Trisha Yearwood, a country music sensation and a lifelong Atlanta Braves fan, posted a tribute to the late Hank Aaron.
Hank Aaron passed away today at the age of 86. He is credited for hitting 755 home runs amongst other outstanding career stats.
Trisha Yearwood Remembers Legend
In her moving post, Trisha Yearwood talked about his impact on her and her family’s life.
“Our dad, Jack never missed watching an @braves game. We were raised on baseball. I was 9 years old when Hammerin’ Hank hit 715 in Atlanta, surpassing Babe Ruth’s home-run record, and I remember cheering loudly with my family, watching that historical moment on tv (thank you Ted Turner and TBS!).”
Then in 2007, Yearwood sang the National Anthem and got a chance to meet an icon of hers.
“When I was invited to sing the National Anthem in game 4 of the World Series in 2007, I took my young nephews with me and we all got to meet Hank. I became that 9 year old kid again, and Mr. Aaron couldn’t have been more gracious. Thank you for the memories, Hank. RIP and say hi to my dad,” she wrote.
Trisha Yearwood has been a very active Braves fan. In fact, in addition to singing the National Anthem, she has also been a part of the Turner Field Countdown in 2016.
According to Taste of Country, for her 50th birthday in 2014, her husband Garth Books had a surprise for her. He got her a Louisville Slugger bat from the Braves. She also got a signed jersey from Dale Murphy. She also got an official MLB jersey with her name on the back.
Hank Aaron, a Legend
Besides holding one of the most celebrated records in baseball, Aaron was also known for battling racism during his time in the MLB.
He was one of the greatest all-star players in history. When he hit that 715th home run on April 8, 1974, he beat Babe Ruth’s record in the process. Instead of support and respect, Aaron got a tirade of hate mail and death threats.
According to The New York Times, people were outraged that a Black man could outplay a white player. He would later say that Braves fans were always hostile toward him on chasing the Ruth record. Additionally, the baseball commissioner at the time was not present when he hit the record home run.
Despite the threats, Aaron prevailed and persevered. Also known as “Hammerin’ Hank,” he would eventually become a part of the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982. He had a staggering 97.8% of the vote.
“It really made me see for the first time a clear picture of what this country is about. My kids had to live like they were in prison because of kidnap threats, and I had to live like a pig in a slaughter camp. I had to duck. I had to go out the back door of the ball parks … had to have a police escort with me all the time … was getting threatening letters every single day. All of these things have put a bad taste in my mouth, and it won’t go away. They carved a piece of my heart away,” he told The New York Times in the 1990s.
