SSDL BLOG: “Hank, Hippies and a Homer”
“Hank, Hippies and a Homer”
January 23, 2021
Hank Aaron was the GOAT as Ballplayer and as a Man
BTW: Where was Security on April 8th of ’74 at Atlanta Stadium?
Los Angeles - Most years, for a sports fan, January is the month we watch some regular season hoops and dive deep into the NFL playoffs. This particular January of 2021, I have found myself preoccupied with the grand old game of baseball.
Sadly, death is all around us these days, and like many Americans I am looking for the uplifting stories that sports bring to us. Sometimes we look back, as I did with my last blog about Tommy Lasorda, who died during the first week of this month. Now, we face the loss of the one and only Henry “Hammerin’ Hank” Aaron, the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves star, a ballplayer who I argue as the greatest of them all. When you should still hold the home run record and you rightfully own the top spot in RBI’s and total bases, being the GOAT is your rightful place.
As a nine year-old watching my Dodgers play in Atlanta on April 8th of 1974, I was well aware of #44’s pursuit of 715. What I was not aware of was the social component. The despicable letters and threats that were a part of everyday life for Aaron, and the significance of this hallowed record being broken in the South.
What I do remember clearly is that pitch from lefty Dodger starter Al Downing was up and over the middle of the plate and “The Hammer” did what he always did, driving the ball on a line just over the fence. I also remember seeing Dodger left fielder trying to climb the fence to get the ball, which is when the camera shot returned to Hank rounding second on his way to third base.
What were those two white guys doing on the field patting him on the back? They certainly were not working media nor were they athletes. My 70’s upbringing kicked in, wondering if those Georgia style hippies were going to strip and streak or burn a flag or maybe even kidnap him? Where was security? SECURITY!
Fortunately, they were a couple of 17 year-old’s, Cliff and Britt, probably just stoned on some Sticky Southern Weed, enjoying the moment with their new buddy. I suppose the security team at Atlanta Stadium was on break or perhaps dealing with their own “sticky” situation. Hank handled the moment with his trademark “cool under pressure" persona, turning what could have been a tragedy into a moment of peaceful celebration.
Then, Vin Scully, the poet laureate of baseball, the GOAT of all announcers, did what he always did, which was provide spot on perspective: “A Black man is getting a standing ovation in the deep South”. Consider my young mind blown and challenged to figure out what that meant.
It took extra effort to gain perspective, but it was well worth it. I dove in and found out about Aaron’s upbringing in Mobile, Alabama, the prejudice he faced coming up in the game, the dignity with which he carried himself and performed. I learned more about the South, about the after-math of the Civil War and about Jim Crow. Wow, that was a lot to get my head around. I learned that “Oh Henry!” was an even more impressive person than he was a ballplayer.
Denny Lennon is the Host of YouTube Live shows and the Video Podcast, “Sports Stories with Denny Lennon”
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