Hank Aaron took the field at Historic Grayson Stadium
Hank Aaron took the field at Historic Grayson Stadium By Lyndsey Gough | January 22, 2021 at 5:33 PM EST - Updated January 22 at 6:31 PM
SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - Baseball and the nation lost a legend Friday. Hall of Famer Hank Aaron died at the age of 86.
There are sports stars and then there are giants that transcend sports. Aaron was the latter.
Before he was in the Hall, Hammerin’ Hank was a 19-year-old second baseman who took the field at Historic Grayson Stadium in Savannah for the Jacksonville Braves.
“There are so many people that have been in this stadium, but on these grounds, all the way back from the 1920′s, and to think someone like that- Hank Aaron - would have played here as a 19-year-old in the 50′s when this place had just been remodeled, it’s just remarkable. That’s why when you walk in this place, you can kind of feel these bricks and this place like breath that life,” Savannah Bananas Pre
Reaction to Hank Aaron’s death from former presidents to fellow Hall of Famers to everyone who knew him followed a theme: how the one-time home run king handled the racism he faced on the way to passing Babe Ruth’s hallowed record nearly 50 years.