ATLANTA — On the 52nd anniversary of “Hammerin’” Hank Aaron’s historic 715th home run, his wife Billye Aaron took a trip down memory lane.
In an interview with Channel 2’s Karyn Greer, Mrs. Aaron said “Hammerin’” Hank was more than just a baseball player, he was the love of her life.
“We got married in ‘73, in November of ‘73,” Mrs. Aaron said. “Nov. 12 to be exact.”
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Taking Greer through memories and pictures proudly on display in her home, Mrs. Aaron shared her memories of the joy—and the backlash—after her husband’s historic 715th home run in 1974.
The home run broke Babe Ruth’s longstanding record and forever changed the game of baseball.
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“Babe Ruth had broken all expectations in terms of his ability to play baseball,” Mrs. Aaron told Channel 2 Action News. “They didn’t want a Black man to come along behind and break that record.”
Mrs. Aaron said her husband’s biggest concern was his children.
“He had a daughter that had just gone off to Fisk and she was having difficulty,” Mrs. Aaron said. “They had the school had written him and said ‘we need some protection for her, so we don’t want her going off campus.’”
Mrs. Aaron said she was sitting with her parents, watching Hank play, when he hit his historic No. 715 home run.
“I was watching him carefully, and I saw him looking over, trying to find me, and in a few minutes he came to the box where I am,” Mrs. Aaron said. “We embraced and he just kind of whispered something. He said ‘we did it.’”
Hank Aaron passed away in 2021 but the Atlanta Braves say honoring him and keeping his story alive is important to remind the fans of the barriers he broke, both on and off the field.
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