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ATLANTA – Brian Snitker choked back tears as he remembered Hank Aaron’s affection for those who lacked his unmatched talent on the baseball field.
During his career after playing as the head of the Atlanta Braves’ farming system, the Hammer had a penchant for looking beyond the unmissable prospects.
“He’s always wanted to bring a player up, and he preferred it not to be the so-called bonus babies,” said Snitker, who has managed the Braves since 2016 and made his dugout debut thanks to Aaron. “He wanted to have this type of grinder, the guy who outshines.”
Snitker was among those who spoke Tuesday at a memorial service in honor of Aaron, who died last week of natural causes at the age of 86.
Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred, Hall of Fame member Chipper Jones and former Braves outfielder Marquis Grissom were among those speaking at the ceremony, which was held in front of a small, socially distanced crowd – including Aaron’s widow, Billye, and other family members – on the lobby directly behind the floor in Truist Park.
The remarks were made in an exhibit known as the Monument Garden, which features a statue of Aaron delivering the swing that produced 755 circuits.
Others sent in video tributes, including Baseball Hall of Fame members John Smoltz and Tom Glavine, former teammate Aaron and current Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker, reigning National League MVP Freddie Freeman, and former great Dale Murphy of the Braves, who won back-to-back MVP awards. In the 1980’s.
Aaron’s famous number 44 was painted in the dormant grass of the central field. Braves president Terry McGuirk noted the unusually warm January weather – the temperature soared in the ’60s – as a sign from above honoring one of the game’s greatest icons.
Noting the 10 Baseball Hall of Fame members who have died in the past year, Manfred said that Aaron “belongs to the Mount Rushmore of our sport. He stood – on and off the field – above all. other.”
Most of the memories have focused on Aaron’s humility and the impact he had after his retirement as a player in 1976. Few have referred to him as the one who eclipsed the circuit record. of Babe Ruth, or the unprecedented series of two decades of sustained excellence. this helped him establish several other brands that still exist today.
Snitker recalled being an indescribable minor glider who had a chance on another call when Aaron offered him his first managerial job in 1982 with the Anderson Braves, a Class A Sally League team.
“The reason I’m here today is because of Hank Aaron,” Snitker said, stopping to keep his cool.
Snitker worked in the dark of the minor league for most of his coaching and managerial career before eventually being called upon to skip the Braves at 60. Since then he has guided the team to three consecutive titles in NL East, earning the honors of NL Manager of the Year 2018.
“I’m going to miss the moments when he was passing by, coming to my desk and we could just sit and talk,” Snitker said. “I will miss the friend and mentor I had in my life.”
Jones recalled how Aaron pushed the Braves to select him with the first overall pick in the 1990 entry draft, when many viewed pitcher Todd Van Poppel as the best prospect.
“Hank played a very important role in making me an Atlanta Brave,” Jones said. “The Braves decision-makers room was divided over who they were going to take with their top pick. As legendary Boy Scout Paul Snyder once told me, the vote went to Hank. He paused, looked at everyone. people in the room, and he said, “You better get that boy out of Jones. I’ll never forget that. That comment must have carried some weight.”
Van Poppel didn’t do much in the big leagues, ending with a 40-52 record. Jones has spent his entire career with the Braves and was inducted into Cooperstown in 2018.
“His swing, his smile, his wit. They were all beautiful.”
Chipper Jones, Braves Hall of Fame third baseman
Jones said he had previously asked Aaron – who once played with dominant pitchers such as Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson and Juan Marichal – if he had ever been intimidated at home plate.
“He said, ‘Chipper, I don’t fear any man when I have a bat in my hand,’ Jones said with a smile.
According to the former Braves third baseman, Aaron could be summed up in one word.
Beautiful.
“His swing, his smile, his wit,” Jones said. “They were all beautiful.”
A private funeral service for Aaron will be held on Wednesday. He will be buried in historic South-View Cemetery, the city’s oldest black cemetery, where he will be interred alongside civil rights leaders such as John Lewis and Julian Bond.
The Braves plan to honor Aaron in the coming season. McGuirk announced the first of these initiatives: a donation of $ 1 million to establish the Henry Louis Aaron Fund, which will work to increase minority participation among players, managers, coaches and front office staff.
It was a question Aaron was very interested in throughout his life. He has often criticized the lack of black managers and general managers in Major League Baseball. He worried that fewer black people were playing the game.
The Braves ‘donation will be matched by $ 500,000 each from the MLB and the Players’ Association.
Manfred noted a “strong desire to continue the good work he has done throughout his life, especially in encouraging minority participation in baseball.”
Grissom said he will always remember the advice Aaron gave him while studying at Florida A&M, when the team made an impromptu visit to the Hammer’s home in Atlanta on their way to a game in North Carolina. .
“If you have a chance, do your best,” Grissom recalls, telling Aaron. “Those words stayed with me. They started a fire in me that is still kindled today.”
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