Baseball Hall of Fame slugger Hank Aaron died Friday in his sleep . He was 86. The Mobile, Alabama, native is remembered as one of the greatest hitters of all time. He spent his entire adult life in baseball, as a player and in the Atlanta Braves' front office. Take a look back at some of the greatest moments from his career, including the chase for his record-breaking 715th career home run.
Aaron made his MLB debut with the Milwaukee Braves on April 13, 1954, at age 20. He spent 21 seasons with the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves organization, then finished his career with the Milwaukee Brewers. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images Aaron and his first wife, Barbara, had five children together -- Gaile, Hank Jr., Dorinda and twins Lary and Gary. Gary died in the hospital shortly after birth. Aaron also adopted his second wife Billye Williams' daughter, Ceci. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images Related: Aaron's impact is measured in more than home runs
Aaron taught himself to hit using a cross-handed grip. It was corrected by the Braves, and his power skyrocketed. Aaron said after his first home run derby in 1958 that he changed his swing because "they never had a show called 'Singles Derby.'" Bettmann Archive/Getty Images Fellow slugger Willie Mays and Aaron share the record for All-Star Game appearances with 24 each. On Aug. 6, 1972, Aaron hit his 661st career home run, passing Mays on the all-time list. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images The three-time Gold Glove winner ended the 1973 season with 713 career home runs, one short of tying Babe Ruth's record. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images Roger Maris, right, broke Babe Ruth's then-record of 60 home runs in a season on the last day of the 1961 campaign. Thirteen years later, Aaron was looking to knock out Ruth's record for career homers. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images "Here's the pitch by Downing. Swinging. There's a drive into left-center field! That ball is gonna be ... outta here! It's gone! It's 715!" Braves play-by-play man Milo Hamilton called. "There's a new home run champion of all time, and it's Henry Aaron!" Harry Harrris/AP Photo Aaron finally reached the 715-homer milestone on April 8, 1974. The fourth-inning shot came off Al Downing in front of the home fans in Atlanta. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images Related: Baseball world and beyond honor Hank Aaron
As Aaron got closer to the record, he received nasty, racist letters. When he hit No. 715, Vin Scully said this: "[T]hat poker face of Aaron shows the tremendous strain and relief of what it must have been like to live with for the past several months." Bettmann Archive/Getty Images Aaron didn't stop at 715. By the end of the season, he had hit 733 career homers. A month later, Atlanta traded him to Milwaukee, where he played two more seasons and hit 22 more dingers. Bruce Bennett Studios/Getty Images Aaron's No. 44 is retired by the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers organizations. "Hammerin' Hank" led the National League in home runs four times and won two NL batting titles in his career. He hit 40 home runs in eight different seasons. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images When his playing career ended, Aaron rejoined the Braves as an executive. He was throughout his life a civil rights activist and community organizer. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images Aaron's home run record held until 2007, when it was broken by Barry Bonds, but because of Bonds' admitted steroid use, many people still see Aaron as the rightful home run king. Monica M. Davey/AFP/Getty Images
