Hank Aaron, one of MLB’s great home runners and Hall of Fame legend, dies at 86

Legendary Major League Baseball player Henry “Hank” Aaron died Friday morning, confirmed his daughter in Atlanta and was later announced by the Atlanta Braves. He was 86 years old.

The reasons for his death have not been revealed. With his passing, he joins an extensive list of baseball glories who have died in less than a year, most recently Don Sutton on Tuesday and Tom Lasorda on Thursday, January 7th. They both played for the Dodgers.

Aaron participated in 25 All-Star games and for decades was considered the king of home runs. He played in the major leagues from 1954 to 1976, almost entirely with the Braves, first in Milwaukee and then in Atlanta.

He also participated in the Professional Baseball League of Puerto Rico, where he wore the Criollos de Caguas uniform in the 1953-54 season. He hit .322, hit four rounds from home and drove in 42 rounds, said historian Jorge Colón Delgado.

In 1974 he passed to Babe Ruth to take the throne on the home run list with 715 of his career. He finished with 755, a figure that lasted until 31 years later, Barry Bonds replaced him in 2014 and set the current mark of 762.

Aaron remains the all-time leader in RBI with 2,297 and total bases at 6,856. He ranks third in hits with 3,772. In addition, he won three gold gloves, two batting titles (1956 and 1959) and was the most valuable player in the National League (MVP) in 1957.

He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982.