Henry Louis Aaron (February 5, 1934–January 22, 2021), nicknamed Hammer, was a right fielder in MLB from 1954 - 1976.Hank Aaron is widely recognized as one of the greatest baseball players of all time. He spent 21 seasons in the National League and two seasons in the American League with the Milwaukee Brewers and Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves.Hank Aaron Civil Rights QuotesFor over three decades, Hank Aaron was best known for hitting more home runs than any other baseball player. During his career, the baseball hero also spoke out against discrimination and broke down racial barriers. Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s home run record on April 8, 1974, despite getting death threats, hate mail, and a conspiracy to kidnap one of his daughters.(Here are a few Hank Aaron civil rights quotes. Discover more such inspiring quotes and other facts at Kidadl!!!)“It really made me see for the first time a clear picture of what this country is about.““Dr. King was getting ready to march in Washington. I said to myself, ‘Should I do the marching or what’?”- ‘Jordan’s Facebook Live interview’, 2020.“My kids had to live like they were in prison because of kidnap threats, and I had to live like a pig in a slaughter camp. I had to duck. I had to go out the back door of the ball parks.““I just wish that these kids today would find out that it’s not just money alone.”- ‘Jordan’s Facebook Live interview’, 2020.“I had a friend of mine call and say, ‘Hey, you’re doing just about as much as you can do right now by not marching. By you playing baseball, you’re breaking the rules and doing all these other things’.”- ‘Jordan’s Facebook Live interview’, 2020.“Sure, this country has a black president, but when you look at a black president, President Obama is left with his foot stuck in the mud from all of the Republicans with the way he’s treated.““It’s not just what you can get out of someone, but [also] learn how to be able to get along with other people, as well as to get along with yourself."‘Jordan’s Facebook Live interview’, 2020.“I had to have a police escort with me all the time. I was getting threatening letters every single day. All of these things have put a bad taste in my mouth, and it won’t go away.““They carved a piece of my heart away.““I felt like when I was chasing Babe’s record, that the most important person that I had in mind was Jackie Robinson.”- ‘Jordan’s Facebook Live interview’, 2020.“We have moved in the right direction, and there have been improvements, but we still have a long ways to go in the country.““Some people resented the fact I was trying to break a white man’s record.““There wasn’t much white people would allow us to do in those days.““So as long as there’s a chance that maybe I can hammer out a little justice now and then, or a little opportunity here and there, I intend to do as I always have – keep swinging.”- ‘I Had a Hammer: The Hank Aaron Story’.“You could be a schoolteacher or an athlete to get away from the manual labor and servant-type jobs, but there wasn’t much else they were going to allow you [to] do.“Interesting Hank Aaron QuotesDuring a major-league career spanning 23 seasons, Hank Aaron was picked for 25 All-Star Games. His tenure with the Milwaukee Braves (1954-74; now the Atlanta Braves) featured a World Series championship in 1957. Hank Aaron retired after playing for the Milwaukee Brewers in 1976 and was inducted into the Baseball Hall Of Fame in 1982.“I don’t see pitches down the middle anymore - not even in batting practice.““I felt like he had been through so much on the field and did so many things that required me to be where I was.”- ‘Jordan’s Facebook Live interview’, 2020.“I don’t feel right unless I have a sport to play or at least a way to work up a sweat.““Once the record was mine, I had to use it like a Louisville Slugger. I believed, and still do, that there was a reason why I was chosen to break the record.”- ‘I Had a Hammer: The Hank Aaron Story’.“I like those lefties, but when you’re hitting, all pitchers look alike. I don’t care too much who’s throwing or what he throws.““The pitcher has got only a ball. I’ve got a bat. So the percentage in weapons is in my favor and I let the fellow with the ball do the fretting.““I feel it’s my task to carry on where Jackie Robinson left off, and I only know of one way to go about it. It’s the only way I’ve ever had of dealing with things like fastballs and bigotry – keep swinging at them.”- ‘I Had a Hammer: The Hank Aaron Story’.“Jackie was speaking at a drugstore, and I said, ‘I’m not going to get this opportunity again, so I better take my chances and listen to Jackie Robinson now.’ Little did I know, I got front row seats, and next to me was my father.““I just thought that there was absolutely nothing that would stand in my way to keep me from fulfilling my goal of trying to be the best ballplayer at that time that I possibly could.”- ‘Jordan’s Facebook Live interview’, 2020.“When my timing is off, I have trouble; when it ain’t, I don’t.““Too bad integration didn’t come sooner, because there were so many ballplayers that could have made the major leagues.““It took me seventeen years to get three thousand hits in baseball. I did it in one afternoon on the golf course.““People were not ready to accept me as a baseball player.““I tell young people — including my granddaughter — there is no shortcut in life. You have to take it one step at a time and work hard. And you have to give back.““That’s why, you look back, and - not to take away anything from Babe Ruth or some of those other guys - they didn’t play against the greatest ballplayers in the world.