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Home Run King: New Book Release

HOME RUN KING
THE REMARKABLE RECORD OF HANK AARON

BY DAN SCHLOSSBERG
SPORTS PUBLISHING / FOREWORD BY DUSTY BAKER


In the fifty years that have passed since Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run and supplanted Babe Ruth as baseball's home run king, his legend and legacy have only grown.

Humble and modest to a fault, he always insisted that he didn't want people to forget Babe Ruth but only to remember Henry Aaron. Though he never had the benefit of playing in the media spotlight of New York or Los Angeles, he remains the career leader in total bases, runs batted in, and All-Star selections; shares records for home runs by brothers (with Tommie Aaron) and by teammates (with Eddie Mathews); and is remembered with respect and admiration for his outspoken advocacy of civil rights for all minorities.

Written by a lifelong Braves fan who became a sportswriter, "HOME RUN KING: The Remarkable Record of Hank Aaron," by Dan Schlossberg (Sports Publishing, May 14, 2024) traces Aaron's odyssey from the segregated south to the baseball world revolutionized by Jackie Robinson, who became an early and important ally against bigotry and prejudice. It reveals how the New York Giants nearly beat the Boston Braves in signing Aaron, when the young slugger caught his first break, and why he changed his hitting style after the Braves moved from Milwaukee to Atlanta. Though he never won a Triple Crown or hit for the cycle, he won virtually every major honor, including an MVP award, a World Series ring, and a berth in the Baseball Hall of Fame. But he should have won more, as the author contends he was often taken for granted by voters (nine of whom left him off their Cooperstown ballots!).

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