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Foreword
- University of Wisconsin Press
- Chapter
- Additional Information
For nearly fifty years, I have been privileged to be Henry Aaron’s friend and one of his biggest fans. I watched him break into the majors in Milwaukee in 1954, sold him his first car, cheered him when he led the Braves to the 1957 World Series title, and proudly watched him break Babe Ruth’s career home run record in Atlanta in 1974. Then he came home to Milwaukee and, appropriately, finished his career with the Brewers in 1975 and 1976. He hit his final career home run at County Stadium. No other person has made and seen as much Milwaukee baseball history as Henry. He was not only one of the greatest players ever, but for the last quarter-century he has been a role model and ambassador for the Milwaukee Brewers as well as for Major League Baseball. Many people don’t realize that his career predates Milwaukee baseball. He was signed in 1952 by the Boston Braves, before they moved to Milwaukee , and spent two years in the Braves’ minor league system before reaching the majors. Until I read A Summer Up North, I thought that I knew everything about Henry’s career. It turns out that I knew little about one of the most important years of his life, 1952, when he made the leap from the Negro Leagues to the minor leagues. Jerry Poling’s very informative book about Aaron’s first year in the minors in Eau Claire—a great baseball training ground for many Braves players—helped me understand how Henry Aaron bridged the cultural foreword xi divide between growing up in the segregated South and playing in the North. That he did it in one important, sometimes trying, summer in Eau Claire gives me an even greater appreciation for one of my heroes. Henry Aaron was one of the most disciplined athletes, mentally and physically, I ever knew. He also is one of the greatest people I have ever had the good fortune to know. A Summer Up North will help you appreciate why. Allan H. (Bud) Selig Commissioner of Baseball xii foreword ...