'99 FEB PM7:20
Draft 2/4/99 6:30pm
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
RADIO ACTUALITY ON AMERICORPS' "CALL TO SERVICE"
THE WHITE HOUSE
February 5, 1999
Since 1994, more than 100,000 people have served their nation through AmeriCorps.
AmeriCorps members teach children to read, build homes for the poor, and make communities
safer places to live -- while earning awards to pay for college or pay off student loans. This year,
AmeriCorps is issuing a national "Call to Service" to give 50,000 new members the chance to
show what they can do for their country the chance to learn that they can make a difference. If
you're graduating from high school or college this spring, I encourage you to call 1-800-942-
2677 or visit the AmeriCorps website at www.americorps.org. AmeriCorps is a life-changing
experience -- for you, for your community. Please get involved.
Draft 2/4/99 9pm
Josh Gottheimer
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
ATLANTA, GA
February 5, 1999
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec.
Herman; Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Kweisi
Mfume; Rev. William Guy; Bob Costas (MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball);
Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted Turner; Jane Fonda; Tom Johnson (CEO, CNN); Leonard
Coleman; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Dream Chasers; Ernie
Banks; Sammy Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr; Reggie Jackson; Dave Winfield;
Billye Aaron (Hank's wife)
Baseball has long exemplified many of the values America holds dear -- competition,
craftsmanship, local pride, and appreciation of tradition. Hank Aaron's own career exemplified
these values and more. He not only broke records, but broke barriers, and expanded opportunity
for those who followed in his footsteps.
It is a privilege to be with you this evening to celebrate Hank's 65th Birthday -- and to
launch Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic moments in sports
history -- Hammerin' Hank's 715th homerun.
America's favorite pastime has been built on legendary feats -- Cy Young's 511 wins Ty
Cobb's 4,189 hits [Cal Ripkins' 2,632 consecutive games] and, just this year, Mark
McGwire's 70 homeruns and Sammy Sosa's 66.
But who could forget that historic night on April 8, 1974 before a sold-out crowd at
Atlanta's Fulton County stadium, when Hank Aaron launched homerun number 715 -- and
smashed Babe Ruth's 38-year-old record.
That night might have marked Hank Aaron's crowning achievement. But it was only one
feat in a career full of accomplishment. Hank continues to hold more Major League batting
records than any other player in history -- from 2,297 RBIs to 3,771 career hits to 755 career
home runs.
But what is impressive about Hank Aaron is not only what he did in the major, but the
way he got there. Hank's mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to Major League home-
run king represents American greatness in the face of adversity. He was determined to reach the
Majors. Nothing was going to hold him back. Not an opposing pitcher, not an outfield full of
all-stars, and -- least of all -- not the prejudice that prevailed during his earliest days at bat.
Hank Aaron was the first African-American to play in the South Atlantic Minor League --
the Saly League -- deep in the heart of the segregated South. Although Jackie Robinson was the
first African American to break the color barrier and play in the Majors less than a decade before,
there were still only a few blacks in baseball. But, in 1954, Hank Aaron's dedication and skill
catapulted him into the professional ranks -- the same year the Supreme Court struck down the
practice of separate but equal in Brown V. Board of Education. Hank spent his first 12 years in
Milwaukee, and helped lead the Braves to two pennants, before the franchise relocated to
Atlanta for the '66 season.
He made it all look so easy on the field. So effortless. But few of us knew the challenges
Hank Aaron faced off the diamond. Throughout his career, Hank was often forced to drink from
"colored only" water fountains; sleep in hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated
restaurants. And even as he neared Ruth's record, Hank Aaron received thousands upon
thousands of death threats. But as Hank himself said, "I had a job to do, and I stuck with the
plan. I was not going to be distracted from my goal."
Your career didn't end when you hung up your jersey in 1976. As a baseball executive,
philanthropist and founder of the Chasing the Dream Foundation, you've been a champion of
opportunity, a lifter of aspirations, an advocate of fairness and a builder of dreams.
Hank, that is why we're here today -- to honor not only the records you have broken but
the path you have blazed, the voice you have raised for equality and fairness, and the standard
you continue to set for all of us out here in the stands. Thank you for all you have given to your
team, your community and your country.
