On April 8, 1974, Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves hit his 715th career home run, breaking Babe Ruth's record. And ironically also on this date, this year the jury has started deliberating on the fate of the man who broke Aaron’s mark. Barry Bonds steroid (?) boosted new found power has an "asterisk" placed behind his in the minds of many sports fans. Myself included.
Nice Clint! Though I would point out that in my own mind, there is no asterisk next to his name. No siree Bob. I don't even include Bonds. He was a HoF player to begin with, he just let his ego get the best of him and as a result it destroyed his legacy. Hank is, was, and will forever be "The Home Run King"
I had a seat in a club level suite at "The Launching Pad" on April 9, 1974. Of course, if Aaron hadn't hit 715 the night before, the seat I got wouldn't have been available on the 9th. As miserable as the Braves were in those days, seats were easy to come by once Aaron had broken the record. April 8 was the home opener - plus the anticipation of the record falling - and attendance was nearly 54,000. April 9 attendance dropped to 10,648.
I remember it well. I was happy for Aaron, but a bit sad, though, as the Bambino was such a giant figure in baseball lore.
In my own head I always justified it the same as the breaking of the Bambino's 60 in a year by Maris, their were more games played in each season as time went on. But then again, that wouldn't really have deterred Hank in my mind, his eye/hand co-ordination was what put him over the Babe's mark, and he didn't strike out at the same level either. Aaron is the MAN at the plate. Now if he would have had the great pitching seasons that Ruth did to start his career, that might change the outlook somewhat. But nobody did everything the Babe did in baseball at the time, he was really a phenomenal baseball player in his era. And George Herman Ruth did it on hot dogs, beer, and french fries. Not steroids and health foods.
