The next 1971 "Baseball's Greatest Moments" custom created for my new thread celebrating my favorite Topps odd-ball set in one celebrating the great Hank Aaron and his 500th home run, hit in 1968:
On July 14th of ‘68, Aaron came into the game against the San Francisco
Giants with 499, until he connected off of reigning National League Cy
Young winner Mike McCormick in the third-inning for a three-run shot.
Of course, playing for the other team was Willie Mays, who was (at the time) one of only six players with 500+ homers in MLB history, along with Aaron’s former teammate Eddie Mathews, who reached the milestone the previous season while with the Houston Astros.
Of course, even though Aaron was already 34 years old, he wasn’t nearly done, as he’d go one to post five consecutive 30+ homer seasons, with three of them more than 40, including what would end up being a career-high 47 in 1971 at the age of 37!
The man was not just about homers however, as evidenced by his 3771 hits, 2174 runs scored, 624 doubles and 2297 runs batted in along with a .305 career average.
All...Time...Great!
Of course, playing for the other team was Willie Mays, who was (at the time) one of only six players with 500+ homers in MLB history, along with Aaron’s former teammate Eddie Mathews, who reached the milestone the previous season while with the Houston Astros.
Of course, even though Aaron was already 34 years old, he wasn’t nearly done, as he’d go one to post five consecutive 30+ homer seasons, with three of them more than 40, including what would end up being a career-high 47 in 1971 at the age of 37!
The man was not just about homers however, as evidenced by his 3771 hits, 2174 runs scored, 624 doubles and 2297 runs batted in along with a .305 career average.
All...Time...Great!