2
Feb05fri.wpd
Page 1
Schedule of the President
For
Friday, February 5, 1999
Final Schedule
SCHEDULING DIRECTOR:
STEPHANIE STREETT
HOME:
202-332-5651
OFFICE:
202-456-2823
WHCA PAGER:
4824
PRESS DESK:
DORI SALCIDO
HOME:
703-548-6466
OFFICE:
202-456-5771
WHCA PAGER:
4844
EVENT COORDINATOR:
LAURA SCHWARTZ
HOME:
202-331-4339
OFFICE:
202-456-5655
WHCA PAGER:
4293
TRIP COORDINATOR:
LAURA GRAHAM
HOME:
703-212-7642
OFFICE:
202-456-2349
WHCA PAGER:
4809
WEATHER:
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Mostly sunny. Winds west to northwest at 10 to
15 knots. Low 34 to 39. High 50 to 55.
Schedule of the President
Feb05fri. wpd
Page 2
for
Friday, February 5, 1999
Final Schedule
DOWN UNTIL 1:00 PM
1:00
pm-
MEETING
1:15
pm
OVAL OFFICE
Staff Contact: John Podesta
1:15
pm-
BRIEFING
1:45
pm
OVAL OFFICE
Staff Contact: Gene Sperling, Bruce Reed
1:50
pm
THE PRESIDENT proceeds to the Residence
1:55
pm-
MEET AND GREET
2:05
pm
STATE DINING ROOM
Staff Contact: Gene Sperling, Bruce Reed
CLOSED PRESS
Note: There will be approximately 12 guests in attendance.
2:10
pm-
MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT AWARD EVENT
2:55
pm
EAST ROOM
Remarks: June Shih
Staff Contact: Gene Sperling, Bruce Reed
Event Coordinator: Laura Schwartz
OPEN PRESS
Note: There will be approximately 150 guests in attendance.
Awardees are announced into the room and proceed to seats in the front
row.
--
The President and the First Lady, accompanied by Secretary Robert
Rubin and Carol Willoughby, are announced onto stage.
--
The First Lady makes welcoming remarks and introduces Secretary
Robert Rubin.
Secretary Robert Rubin makes brief remarks and introduces Carol
Willoughby.
Carol Willoughby, Owner, "Let the Whole World Know," makes brief
remarks and introduces the President.
The President makes remarks about each awardee and presents their
citations individually.
Feb05fri wpd
Page 3
Note:
Each awardee will proceed to the stage to receive the award, pause for
a photograph between the President and the First Lady, and then
proceed back to their seats.
--
The President makes concluding remarks and invites guests to proceed
to the State Dining Room for a reception.
--
The President and the First Lady depart.
3:00
pm-
BRIEFING
3:15
pm
OVAL OFFICE
Staff Contact: Samuel Berger
3:15
pm-
BRIEF MEETING WITH PRESIDENT FUJIMORI OF PERU AND
3:35
pm
PRESIDENT MAHUAD OF ECUADOR
OVAL OFFICE
Staff Contact: Samuel Berger
STILLS ONLY
3:45
pm-
MEETING
3:50
pm
OVAL OFFICE DINING ROOM
Staff Contact: Stephanie Streett
4:00
pm-
MEETING
4:10
pm
OVAL OFFICE DINING ROOM
Staff Contact: Larry Stein
CLOSED PRESS
4:15
pm-
BRIEFING
4:30
pm
OVAL OFFICE DINING ROOM
Staff Contact: Ann Lewis, Julianne Corbett
4:30
pm-
TAPE RADIO ADDRESS
5:00
pm
OVAL OFFICE
Remarks: Jeff Sheshol
Staff Contact: Ann Lewis, Julianne Corbett
CLOSED PRESS
Note: The President will tape one radio actuality immediately
following the Radio Address.
5:15
pm
THE PRESIDENT departs The White House via Marine One en route
Andrews Air Force Base
[flight time: 10 minutes]
5:25
pm
THE PRESIDENT arrives Andrews Air Force Base
02/04/99
18:28
SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE INC.
