In the pantheon of all-time great Atlanta Braves players (and baseball players in general really), Hank Aaron stands out at the top. Beloved by fans everywhere, Aaron's 23 year Hall of Fame career is filled with insane seasons and a consistently high level of production that isn't likely to be equaled anytime soon. When Aaron passed away in 2021, the game of baseball was collectively heartbroken and he is sorely missed even now.
The seminal moment of Aaron's career (of which there were many choices) was when he passed Babe Ruth on the all-time home run leaderboard on April 8, 1974. Recently, it was revealed that the high-end auction house Heritage Auctions was going to be auctioning off mementos from the game including the bases that were on the field as well as a 1974 jersey of Aaron's.
However, things have taken a bizarre and dark turn with the auction as not only have the Braves questioned the authenticity of some of the items in the auction including the bases, but the team also sent a cease and desist letter to Heritage Auctions to try and stop the items from being sold.
Braves attempting to stop auction of Hank Aaron memorabilia
There is a lot to unpack here and we are relying on information from two sources that are telling two very different stories. According to the Braves, not only were some of the items in the auction illegally removed from the stadium at the time of the game, but they also believe that the bases in particular may not be the actual bases from Aaron's record-breaking game.
In the Braves' letter, they indicated that the third base from the game had previously been donated to the National Hall of Fame in Cooperstown by Aaron in the early 1980's and that the second base was auctioned in 2002 which begs the question of where this "new" second base came from. Atlanta clearly is angling to get any items wrongfully taken from the team returned to them, but it is bizarre that the bases, which were about to fetch tens of thousands of dollars, have questionable provenance.
Heritage Auctions, for the moment, is standing by the authenticity of the items and has turned the issue over to their lawyers. It is a shame that the conversation has shifted towards some pretty unsavory stuff instead of celebrating the legacy that Aaron left behind, but money always seems to get in the way of everything.