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50th anniversary of Hank Aaron’s 500th home run

Baseball great Henry Aaron hit his 500th career home run July 14, 1968. Aaron achieved the milestone with a three-run homer in the third inning off Mike McCormick of the Giants. Aaron became the seventh major league player to reach 500 home runs. Aaron hit his 600th homer on April 27, 1971, also against the Giants. The opposing pitcher was Gaylord Perry. Aaron was the third player to reach 600 home runs, behind Babe Ruth and Willie Mays. On July 21, 1973, Aaron became the second player to reach 700 homers
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July 14, 2018

On July 14, 1968, at the old Atlanta Stadium, Braves outfielder Henry Aaron became the seventh major league player to reach 500 career home runs.

Aaron hit a homer off San Francisco Giants left-hander Mike McCormick. His three-run shot broke open a scoreless game in the third inning and put the Braves on their way to a 4-2 victory.

Ron Reed was the winning pitcher for the Braves, and Cecil Upshaw recorded the save.

Check out the video above to see seven things to know about Aaron’s milestone.

About the Author

David Wellham has worked as an editor and content producer at the AJC since 2006, but his knowledge of sports in metro Atlanta and Georgia dates to much earlier. He uses his institutional knowledge to help the AJC provide in-depth coverage of area sports and sports teams. David can be reached at 404-526-5424 and dwellham@ajc.com.

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