12024562505
NO. 386
002
HISTORY & OVERVIEW
The South Atlantic League, referred to as "The League of Choice", was formally organized on
November 25, 1903, at the DeSoto Hotel in Savannah, Georgia. The original South Atlantic League was
made up of six teams. Those teams were the Augusta Tourists, Charleston (SC) Sea Gulls, Columbia
Skyscrapers, Jacksonville Jays, Macon Highlanders, and Savannah Pathfinders. Five of those original six
clubs are still members of the South Atlantic League today.
The first South Atlantic League or "Sally League" games were played on April 26, 1904. On that
day, Columbia beat Augusta, 8-7, despite a homer and double by a youngster named Ty Cobb. Cobb is
just one of many outstanding baseball talents that make up the history of the South Atlantic League.
Baseball legends such as Hank Aaron, Steve Carlton, Bob Gibson, Dale Murphy, Nolan
Ryan, Enos Slaughter, and Willie Stargell all played in the South Atlantic League before moving on to
the Major Leagues. Juan Gonzalez and Sammy Sosa, the 1998 American and National League MVP's,
are also South Atlantic League alum's. Gonzalez and Sosa were teammates on the 1987 Gastonia Rangers
ball club. In 1998, 385 former South Atlantic League players were on a Major League roster.
The South Atlantic League is currently made up of fourteen (14) clubs including:
South Atlantic League Clubs
Major League Affiliates
Asheville Tourists
Colorado Rockies
Aggusta GreenJackers
Baston Red Sin
Cape Lear Cross
Montreat Expos
Capital City Bombers
Yell York Men
Clearleston (SC) RiverDons
Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Charleston (WV) Allen Cats
Kansas City Royals
Calombus RedStive
Clexeland Indians
Delarary Shorebirds
Baltimore Orioin
Greensboro Bats
New York Yankees
Hagerstown Suns
Formu Blue days
Hickory Crawdads
Pittsburgh Pirates
Macon Braves
Atlanta Braves
Piedmont Ball Weevik
Philadelphia Phillies
Savannah Sand Grats
Texas Rangers
Each South Atlantic League club has a signed Player Development Contract with a major league
organization. The Major League affiliates assign many of their top prospects to the South Atlantic
League each year to develop their talent and give them an opportunity to test their skills against a high
caliber of competition.
The South Atlantic League is a full season Class A league with some of the most marketable team
logos in minor league baseball. The league plays a 142 game regular season schedule that begins in April
and closes with a Championship Playoff in September
The President of the South Atlantic League is John Henry Moss. Moss has been President of the
South Atlantic League for 39 years and has devoted his life to the game of baseball. Besides being
President of the South Atlantic League, Moss has served as chairman of the executive committee of the
National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues and is currently the Dean of Professional Baseball
League Presidents
The South Atlantic League has a rich and wonderful history, but it is a league that is also looking
towards the future. The South Atlantic League continues to grow and prosper every year, and we would
like the opportunity to join with your organization to form a marketing partnership for the 1999 season
and beyond.
HALL Oi FAME
1903-1998
SALO
95 Years
02/04/99
the
18:29
CLASS OF 1998
South Atlantic League
Hall of Jame Members
1994 INDUCTEES 1995 INDUCTEES 1996 INDUCTEES 1997 INDUCTEES 1998 INDUCTEES
Haok Aaron
Bob Bonifay
Jim Bayens
Dale Murphy
Martin J. Springstead
Sparky Anderson
Bill Bethea
Arthur G. "Red" Dwyer
Sheldon "Chief" Bender
Dave Bristol
SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE INC. -> 12024562505
James "Jimmy" Bragan
Cecil Darby
Ed Holtz
Billy "The Bull" Johnson
Charles B. Morrow
Leland "Lou" Brissie
Bob Gibson
Roy Majtyka
Dwight Lowry
Harley Bowers
Leon "Goose" Goslin
Patrick Putnam
Michael C. Paterno
Steve Carlton
Al Lopez
Hoyt Wilhelm
Mel Roberts
Ty Cobb
Enos Slaughter
Pat Williams
Gene Snpakoff
Judge Julian Fine
Don Stafford
Danny Hayling
Harmon Killebrew
Don Mattingly
John H. Moss
The South Atlantic League
H.B. "Spec" Richardson
Est. 1903
Frank Robinson
Nolan Ryan
Ryne Sandberg
"The League of Choice"
Willie Stargell
NO. 386 D03
02/04/99
18:28
SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE INC.
