The Battle of Baseball Icons: Babe Ruth vs. Hank Aaron

Published: May 29, 2024

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Last Updated: May 29th, 2024 by Jake Cain

Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron are names synonymous with baseball greatness. Two of the greatest home run hitters of all time, these two are forever linked and gave baseball fans some of the most iconic moments in baseball history. Let’s dive into their extraordinary careers, comparing their impact, statistics, awards, and more.

Babe Ruth vs Hank Aaron — Via Stathead

Early Careers and Rise to Stardom

Ruth began his Major League Baseball career as a pitcher for the Boston Red Sox in 1914, but it wasn’t until he joined the Yankees that Ruth became a household name. After moving to the outfield, Ruth began crushing home runs at unprecedented rates, setting the stage for the live-ball era.

Key Stats:

MLB debut: July 11, 1914
Teams: Boston Red Sox (1914–1919), New York Yankees (1920–1934), Boston Braves (1935)
Batting Average: .342
Home Runs: 714
RBIs: 2,214

Aaron’s journey began in the Negro Leagues with the Indianapolis Clowns before the Milwaukee Braves purchased his contract. His consistent power and hitting skills soon made him a staple in the Braves’ lineup. Aaron’s approach to breaking records was methodical, and marked by unparalleled consistency.

Key Stats:

MLB debut: April 13, 1954
Teams: Milwaukee / Atlanta Braves (1954–1974), Milwaukee Brewers (1975–1976)
Batting Average: .305
Home Runs: 755
RBIs: 2,297

Impact on the Game

Babe Ruth was pivotal in shifting baseball into the live-ball era. His home runs were not just numerous but majestic, captivating fans and redefining the sport’s dynamics. His prowess at the plate made him a cultural icon and helped propel the Yankees to new heights.

Hank Aaron’s impact was multifaceted. Not only did he excel on the field, but he also became an important figure in the civil rights movement. His dignified pursuit of Babe Ruth’s home run record in the face of racial hatred showcased his resilience and character, endearing him to fans and cementing his legacy.

Statistical Comparisons

Home Runs and Consistency

Babe Ruth:

Career Home Runs: 714
Highest Single-Season Home Runs: 60 in 1927
Twelve-time AL home run leader and held the single-season home run record for over three decades.

Standard Batting
Year	Age	Tm	Lg	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB	Pos	Awards
1914	19	BOS	AL	5	10	10	1	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	.200	.200	.300	.500	50	3		0	0			/1H
1915	20	BOS	AL	42	103	92	16	29	10	1	4	20	0	0	9	23	.315	.376	.576	.952	189	53		0	2			1H
1916	21	BOS	AL	67	152	136	18	37	5	3	3	16	0		10	23	.272	.322	.419	.741	122	57		0	4			1H
1917	22	BOS	AL	52	142	123	14	40	6	3	2	14	0		12	18	.325	.385	.472	.857	162	58		0	7			1H
1918	23	BOS	AL	95	382	317	50	95	26	11	11	61	6		58	58	.300	.411	*.555*	*.966*	192	176		2	3			7138/H
1919	24	BOS	AL	130	544	432	*103*	139	34	12	29	*113*	7		101	58	.322	*.456*	*.657*	*1.114*	*217*	*284*		6	3			*71/3H8
1920	25	NYY	AL	142	617	458	*158*	172	36	9	54	*135*	14	14	*150*	80	.376	*.532*	*.847*	*1.379*	*255*	388		3	5			*978/31H
1921	26	NYY	AL	152	693	540	*177*	204	44	16	59	*168*	17	13	*145*	81	.378	*.512*	*.846*	*1.359*	239	*457*		4	4			*78/31H
1922	27	NYY	AL	110	496	406	94	128	24	8	35	96	2	5	84	80	.315	.434	.672	1.106	182	273		1	4			*79/3
1923	28	NYY	AL	152	699	522	*151*	205	45	13	41	*130*	17	21	*170*	93	.393	*.545*	*.764*	*1.309*	*239*	*399*		4	3			*97/83	MVP-1
1924	29	NYY	AL	153	681	529	*143*	200	39	7	46	124	9	13	*142*	81	.378	*.513*	.739	1.252	220	*391*		4	6		28	*97/8H
1925	30	NYY	AL	98	426	359	61	104	12	2	25	67	2	4	59	68	.290	.393	.543	.936	137	195		2	6		1	97
1926	31	NYY	AL	152	652	495	*139*	184	30	5	47	*153*	11	9	*144*	76	.372	*.516*	.737	1.253	226	*365*		3	10		13	*79/H3
1927	32	NYY	AL	151	691	540	*158*	192	29	8	60	165	7	5	*137*	89	.356	.486	*.772*	*1.258*	*225*	417		0	14		3	*97
1928	33	NYY	AL	154	684	536	*163*	173	29	8	54	146	4	5	*137*	87	.323	.463	*.709*	1.172	*206*	*380*		3	8		8	*97
1929	34	NYY	AL	135	588	499	121	172	26	6	46	154	5	3	72	60	.345	.430	.697	1.128	193	348		3	14		5	*97/H	MVP-9
1930	35	NYY	AL	145	676	518	150	186	28	9	49	153	10	10	*136*	61	.359	.493	.732	1.225	211	379		1	21		8	*97/1	MVP-10
1931	36	NYY	AL	145	663	534	149	199	31	3	46	162	5	4	*128*	51	.373	*.495*	*.700*	*1.195*	*218*	374		1	0		5	*97/H3	MVP-5
1932	37	NYY	AL	133	589	457	120	156	13	5	41	137	2	2	*130*	62	.341	*.489*	.661	1.150	201	302		2	0		4	*97/H3	MVP-6
1933	38	NYY	AL	137	576	459	97	138	21	3	34	104	4	5	*114*	90	.301	.442	.582	1.023	176	267		2	0		3	*97/H31	AS
1934	39	NYY	AL	125	472	365	78	105	17	4	22	84	1	3	104	63	.288	.448	.537	.985	160	196		2	0		1	*97H	AS
1935	40	BSN	NL	28	92	72	13	13	0	0	6	12	0	0	20	24	.181	.359	.431	.789	119	31	2	0	0		0	7/9H
22 Yrs				2503	10628	8399	2174	2873	506	136	714	2214	123	116	2062	1330	.342	.474	.690	1.164	206	5793	2	43	114		79
162 Game Avg.				162	688	544	141	186	33	9	46	143	8		133	86	.342	.474	.690	1.164	206	375		3	7
				G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB	Pos	Awards
NYY (15 yrs)				2084	9203	7217	1959	2518	424	106	659	1978	110	116	1852	1122	.349	.484	.711	1.195	209	5131		35	95		79
BOS (6 yrs)				391	1333	1110	202	342	82	30	49	224	13	0	190	184	.308	.413	.568	.981	190	631		8	19
BSN (1 yr)				28	92	72	13	13	0	0	6	12	0	0	20	24	.181	.359	.431	.789	119	31	2	0	0		0