““Making the majors is not as hard as staying there, staying interested day after day. It’s like being married. The hardest part is to stay married.““The way I see it, it’s a great thing to be the man who hit the most home runs, but it’s a greater thing to be the man who did the most with the home runs he hit.”- ‘I Had a Hammer: The Hank Aaron Story’.“Consistency is what counts; you have to be able to do things over and over again.“Famous Hank Aaron QuotesWith one of the most consistent offensive performances in baseball history, Hank Aaron became the all-time home run champion. He established most major league batting records, demonstrating an unassuming approach that became his hallmark.“I’ve tried a lot of things in the off-season, but the only thing I really know is baseball.““The first thing baseball wants to do is make you a superstar and then say that you owe baseball something. I don’t owe baseball anything. Baseball owes me.““Didn’t come up here to read. Came up here to hit.”-‘Bartlett’s Book of Anecdotes’.“I would like people not to think in terms of the 755 home runs I hit but think in terms of what I’ve accomplished off the field and some of the things I stood for.““The triple is the most exciting play in baseball. Home runs win a lot of games, but I never understood why fans are so obsessed with them.““I looked for the same pitch my whole career, a breaking ball. All of the time. I never worried about the fastball. They couldn’t throw it past me, none of them.““I don’t do it on my own. God is my strength. He gave me a good body and some talent and the freedom to develop it. He helps me when things go wrong. He forgives me when I fall on my face. He lights the way.““Guessing what the pitcher is going to throw is eighty percent of being a successful hitter. The other twenty percent is just execution.““My motto was always to keep swinging. Whether I was in a slump or feeling badly or having trouble off the field, the only thing to do was keep swinging.““The easiest part of that whole thing, chasing the Babe’s record, was playing the game itself. The hardest thing was after the game was over, dealing with the press. They could never understand.““I’m hoping someday that some kid, black or white, will hit more home runs than myself. Whoever it is, I’d be pulling for him.““Baseball needs me because it needs somebody to stir the pot, and I need it because it’s my life. It’s the means I have to make a little difference in the world.““I’m not trying to make anyone forget the Babe, but only to remember Hank Aaron.““I never smile when I have a bat in my hands. That’s when you’ve got to be serious. When I get out on the field, nothing’s a joke to me. I don’t feel like I should walk around with a smile on my face.““You can only milk a cow so long; then you’re left holding the pail.“Inspirational Hank Aaron QuotesHank Aaron was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush in 2002 for his humanitarian and philanthropic endeavors. In 2005, he earned the NAACP Legal Defense Fund’s Thurgood Marshall Lifetime Achievement Award, which also inaugurated the Hank Aaron Humanitarian in Sports Award.“I never doubted my ability, but when you hear all your life you’re inferior, it makes you wonder if the other guys have something you’ve never seen before. If they do, I’m still looking for it.““You may not think you’re going to make it. You may want to quit. But if you keep your eye on the ball, you can accomplish anything.““There’s only one way to break the color line. Be good. I mean, play good. Play so good that they can’t remember what color you were before the season started.”- Ty Crowell Company, Furman Bisher (1974).“Failure is a part of success. There is no such thing as a bed of roses all your life. But failure will never stand in the way of success if you learn from it.““I need to depend on someone who is bigger, stronger, and wiser than I am.““What you do with your life and how you do it is not only a reflection on you but on your family and all of those institutions that have helped to make you who you are.““There is no logical reason why girls shouldn’t play baseball. It’s not all that tough.““She always told me and taught me that no matter how much I succeed, or [how much] success that I have in life, there is somebody that needs help a little bit better than you do.”- ‘Jordan’s Facebook Live interview’, 2020.“In playing ball, and in life, a person occasionally gets the opportunity to do something great. When that time comes, only two things matter: being prepared to seize the moment and having the courage to take your best swing.““On the field, blacks have been able to be super giants. But, once our playing days are over, this is the end of it, and we go back to the back of the bus again.““The thing I like about baseball is that it’s one-on-one. You stand up there alone, and if you make a mistake, it’s your mistake. If you hit a home run, it’s your home run.““She said to always remember that if you can reach back and help pull somebody else out of a hole, or help somebody get to the point where they can enjoy themselves, then you’ve done what the good Lord wants you to do, and that’s to help others.”- ‘Jordan’s Facebook Live interview’, 2020.“You got to play a hundred and fifty games a year, so pick your spots. You can miss two games a month, so pick the days you’re gonna be hurt, or you’re gonna rest, or you’re gonna have a drink or two. The rest of the time, be on that field.”
Henry Louis Aaron (February 5, 1934–January 22, 2021), nicknamed Hammer, was a right fielder in MLB from 1954 - 1976.