12024562505
NO. 386
001
1999 SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE
SPONSORSHIP PACKET
TM
EST.
1903
SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE
"THE LEAGUE OF CHOICE"
The South Atlantic League
P.O. Box 38
Kings Mountain, NC 28086
John H. Moss, President
Bryan W. Olson, Assistant to the President
Shawn T. Wood, League Marketing Representative
Telephone: (704) 739-3466
Fax: (704) 739-1974
E-mail: [email protected]
Web site: www.southatlanticleague.com
95 Years Of Baseball!
But WHAT IS IMPRESSIVE about Hank Aaron is not ONLY what he
did in the majors, BUT THE WAY HE GOT THERE. Aaron?s mythic rise from
Alabama sandlot sensation to Major League home run king represents American
greatness in the face of adversity. He spent his earliest days playing
ball in the semi-pros and the Negro League -- but he was determined to
reach the Majors. Although Jackie Robinson WAS THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN
TO BREAK the color barrier AND PLAY IN THE Majors, Aaron was the first to
play in the
South Atlantic/ Mrw League, the Saly League[IS THIS THE MINOR LEAGUE?], deep in the
heart of the segregated
South. baseball. Only two years later, in 1954, Aaron?s dedication
and skill catapulted him into the professional ranks - [I'M DON'T SEE THE
CONNECTION BETWEEN PRO SPORTS TO BROWN V BOARD, SO I SUGGEST CUTTING THE REST
OF THE SENTENCEthe same year the
Supreme Court struck down the practice of separate but equal in Brown V.
the Board of Education. Aaron spent his first 12 years in Milwaukee,
where the Braves captured the pennant twice, before the franchise relocated
to Atlanta for the ?66 season.
Although he made it all look easy on the field, most of us had no idea
of the challenges Aaron faced off the diamond. Throughout his career, Hank
was often forced to drink from ?colored only? water fountains; sleep in
hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated restaurants. And even
as he neared Ruth?s record, Aaron received thousands upon thousands of
death threats. But as Hank himself said, ?I had a job to do, and I stuck
with the plan. I wasnot going to be distracted from my goal.?
indell, philullmper ne
Your career didn?t end when you hung up your jersey in 1976. Since
then, as an executive and with Chasing the Dream Foundation, you?ve been a
tireless advocate for fair treatment both to baseball players and to all
Americas PLEASE EXPAND. WHAT DOES THE CHASING THE DREAM FOUNDATION DO THAT IT
CAN CLAIM TO SERVE BOTH FAIRNESS FOR PLAYERS AND FAIRNS FOR "ALL AMERICANS"?
Hank, that is while we?re here today TO honor NOT ONLY THE RECORDS YOU
HAVE BROKEN BUT THE PATH YOU HAVE BLAZED, THE VOICE YOU HAVE RAISED FOR
EQUALITY AND FAIRNESS, AND THE standard you continue to set for all of
us out here in the stands. Thank you for all you have given to your team,
your community and your country.
Destal, vistud
gunn
^^^
changion off.
-
total actua fairen diffal e/Biaburs
(#r
a litter or
Draft 2/4/99 6:15pm
Josh Gottheimer
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
FEBRUARY 5, 1999 (cower case)
ATLANTA, GA
indent
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec. Herman;
Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Mfume; Bob Costas
(MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball); Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted Turner; Jane
Fonda; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Ernie Banks; Sammy
Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr. Reggie Jackson; Dave Winfield;
It is a distinct privilege to be with you this evening to celebrate Hank Aaron's 65th
Birthday and to launch Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic
moments in sports history Hammerin' Hank Aaron's 715th homerun.
America's favorite pastime was built on legendary feats -- Ty Cobb's 4,189 hits; Cal
Ripkins' 2,632 consecutive games, and, just this year, Mark McGwire's 70 homeruns and sammy
sosa's 66.
