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Hank Aaron Award

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The Hank Aaron Award is given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players selected as the top hitter in each league, as voted on by baseball fans and members of the media. It was introduced in 1999 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Hank Aaron 's surpassing of Babe Ruth 's career home run mark of 714 home runs. The award was the first major award to be introduced by Major League Baseball in 19 years.

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52-450: For the 1999 season, a winner was selected using an objective points system. Hits, home runs , and runs batted in (RBI) were given certain point values and the winner was the player who had the highest tabulated points total. In 2000, the system was changed to a ballot in which each MLB team's radio and television play-by-play broadcasters and color analysts voted for three players in each league. Their first-place vote receives five points,

104-410: A foul ball is a batted ball that does not entitle the batter to attempt to reach first base. Whether a batted ball is fair or foul is determined by the location of the ball at the appropriate reference point, as follows: If any part of the ball is on or above fair territory at the appropriate reference point, it is fair; otherwise, it is foul. Fair territory or fair ground is defined as the area of

156-408: A home run , homerun or homer (abbreviated HR ) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run is usually achieved by hitting the ball over the outfield fence between the foul poles (or hitting either foul pole) without the ball touching

208-415: A ball-in-play leaves the playing field without ever touching the ground). In the latter case, all base runners including the batter are allowed to cross the plate. A leadoff home run is a home run hit by the first batter of a team, the leadoff hitter of the first inning of the game. In MLB (major league Baseball), Rickey Henderson holds the career record with 81 lead-off home runs. Craig Biggio holds

260-480: A different venue) each year, with Aaron himself presenting the awards until the 2019 World Series and his death in 2021 (except 2018 when it is handed out in Game 3 and 2019 when it is handed out in Game 2). The first winners of the award were Manny Ramirez and Sammy Sosa in 1999, while the most recent winners are Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani . Alex Rodriguez won the award four times, the most of any player. Ohtani

312-464: A home run include "homer", "round tripper", "four-bagger", "big fly", "goner" "dinger", "long ball", "jack", "quadruple", "moon shot", "bomb", "tater", and "blast", while a player hitting a home run may be said to have "gone deep" or "gone yard". A home run is most often scored when the ball is hit over the outfield wall between the foul poles (in fair territory ) before it touches the ground ( in flight ), and without being caught or deflected back onto

364-620: A lead change in each instance. On July 23, 2017, Whit Merrifield , Jorge Bonifacio , and Eric Hosmer of the Kansas City Royals hit back-to-back-to-back home runs in the fourth inning against the Chicago White Sox. The Royals went on to win the game 5–4. On June 20, 2018, George Springer , Alex Bregman , and Jose Altuve of the Houston Astros hit back-to-back-to-back home runs in the sixth inning against

416-409: A lead. If the home team has two outs in the inning, and the game is tied, the game will officially end either the moment the batter successfully reaches first base or the moment the runner touches home plate—whichever happens last. However, this is superseded by the "ground rule", which provides automatic doubles (when a ball-in-play hits the ground first then leaves the playing field) and home runs (when

468-746: A walk-off grand slam in Game 1 of the World Series , leading the Los Angeles Dodgers to win against the New York Yankees 3-6 in the bottom of the 10th inning. Freeman is the only player in MLB history to do so in the World Series. These types of home runs are characterized by the specific game situation in which they occur, and can theoretically occur on either an outside-the-park or inside-the-park home run. A walk-off home run

520-531: A walk-off inside-the-park grand slam in a 9–8 Pittsburgh Pirates win over the Chicago Cubs , at Forbes Field . On April 23, 1999, Fernando Tatís made history by hitting two grand slams in one inning, both against Chan Ho Park of the Los Angeles Dodgers. With this feat, Tatís also set a Major League record with 8 RBI in one inning. On July 29, 2003, against the Texas Rangers, Bill Mueller of

