ATLANTA — Former baseball commissioner Bud Selig remembered Hank Aaron on Wednesday as "the greatest player of our generation," but, more importantly, also a "great and wonderful human being."
Selig, who befriended Aaron as a young man before his foray into baseball, said one of his most profound memories was getting a cheap ticket to a Milwaukee Braves game in 1957 when Aaron hit an extra innings, game-winning home run to send the team to the World Series.
He shared how the image of Aaron, "deliriously happy, hoisted on the shoulders of his teammates being carried off the field" remained "indelibly imprinted in my memory."
And he noted that the New York Times front page, the next day, featured that picture of a Black man being carried by his white teammates in celebration as it also carried a picture from Arkansas showing protests against school integration in that state's capital.
And he recalled a similar similar image when Aaron broke Babe Ruth's home run record in 1974, facing incredible racial hatred along the way.
"Henry had received horrific hate mail over the years. He showed me some of the vile mail, it was shocking, and demonstrated how only a person with his great inner strength and determination could overcome the hate mail he did," Selig said.
The former commissioner called Aaron a "wonderful ambassador for the game, always willing to do whatever he could to make baseball better and more importantly, more relevant."
"Henry was a man of grace, a man of patience, a man of tolerance, remarkable dignity under many tough situations, integrity and loyalty," Selig said. "Henry we're gonna miss you, we'll never forget you, but we'll always be grateful for you showing all of us how to chase our dreams."