But who could forget that historic night on April 8, 1974 before a sold-out crowd at
Atlanta's Fulton County stadium, when Hank launched number 715 off Dodger Al Downing and
smashing Babe Ruth's 38-year-old record.
ad
only
That night might have marked Aaron's crowning achievement but it was but one feat in a
career chock full of accomplishment. Hank continues to hold more Major League batting records
than any other player in history -- from 2,297 RBIs to 3,771 career hits to 755 career home
runs.
Hanlis
=
Aaron $ mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to Major League home run king
represents American greatness in the face of adversity. He spent his earliest days playing ball in in
the semi-pros and the Negro League but He was determined to reach the Majors. Nothing was going to
hold him back.
African -Am.
)
Hank Aaron was the first black to play in the South Atlantic League, the Saly League, -
Not pitcher on opposing
deep in the heart of the segregated South. Although Jackie Robinson had broken the color
not an outfield
barrier into the Majors less than a decade earlier, before there were still only a handful few of blacks in
full of all-
stare, and-
baseball. But only two years later in 1954, Aaron' Hank S dedication and skill catapulted him into the
least of au-
professional ranks the same year the Supreme Court struck down the practice of separate but
not the
equal in Brown V. the Board of Education. Aaron Hanh spent his first 12 years in Milwaukee, where-
prejudice that
helped lead the Braves eaptured the pennant twice, before the franchise relocated to Atlanta for the '66
to two
prevailed
season.
during
his
earliest
days at
bat.
so effortless.
so
But few of us knew
Although he made it all look easy on the field, most of us had no idea of the challenges
the Aaron faced off the diamond. Throughout his career, Hank was often forced to drink from
colored only" water fountains; sleep in hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated
restaurants. And even as he neared Ruth's record, Aaron received thousands upon thousands of
death threats. But as Hank himself said, "I had a job to do, and I stuck with the plan. I was not
going to be distracted from my goal."
Hink t.
Hank, that is why we're here today -- not only to honor your records, but to recognize
your commitment to your Atlanta Braves, your community, and to all of us for whom you are
still a hero. Thank you, Henry, for that example, for your steady voice for equality, integrity and
change -- and for the standard you continue to set for all of out here in the stands.
Hale Aar
Draft 2/4/99 7pm
Josh Gottheimer
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
ATLANTA, GA
February 5, 1999
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec.
Herman; Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Mfume; Bob
Costas (MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball); Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted
Turner; Jane Fonda; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Ernie
Banks; Sammy Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr; Reggie Jackson; Dave Winfield
It is a privilege to be with you this evening to celebrate Hank Aaron's 65th Birthday --
and to launch Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic moments in
sports history -- Hammerin' Hank Aaron's 715th homerun.
America's favorite pastime was built on legendary feats -- Ty Cobb's 4,189 hits; Cal
Ripkins' 2,632 consecutive games, and, just this year, Mark McGwire's 70 homeruns and
Sammy Sosa's 66th.
But who could forget that historic night on April 8, 1974 before a sold-out crowd at
Atlanta's Fulton County stadium, when Hank Aaron launched number 715 -- and smashed Babe
Ruth's 38-year-old record.
That night might have marked Hank Aaron's crowning achievement. But it was only one
feat in a career full of accomplishment. Hank continues to hold more Major League batting
records than any other player in history -- from 2,297 RBIs to 3,771 career hits to 755 career
home runs.
But perhaps the most impressive thing about Hank Aaron is not what he did in the
majors. It was the way he got there. Hank's mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to
Major League home-run king represents American greatness in the face of adversity. He was
determined to reach the Majors. Nothing was going to hold him back. Not an opposing pitcher,
not an outfield full of all-stars, and -- least of all -- not the prejudice that prevailed during his
earliest days at bat.
Hank Aaron was the first African-American to play in the South Atlantic League -- the
Saly League -- deep in the heart of the segregated South. Although Jackie Robinson had broken
the color barrier into the Majors less than a decade before, there were still only a few blacks in
baseball. But, in 1954, Hank Aaron's dedication and skill catapulted him into the professional
ranks -- the same year the Supreme Court struck down the practice of separate but equal in
Brown V. Board of Education. Hank spent his first 12 years in Milwaukee, and helped lead the
Braves to two pennants, before the franchise relocated to Atlanta for the '66 season.
