Chicago White Sox mourn passing of baseball legend Hank Aaron

Today, we mourn the passing of an icon. Sometimes, there are players who were simply “bigger than baseball”. That applies to Atlanta Braves legend, Henry Aaron. He passed away on Friday which is news that naturally sends shockwaves across the baseball community. The Chicago White Sox, amongst the rest of the teams in the league, are paying their respects to a legend of the game and of the human race.

Of course, Aaron was well known for being the home run king for a very long time. He broke Babe Ruth’s record of 714 home runs when he hit his 715th on April 8th, 1974. It was a record that stood for a very long time. Many years later, Barry Bonds broke his record and is the current home run king to this day. With all of the success that Hank Aaron had on the field, he was much more than an all-time great baseball player.

Everyone who knew him, maybe even briefly, acknowledges that he was simply a great man. He never complained about the way anything went down, he just wanted to be remembered as a great baseball player and person. He got his wish.

On the field, his success was undeniable. He went on to hit 755 career home runs which as mentioned before, stood at the top for many decades. He also had a .305/.374/.555 slash line with an OPS of .928. His career numbers there look like an MVP one-off season for a player in 2021. All of that led to a career WAR of 143.1 and naturally, a Hall of Fame induction.

Aaron won the World Series in 1957 with the Milwaukee Braves, the same year he won his only career MVP. In addition to those achievements, he was a 25-time all-star, a three-time Gold Glove winner, and a two-time batting champion. With all of these decorations, you can see that he is one of the greatest players of all time.

The Chicago White Sox and some former players mourn his passing online.

Those are some significant names in the history of the Chicago White Sox. They all clearly had a profound respect for Hank Aaron and all that he meant to the game of baseball. The White Sox organization didn’t play against Aaron too much because he was only in the American League for two years. He played against them 19 times and it was the only team he ever faced that didn’t allow him to hit a home run.

It is a tough day for the sport of baseball. He was one of the best players and people the sport has ever had the grace of knowing. The game will never be the same without him there watching but we can appreciate all that he meant while he was here. Rest in peace, Hank. You were the best.