572-423: Is a home run hit by the home team in the bottom of the ninth inning, any extra inning , or other scheduled final inning, which gives the home team the lead and thereby ends the game. The term is attributed to Hall of Fame relief pitcher Dennis Eckersley , so named because after the run is scored, the losing team has to "walk off" the field. Two World Series have ended via the "walk-off" home run. The first

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624-399: Is allowed to reach over the wall to try to catch the ball as long as his feet are on or over the field during the attempt, and if the fielder successfully catches the ball while it is in flight the batter is out, even if the ball had already passed the vertical plane of the wall. However, since the fielder is not part of the field, a ball that bounces off a fielder (including his glove) and over

676-536: Is labeled an error by the official scorer, a home run is not scored. Instead, it is scored as a single , double , or triple , and the batter-runner and any applicable preceding runners are said to have taken all additional bases on error. All runs scored on such a play, however, still count. An example of an unexpected bounce occurred during the 2007 Major League Baseball All-Star Game at AT&T Park in San Francisco on July 10, 2007. Ichiro Suzuki of

728-418: Is never used. Instead, it's called a "grand slam". Hitting a grand slam is the best possible result for the batter's turn at bat and the worst possible result for the pitcher and his team. A grand slam occurs when the bases are "loaded" (that is, there are base runners standing at first, second, and third base) and the batter hits a home run. According to The Dickson Baseball Dictionary , the term originated in

780-527: Is recorded as having given up a hit and a run, with additional runs charged for each base-runner that scores. Home runs are among the most popular aspects of baseball and, as a result, prolific home run hitters are usually the most popular among fans and consequently the highest paid by teams—hence the old saying, "Home run hitters drive Cadillacs , and singles hitters drive Fords " (coined, circa 1948, by veteran pitcher Fritz Ostermueller , by way of mentoring his young teammate, Ralph Kiner ). Nicknames for

832-476: Is the first player to win the award in both leagues. The winner with the most hits was Ronald Acuña Jr. in 2023, Barry Bonds in 2001 had the most home runs, and Manny Ramírez in 1999 had the most RBIs. Players from the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays have won the award five times, the most of any team. The Hank Aaron Award has a maritaca granite base and an antique bat and banner combination on

884-549: Is the only major league game to begin and end with back-to-back home runs. On May 5, 2019, Eugenio Suarez , Jesse Winker and Derek Dietrich of the Cincinnati Reds, hit back-to-back-to-back home runs on three straight pitches against Jeff Samardzija of the San Francisco Giants in the bottom of the first inning. On October 30, 2021, Dansby Swanson and Jorge Soler hit back-to-back home runs for

936-656: The 2007 American League Championship Series , also against the Indians. The Indians returned the favor in Game One of the 2016 American League Division Series . Twice in MLB history have two brothers hit back-to-back home runs. On April 23, 2013, brothers Melvin Upton Jr. (formerly B.J. Upton) and Justin Upton hit back-to-back home runs. The first time was on September 15, 1938, when Lloyd Waner and Paul Waner performed

988-583: The American League team hit a fly ball that caromed off the right-center field wall in the opposite direction from where National League right fielder Ken Griffey Jr. was expecting it to go. By the time the ball was relayed, Ichiro had already crossed the plate standing up. This was the first inside-the-park home run in All-Star Game history, and led to Suzuki being named the game's Most Valuable Player . Home runs are often characterized by

1040-615: The Atlanta Braves off Houston Astros pitcher Cristian Javier to give the Braves a 3–2 lead in the bottom of the seventh in Game 4 of the World Series . On October 18, 2024, Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton hit back-to-back quadruples to take the lead in a game of the American League Championship Series. The record for consecutive home runs by a batter under any circumstances is four. Of

1092-532: The Boston Red Sox became the only player in major league history to hit two grand slams in one game from opposite sides of the plate; he hit three home runs in that game, and his two grand slams were in consecutive at-bats. On August 25, 2011, the New York Yankees became the first team to hit three grand slams in one game vs the Oakland A's. The Yankees eventually won the game 22–9, after trailing 7–1. On October 25th, 2024, Freddie Freeman made history by hitting

