QUESTION OF THE WEEK

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Baseball legend Hank Aaron died on Friday at the age of 86.
Should MLB retire his number?  Explain.

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15 thoughts on “QUESTION OF THE WEEK”

  1. Why now rather than when he was alive? If they did it now, it would be a slap in the face of all Latino players that have been asking for Clemente’s 21 to be retired for a few years. Why not retire 20 throughout MLB in honor of Frank Robinson being the first African American manager? I feel Aaron is well honored by having an award named for him.

    Liked by 6 people

  2. I’m becoming less and less in favor of retiring numbers anymore. I have come to conclude that once a number is retired, it tends to be forgotten, oddly enough. Unless I am focused on the outfield wall, nothing triggers memories of key players during the course of the game. But when I see a number being worn by a current player, I think back on the great ones who wore that number. For the Tigers, that means #29 (Lolich), #25 (Cash), and #24 (Stanley) will always flip the memory switch. Sometimes, another great one will come along to add to the allure of the number, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Retire it, and that becomes impossible.

    Liked by 6 people

    • Yes, but not at the MLB level. Just retire them at the team level. Interestingly, if Seattle were to retire Ichiro’s #51, they would need to simultaneously retire Randy Johnson’s #51, too!

      Liked by 1 person

  4. I don’t believe MLB should retire Henry Aaron’s number. Aaron played 23 seasons. He won the MVP in 1957. The MLB Network had a program honoring Aaron yesterday. In the program was a video of Aaron saying: “If I had been white,,I would have won two or three more MVP awards. In face, during Aaron’s 23 year career, black players won the National League MVP award 15 years. When. MLB retires the numbers of Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente, Bob Gibson, Frank Robinson ,Ernie Banks, Roy Campanella, Joe Morgan, Willie McCovey, Don Newcombe, and Orlando Cepeda, that would be the appropriate time to retire Henry Aaron’s number.

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  5. Retiring a number used to be a big deal when only the absolute best were so honored. I certainly think Hank deserves it because he wasn’t just a generational player but one for the ages.

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Honestly. No. When does it end? Retire Clemente`s number? Willie Mays number? Frank Robinson`s number? Babe Ruth`s number? Looking back, it`s unfortunate that Hank didn`t hit a few more homers as a Negro Leaguer as it would`ve been enough to overtake Barry Bonds as the home run king. Hank Aaron should now be officially and widely recognized as having 760 home runs.

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  7. The Hammer retired when I was 4 years old, but I have always been in awe of the man. The home run record and his remarkable longevity are only a part of the story. He was pure class, a gentleman who conducted himself in such a dignified way. I’ve read so many books about him, and from a young age I was so puzzled and saddened by the racism and vitriol that he had to deal with. If anyone is worthy of the honor, it would be #44. However, as others have mentioned, Roberto Clemente checks many of those boxes too. I think there are other ways to honor such titans of the game without resorting to retiring their numbers around the league. Leave that to Jackie and #42.

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  9. No. Hammerin Hank hit a lot of home runs. He had a nice .305 BA and got 3,771 hits as a result. Those numbers got him into the HOF, but that shouldn’t be the thing that gets your number retired. Jackie Robinson’s #42 was retired because he broke the racial barrier, not because of his numbers.

    Liked by 2 people

  10. My first reaction? ‘Of course’, ‘absolutely’! And then, ‘not necessary’.
    Hank, Henry, Hammerin’ Hank, The Hammer. Pick the nickname and you have a definition of dignity, class, and respect, not to mention a historically great baseball career. I agree with other commenters that the number thing (besides Jackie) isn’t really worth the bother in the context of the overall game, but more sensible at the club level.
    The heroes of my youth: Hank, Willie, Whitey, Al, Mickey, Ted, Stan, etc, etc,- no numbers are required for me to feel their impact in my love of the Game.

    Liked by 2 people

  11. It is exactly the sort of gesture that MLB loves–totally symbolic, cost free, accomplishing nothing. Putting a “44” on every outfield wall is exactly the same sort of meaningless window dressing.

    Liked by 6 people

  12. I agree with most of the posters that Aaron’s number should not be retired. It’s the same debating as to HOF credentials. Who should be next. If you keep retiring numbers, players will eventually have to wear letters instead of numbers on their uniforms and who wants that.

    Liked by 3 people

  13. Posting just Henry Aaron’s number in any American League ballpark would be problematic because what player would instantly come to mind seeing # 44 ? Reggie Jackson ! Numbers are one thing, seeing the player’s name something completely different. In the household where I grew up, it was everything Tigers and everything American League because we lived where they played. The National League might as well have been foreign unless we tuned in NBC’s Game of the Week. Not seeing Aaron play, we American Leaguers missed something special.

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