Please claim your Hank Aaron Jersey Avatar

<align=center>It is with great sadness that the baseball community learned this morning of the passing of baseball icon, Hank Aaron. <br /> <br /> Aaron began his playing career in 1951 as a 17-year-old shortstop for the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro Leagues before signing with the Boston Braves. "Hammerin' Hank" began his MLB career in 1954 as a left fielder for the Milwaukee Braves. The following season, he switched to right field and began one of the greatest stretches of baseball dominance ever. He hit .314 and led the league in doubles in 1955. In 1956, he led the league in batting average (.328), hits (200), and doubles (34). The following season, he won the MVP Award, leading the league in home runs (44) and RBIs (132) while also batting .322. He capped off the regular season with the only pennant-clinching walk-off home run in a regular season game in MLB history before leading the Braves to a World Series victory over the Yankees in 1957. In 1958, he hit .326 with 30 home runs, leading the Braves to another NL pennant. In 1959, he led the league in batting average (.355), hits (223), slugging percentage (.636), and OPS (1.037) while also winning a Gold Glove Award and earning two All-Star appearances.<br /> <br /> Aaron continued his dominance over the next couple of seasons before having another career year in 1963. That year, he led the league in home runs (44), RBIs (130), runs (122), slugging percentage (.586), and OPS (.977) while also batting .319 and getting another All-Star nod. He led the league in home runs both of his first two seasons in Atlanta (1966 & 1967). Aaron switched to first base from 1971 to 1972, but continued to dominate and rack up accomplishments through his age 39 season (1973). <br /> <br /> Out of all of his accomplishments, Hammerin' Hank is best known for breaking Babe Ruth's career home run record. He finished the 1973 season one home run shy of the record before hitting No. 714 on his first swing of the 1974 season. On April 8, 1974, he hit No. 715, setting MLB's new career home run record. Prior to the 1975 season, he returned to Milwaukee via a trade to the Brewers, playing his final two seasons as a designated hitter before retiring after the 1976 season. After his playing career, he served as a Braves executive for over 30 years. He finished his career with 755 home runs, a record that stood until 2007.<br /> <br /> Aaron finished his 23-year career with a .305/.374/.555 triple slash line, 3,771 hits (third all-time), and a 143.1 bWAR (seventh all-time). He's also the all-time leader in RBIs (2,297) and total bases (6,856). Aaron earned All-Star appearances every year from 1955 to 1975 (25 in total) and earned MVP votes every year from 1955 to 1973, including winning the 1957 award to go along with seven other top-five finishes. In addition, he won three Gold Glove Awards in right field, four NL home run titles, and two NL batting titles. In 1982, he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame with 97.8% of the vote, second to only Ty Cobb at the time. His No. 44 was retired by the Braves and Brewers, and both of their stadiums feature statues of him at their entrances.<br /> <br /> In 1999, MLB created the Hank Aaron Award, given to the best hitters in each league. He is a member of the MLB All-Century Team. The street address of Turner Field, the Braves' stadium from 1997 to 2016, was 755 Hank Aaron Drive. The stadium for his hometown Mobile Bay Bears, a Double-A team, was named Hank Aaron Stadium. He threw out the ceremonial first pitch at All-Star Games at the Braves' Turner Field in 2000 and the Brewers' Miller Park in 2002.<br /> <br /> He was given the Presidential Citizens Medal in 2001 by Bill Clinton and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002 by George W. Bush. He was given the Vince Lombardi Award of Excellence in 2002, an honorary doctorate from Princeton University in 2011, and the Order of the Rising Sun from the Emperor of Japan in 2016. He has received countless other awards that will never begin to do justice to the baseball and cultural icon that Henry Louis Aaron was.<br /> <br /> To commemorate the life and career of Hank Aaron, one of the greatest to ever play the game, the BUNT team would like to invite users to claim a Hank Aaron Jersey Avatar.