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1144-584: The Boston Red Sox were trailing the New York Yankees 3–0 when Manny Ramirez , J. D. Drew , Mike Lowell and Jason Varitek hit consecutive home runs to put them up 4–3. They eventually went on to win the game 7–6 after a three-run home run by Mike Lowell in the bottom of the seventh inning. On September 18, 2006, trailing 9–5 to the San Diego Padres in the ninth inning, Jeff Kent , J. D. Drew , Russell Martin , and Marlon Anderson of

1196-602: The National League career record with 53, fourth overall to Henderson, George Springer with 60, and Alfonso Soriano with 54. As of August 21 2024, George Springer holds the career record among active players, with 60 leadoff home runs, which also ranks him second all-time. In 1996, Brady Anderson set a Major League record by hitting a lead-off home run in four consecutive games. When consecutive batters hit home runs, it's referred to as back-to-back home runs. The home runs are still considered back-to-back even if

1248-682: The Philadelphia Phillies . Nolan Arenado , Nolan Gorman , Juan Yepez , and Dylan Carlson hit consecutive home runs during the first inning off starting pitcher Kyle Gibson . On June 9, 2019, the Washington Nationals hit four in a row against the San Diego Padres in Petco Park as Howie Kendrick , Trea Turner , Adam Eaton and Anthony Rendon homered off pitcher Craig Stammen . Stammen became

1300-446: The field . Inside-the-park home runs where the batter reaches home safely while the baseball is in play on the field are infrequent. In very rare cases, a fielder attempting to catch a ball in flight may misplay it and knock it over the outfield fence, resulting in a home run. An official scorer will credit the batter with a hit , a run scored, and a run batted in (RBI), as well as an RBI for each runner on base . The pitcher

1352-447: The playing field between the two foul lines, and includes the foul lines themselves and the foul poles . However, certain exceptions exist: On a fair ball, the batter attempts to reach first base or any subsequent base, runners attempt to advance and fielders try to record outs . A fair ball is considered a live ball until the ball becomes dead by leaving the field or any other method. This baseball -related article

1404-458: The 17th; walked as a pinch-hitter on the 18th; there was no game on the 19th; hit another pinch-homer on the 20th; homered and then was lifted for a pinch-runner after at least one walk, on the 21st; and homered after at least one walk on the 22nd. All in all, he had four walks interspersed among his four homers. Fair ball In baseball , a fair ball is a batted ball that entitles the batter to attempt to reach first base . By contrast,

1456-471: The 1951 National League pennant for the New York Giants , along with many other game-ending home runs that famously ended some of the most important and suspenseful baseball games. A walk-off home run over the fence is an exception to baseball's one-run rule. Normally if the home team is tied or behind in the ninth or extra innings, the game ends as soon as the home team scores enough runs to achieve

1508-473: The Los Angeles Dodgers hit back-to-back-to-back-to-back home runs to tie the game. After giving up a run in the top of the tenth, the Dodgers won the game in the bottom of the tenth, on a walk-off two-run home run by Nomar Garciaparra . J. D. Drew has been part of two different sets of back-to-back-to-back-to-back home runs. In both occurrences, his home run was the second of the four. On September 30, 1997, in

1560-642: The Tampa Bay Rays. The Astros went on to win the game 5–1. On April 3, 2018, the St. Louis Cardinals began the game against the Milwaukee Brewers with back-to-back home runs from Dexter Fowler and Tommy Pham . Then in the bottom of the ninth, with two outs and the Cardinals leading 4–3, Christian Yelich homered to tie the game; and Ryan Braun hit the next pitch for a walk-off home run. This

1612-406: The above manners is an automatic home run. The ball is dead, even if it rebounds back onto the field (e.g., from striking a foul pole), and the batter and any preceding runners cannot be put out at any time while running the bases. However, if one or more runners fail to touch a base or one runner passes another before reaching home plate, that runner or runners can be called out on appeal , though in

