Hank Aaron has passed away at the age of 86 years. News broke about his passing in the early morning of January 21st.  His death has since been attributed to natural causes.

Henry Louis Aaron was born on February 5th, 1934 in Mobile, Alabama. Nicknamed “Hammerin’ Hank” and “Hammer,” but he is most known as Hank Aaron. Hank Aaron is considered one of the greatest professional baseball players to ever play the game. 

When asked his thoughts on Hank Aarons’s passing, senior and Sultana high school baseball player Antonio Ramirez said “I think the passing of Hank Aaron was sad and traumatic, he was a baseball legend and he made me want to strive to achieve more in baseball.”

Another senior and Sultana high school baseball player, Anthony Aleman had this to say, “When I did play baseball, even as a younger kid, being a minority and seeing other minorities being able to perform at the top levels is inspiring. Hank Aaron pushed people to want to be more like him and influence many generations including myself to play the game. He may have passed away but his legacy lives on in the many people he influenced.”

Aaron played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1954 through 1976. He spent 21 seasons with the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves in the national league and the Milwaukee Brewers in the American League. He played right field and was a right-handed hitter. He ended his career with 755 home runs, breaking the then 715 career record set by none other than Babe Ruth which stood for 33 years.   

Aaron held many other records in the MLB some of which stand to this day; 2,297 career runs batted in, 6,856 career total bases, 1,477 career extra-base hits, and 25 career all-star appearances. And he was inducted into the baseball hall of fame in 1982, the first year he was eligible.

Hank Aaron is remembered for his impact on the game of baseball to this day and will continue to inspire people to play the great sport for decades to come.