Hank Aaron Dead at 86

Hank Aaron — one of the greatest baseball players of all time — has died, his daughter confirmed to WSB-TV in Atlanta. He was 86.

The Hall of Famer reportedly passed away Friday morning. We’re working on the details.

Hammerin’ Hank is widely considered one of the greatest baseball players of all time — he famously broke Babe Ruth‘s home run record of 714 in 1973.

During his legendary career, he made 25 All-Star teams and won the NL MVP in 1957.

Aaron made his MLB debut when he was only 20 — launching a 23-year career that would go down in the record books.

He retired from playing in 1976 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown in 1982. He’s also in the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame and the team retired his #44 uniform.

Among his many career highlights, a World Series victory in 1957 — the same year he won National League MVP. He also won 3 Gold Gloves, 2 NL batting titles and led the NL in home runs in 4 separate years.

Hank finished his career with an unreal 755 home runs — a record that lasted decades until Barry Bonds broke it in 2007.

Aaron was a hero right up until the end of his life — earlier this month, Hank and his wife Billye went to the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta to get their COVID vaccine shots in the hopes of inspiring other Black Americans to follow his lead.

Aaron started off in the Negro Leagues, signing with the Indianapolis Clowns in 1951. He played with the team for 3 months — earning just $200 per month. He signed with the Atlanta Braves in 1952 and kicked around the minor leagues until 1954.