He made it all look so easy on the field. So effortless. But few of us knew the challenges
Hank Aaron faced off the diamond. Throughout his career, Hank was often forced to drink from
"colored only" water fountains; sleep in hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated
restaurants. And even as he neared Ruth's record, Hank Aaron received thousands upon
thousands of death threats. But as Hank himself said, "I had a job to do, and I stuck with the
plan. I was not going to be distracted from my goal."
Your career didn't end when you hung up your jersey in 1976. You're still breaking
barriers even today. Since then, as an executive and with your Chasing the Dream Foundation,
you've been a tireless advocate for fair treatment both to baseball players and to all Americas.
Hank, that is why we're here today -- not only to honor your records, but to recognize
who you are as a person -- your steady voice for equality, integrity and change -- and the
standard you continue to set for all of us out here in the stands. Thank you for all you have given
to your team, your community and your country.
2
Draft 2/4/99 6:50pm
Josh Gottheimer
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
FEBRUARY 5, 1999
ATLANTA, GA
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller; Reps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec. Herman;
Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Mfume; Bob Costas
(MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball); Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted Turner; Jane
Fonda; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Temptations; Jeffery Osborne; Ernie Banks; Sammy
Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr; Reggie Jackson; Dave Winfield;
It is a privilege to be with you this evening to celebrate Hank Aaron's 65th Birthday --
and to launch Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic moments in
sports history -- Hammerin' Hank Aaron's 715th homerun.
America's favorite pastime was built on legendary feats -- Ty Cobb's 4,189 hits; Cal
Ripkins' 2,632 consecutive games, and, just this year, Mark McGwire's 70 homeruns.
But who could forget that historic night on April 8, 1974 before a sold-out crowd at
Atlanta's Fulton County stadium, when Hank launched number 715 off Dodger Al Downing --
smashing Babe Ruth's 38-year-old record.
That night might have marked Aaron's crowning achievement, but it was only one feat in
a career full of accomplishment. Hank continues to hold more Major League batting records
than any other player in history -- from 2,297 RBIs to 3,771 career hits to 755 career home
runs.
But perhaps the most impressive thing about Hank Aaron is not what he did in the
majors. It was the way he got there. Aaron's mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to
Major League home run king represents American greatness in the face of adversity. He spent
his earliest days playing ball in the semi-pros and the Negro League -- but he was determined to
reach the Majors. Aaron was the first African American to play in the South Atlantic League,
the Saly League, deep in the heart of the segregated South. Although Jackie Robinson had
broken the color barrier into the Majors less than a decade earlier, there were still only a handful
of blacks in baseball. But only two years later, in 1954, Aaron's dedication and skill catapulted
him into the professional ranks -- the same year the Supreme Court struck down the practice of
separate but equal in Brown V. the Board of Education. Aaron spent his first 12 years in
Milwaukee, where the Braves captured the pennant twice, before the franchise relocated to
Atlanta for the '66 season.
Although he made it all look easy on the field, most of us had no idea of the challenges
Aaron faced off the diamond. Throughout his career, Hank was often forced to drink from
"colored only" water fountains; sleep in hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated
restaurants. And even as he neared Ruth's record, Aaron received thousands upon thousands of
death threats. But as Hank himself said, "I had a job to do, and I stuck with the plan. I was not
going to be distracted from my goal."
Your career didn't end when you hung up your jersey in 1976. Since then, as an
executive and with Chasing the Dream Foundation, you've been a tireless advocate for fair
treatment both to baseball players and to all Americas.
Hank, that is why we're here today -- not only to honor your records, but to
recognize who you are as a person -- your steady voice for equality, integrity and change --
and for the standard you continue to set for all of us out here in the stands. Thank you for
all you have given to your team, your community and your country.