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1664-412: The baseball leaving the field of play. Unlike with an outside-the-park home run, the batter-runner and all preceding runners are liable to be put out by the defensive team at any time while running the bases. This can only happen if the ball does not leave the ballfield. In the early days of baseball, outfields were much more spacious, reducing the likelihood of an over-the-fence home run, while increasing

1716-474: The batters hit their home runs off different pitchers. A third batter hitting a home run is commonly referred to as back-to-back-to-back. Four home runs in a row has only occurred eleven times in Major League Baseball history. Following convention, this is called back-to-back-to-back-to-back. The most recent occurrence was on July 2, 2022, when the St. Louis Cardinals hit four in a row against

1768-404: The card game of contract bridge . An inside-the-park grand slam is a grand slam that is also an inside-the-park home run , a home run without the ball leaving the field, and it is very rare, due to the relative rarity of loading the bases along with the significant rarity (nowadays) of inside-the-park home runs. On July 25, 1956, Roberto Clemente became the only MLB player to have ever scored

1820-469: The case of not touching a base a runner can go back and touch it if doing so will not cause them to be passed by another preceding runner and they have not yet touched the next base (or home plate in the case of missing third base). This stipulation is in Approved Ruling (2) of Rule 7.10(b). An inside-the-park home run is a rare play in which a batter rounds all four bases for a home run without

1872-472: The feat. Simple back-to-back home runs are a relatively frequent occurrence. If a pitcher gives up a home run, he might have his concentration broken and might alter his normal approach in an attempt to "make up for it" by striking out the next batter with some fastballs. Sometimes the next batter will be expecting that and will capitalize on it. A notable back-to-back home run of that type in World Series play involved " Babe Ruth's called shot " in 1932, which

1924-409: The field by a fielder. A batted ball is also a home run if it touches either a foul pole or its attached screen before touching the ground, as the foul poles are by definition in fair territory. Additionally, many major-league ballparks have ground rules stating that a batted ball in flight that strikes a specified location or fixed object is a home run; this usually applies to objects that are beyond

1976-561: The fifth pitcher to surrender back-to-back-to-back-to-back home runs, following Paul Foytack on July 31, 1963, Chase Wright on April 22, 2007, Dave Bush on August 10, 2010, and Michael Blazek on July 27, 2017. On August 14, 2008, the Chicago White Sox defeated the Kansas City Royals 9–2. In this game, Jim Thome , Paul Konerko , Alexei Ramírez , and Juan Uribe hit back-to-back-to-back-to-back home runs in that order. Thome, Konerko, and Ramirez hit their home runs against Joel Peralta, while Uribe did it off Rob Tejeda. On April 22, 2007,

2028-590: The first inning of a game against the Chicago White Sox . The Mariners batted around in the inning, and Boone and Cameron came up to bat against reliever Jim Parque with two outs, again hitting back-to-back home runs and becoming the only pair of teammates to hit back-to-back home runs twice in the same inning. On June 19, 2012, José Bautista and Colby Rasmus hit back-to-back home runs and back-to-back-to-back home runs with Edwin Encarnación for

2080-443: The likelihood of an inside-the-park home run, as a ball getting past an outfielder had more distance that it could roll before a fielder could track it down. Modern outfields are much less spacious and more uniformly designed than in the game's early days. Therefore, inside-the-park home runs are now rare. They usually occur when a fast runner hits the ball deep into the outfield and the ball bounces in an unexpected direction away from

2132-448: The nearest outfielder (e.g., off a divot in the field or off the outfield wall), the nearest outfielder is injured on the play and cannot get to the ball, or an outfielder misjudges the flight of the ball in a way that he cannot quickly recover from the mistake (e.g., by diving and missing). The speed of the runner is crucial as even triples are relatively rare in most modern ballparks. If any defensive play on an inside-the-park home run