Although he made it all look easy on the field, most of us had no idea of the challenges
Aaron faced off the diamond. Throughout his career, Hank was often forced to drink from
"colored only" water fountains; sleep in hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated
restaurants. And even as he neared Ruth's record, Aaron received thousands upon thousands of
death threats. But as Hank himself said, "I had a job to do, and I stuck with the plan. I was not
going to be distracted from my goal."
Hank, that is why we're here today -- not only to honor your records, but to recognize who you
your commitment to your Atlanta Braves, your community, and to all of us for whom you are
are as
still a here. Thank you, Henry, for that example, for our steady voice for equality, integrity and a person-
change -- and for the standard you continue to set for all of out here in the stands Vene thank you.
And Forall you have
wanty, comm, we thank Et your you.
your given to your team,
your team, X your community,
and you Z
You are a hero to us all, Hank, and for
that example, that we thank you
M
Hau 1 For
ar you
"reclues which wake calined am advance your anlels w\- and 1 Chirry guyst, to Fandation
You
&
s call we you p y way jess up you 19-1976 1976 sine per or as yule advocuts M excutet be for * a fair thether the bell Amount. pight + to au
4,M
&
Draft 2/4/99 6pm
Josh Gottheimer
PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HANK AARON GALA
FEBRUARY 5, 1999
ATLANTA, GA
Acknowledgments: Govs. Barnes and Miller: Heps. Joseph Kennedy, John Lewis; Sec. Herman;
Mayors Campbell, Dow; Amb. Young; Rev. Jackson; NAACP President Mfume; Bob Costas
(MC); Comm. Bud Selig (Major League Baseball); Ozzie Davis and Ruby Dee; Ted Turner; Jane
Fonda; Gerald Levin; Dick Parsons; the Tempt itions; Jeffery Osborne; Ernie Banks; Sammy
Sosa; Evander Holyfield; Ken Griffey, Sr. Reg ge Jackson; Dave Winfield;
It is a distinct privilege to be with you this evening to celebrate Hank Aaron's 65th
Birthday -- and to launch Major League Baseball's year-long salute to one of the most dramatic
moments in sports history -- Hammerin' Hank Aaron's 715th homerun.
America's favorite pastime was built OL legendary feats To Cobb's 4,189 hits; Cal
Ripkins 2,632 consecutive games, and, just thi year, Mark McGwire's 70 homeruns.
But who could forget that historic high on April 8, 1974 before a sold-out crowd at
Atlanta's Fulton County stadium, when Hank I nunched number 715 off Dodger Al Downing --
smashing Babe Ruth's 38year-old record.
That night might have marked Aaron's crowning achievement, but it was but one feat in a
career chock full of accomplishment. Hank continues to hold more Major League batting records
than any other player in history -- from 2.297 EBIs to 3,771 career hits to 755 career home
runs.
Aaron's mythic rise from Alabama sandlot sensation to Major League home run king
represents American greatness in the fac of a versity. Aaron spent his earliest days playing ball
in the semi-pros and the Negro League but h was determined to reach the Majors. Although
Jackie Robinson had broken the color barrier less than a decade earlier, Aaron was the first black
to play in the South Atlantic League -- deep in the heart of the segregated South. Only two years
later, in 1954, he broke into the majors, the sar 10 year the Supreme Court struck down the
practice of separate but equal. Aaron spent his first 12 years in Milwaukee, where the Braves
captured the pennant twice, before the franchis relocated to Atlanta for the '66 season.
Although he made it all look easy in the field, most of us had no idea of the challenges
he faced off the diamond. Throughout his care '|`, Hank was often forced to dink from "colored
only" water fountains; sleep in hotels separate from the team; and eat at segregated restaurants.
And even as he neared Ruth's record, Aaron re reived thousands upon thousands of death threats.
But as Hank himself said, "I had a job to do. a di I stuck with the plan. I was not going to be
distracted from my goal."
Hank, that is why we're here today -- n "l only to honor your records, but to recognize
your commitment to your Atlanta Braves. your community, and to all of us for whom you are
still a hero. Thank you, Henry, for that exampl :. for your steady voice for equality, integrity and
change -- and for the standard you continue to set for all of out here in the stands.
Josh-
Saly League
South Atlantic league
class A league