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2184-440: The number of runners on base at the time. A home run hit with the bases empty is never called a "one-run homer", but rather a solo home run , solo homer , or "solo shot". With one runner on base, two runs score (the base-runner and the batter) and thus the home run is often called a two-run homer or two-run shot . Similarly, a home run with two runners on base is a three-run homer or three-run shot . The term "four-run homer"

2236-457: The outfield wall but are located such that it may be difficult for the umpire to judge. In professional baseball, a batted ball that goes over the outfield wall after touching the ground (i.e. a ball that bounces over the outfield wall) becomes an automatic double . This is colloquially referred to as a " ground rule double " even though it is uniform across all of Major League Baseball , per MLB rules 5.05(a)(6) through 5.05(a)(9). A fielder

2288-414: The second-place vote receives three points, and the third-place vote receives one point. Beginning in 2003, fans were allowed to vote via MLB's official website, MLB.com . Fans' votes account for 30% of the points, while broadcasters' and analysts' votes account for the other 70%. The award is handed out to the winners of both leagues before Game 4 of the World Series (mostly after Game 2 due to travel to

2340-540: The series, to help the Toronto Blue Jays capture their second World Series Championship in a row. Such a home run can also be called a " sudden death " or "sudden victory" home run. That usage has lessened as "walk-off home run" has gained favor. Along with Mazeroski's 1960 shot, the most famous walk-off or sudden-death home run would most likely be the " Shot Heard 'Round the World " hit by Bobby Thomson to win

2392-463: The sixteen players (through 2012) who have hit four in one game, six have hit them consecutively. Twenty-eight other batters have hit four consecutive across two games. Bases on balls do not count as at-bats, and Ted Williams holds the record for consecutive home runs across the most games, four in four games played, during September 17–22, 1957, for the Red Sox. Williams hit a pinch-hit home run on

2444-621: The sixth inning of Game One of the American League Division Series between the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians , Tim Raines , Derek Jeter and Paul O'Neill hit back-to-back-to-back home runs for the Yankees. Raines' home run tied the game. New York went on to win 8–6. This was the first occurrence of three home runs in a row ever in postseason play. The Boston Red Sox repeated the feat in Game Four of

2496-510: The top. It weighs 12 pounds (5.4 kg) and sits on a base of cherry wood. 15 players have won the award multiple times, with Alex Rodriguez (4 awards) and Barry Bonds (3 awards) being the only players to win more than twice. Shohei Ohtani is the only player to win in both the American and National League. David Ortiz won two awards 11 years apart (2005 and 2016), the largest gap of any player. Home run In baseball ,

2548-416: The wall without touching the ground is still a home run. A fielder may not deliberately throw his glove , cap , or any other equipment or apparel to stop or deflect a fair ball, and an umpire may award a home run to the batter if a fielder does so on a ball that, in the umpire's judgment, would have otherwise been a home run (this is rare in modern professional baseball). A home run accomplished in any of

2600-431: Was accompanied by various Ruthian theatrics, yet the pitcher, Charlie Root , was allowed to stay in the game. He delivered just one more pitch, which Lou Gehrig drilled out of the park for a back-to-back shot, after which Root was removed from the game. In Game 3 of the 1976 NLCS , George Foster and Johnny Bench hit back-to-back home runs in the last of the ninth off Ron Reed to tie the game. The Series-winning run

2652-530: Was scored later in the inning. Another notable pair of back-to-back home runs occurred on September 14, 1990 , when Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. hit back-to-back home runs, off Kirk McCaskill , the only father-and-son duo to do so in Major League history. On May 2, 2002 , Bret Boone and Mike Cameron of the Seattle Mariners hit back-to-back home runs off starter Jon Rauch in

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2704-685: Was the 1960 World Series when Bill Mazeroski of the Pittsburgh Pirates hit a ninth inning solo home run in the seventh game of the series off New York Yankees pitcher Ralph Terry to give the Pirates the World Championship. The second time was the 1993 World Series when Joe Carter of the Toronto Blue Jays hit a ninth inning three-run home run off Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Mitch Williams in Game 6 of

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