AL (21 yrs)				2475	10536	8327	2161	2860	506	136	708	2202	123	116	2042	1306	.343	.475	.692	1.167	207	5762		43	114		79
NL (1 yr)				28	92	72	13	13	0	0	6	12	0	0	20	24	.181	.359	.431	.789	119	31	2	0	0		0

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 5/27/2024.

Hank Aaron:

Career Home Runs: 755
Hit 24 or more home runs every year from 1955 to 1973.
Led the NL in home runs four times and was remarkably consistent, never hitting more than 47 home runs in a season.

Batting and On-Base Skills

Babe Ruth:

Batting Average: .342
On-base percentage (OBP): .474
Slugging percentage: .690
Known for his exceptional eye at the plate, drawing numerous walks and maintaining high batting averages.

Hank Aaron:

Batting Average: .305
OBP: .374
Slugging percentage: .555
Aaron’s ability to combine power with consistent hitting made him a formidable presence at the plate across three decades.

Standard Batting
Year	Age	Tm	Lg	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB	Pos	Awards
1954	20	MLN	NL	122	509	468	58	131	27	6	13	69	2	2	28	39	.280	.322	.447	.769	104	209	13	3	6	4	0	*79/H	RoY-4
1955	21	MLN	NL	153	665	602	105	189	37	9	27	106	3	1	49	61	.314	.366	.540	.906	141	325	20	3	7	4	5	*974/H	AS,MVP-9
1956	22	MLN	NL	153	660	609	106	*200*	34	14	26	92	2	4	37	54	.328	.365	.558	.923	151	340	21	2	5	7	6	*9/H	AS,MVP-3
1957	23	MLN	NL	151	675	615	118	198	27	6	44	*132*	1	1	57	58	.322	.378	.600	.978	166	*369*	13	0	0	3	15	*98/H	AS,MVP-1
1958	24	MLN	NL	153	664	601	109	196	34	4	30	95	4	1	59	49	.326	.386	.546	.931	153	328	21	1	0	3	16	*98	AS,MVP-3,GG
1959	25	MLN	NL	154	693	629	116	*223*	46	7	39	123	8	0	51	54	*.355*	.401	*.636*	*1.037*	*183*	*400*	19	4	0	9	17	*98/5	AS,AS,MVP-3,GG
1960	26	MLN	NL	153	664	590	102	172	20	11	40	*126*	16	7	60	63	.292	.352	.566	.919	156	*334*	8	2	0	12	13	*9/84	AS,AS,MVP-11,GG
1961	27	MLN	NL	155	671	603	115	197	39	10	34	120	21	9	56	64	.327	.381	.594	.974	163	358	16	2	1	9	20	*89/5H	AS,AS,MVP-8
1962	28	MLN	NL	156	667	592	127	191	28	6	45	128	15	7	66	73	.323	.390	.618	1.008	170	366	14	3	0	6	14	*89/H3	AS,AS,MVP-6
1963	29	MLN	NL	161	714	631	*121*	201	29	4	44	*130*	31	5	78	94	.319	.391	*.586*	*.977*	*179*	*370*	11	0	0	5	18	*9	AS,MVP-3
1964	30	MLN	NL	145	634	570	103	187	30	2	24	95	22	4	62	46	.328	.393	.514	.907	153	293	22	0	0	2	9	*94/H	AS,MVP-14
1965	31	MLN	NL	150	639	570	109	181	40	1	32	89	24	4	60	81	.318	.379	.560	.938	161	319	15	1	0	8	10	*9/H	AS,MVP-7
1966	32	ATL	NL	158	688	603	117	168	23	1	44	*127*	21	3	76	96	.279	.356	.539	.895	142	325	14	1	0	8	15	*9/84H	AS,MVP-8
1967	33	ATL	NL	155	669	600	*113*	184	37	3	39	109	17	6	63	97	.307	.369	.573	.943	168	344	11	0	0	6	19	*98/H4	AS,MVP-5
1968	34	ATL	NL	160	676	606	84	174	33	4	29	86	28	5	64	62	.287	.354	.498	.852	153	302	21	1	0	5	23	*93/H	AS,MVP-12
1969	35	ATL	NL	147	639	547	100	164	30	3	44	97	9	10	87	47	.300	.396	.607	1.003	177	332	14	2	0	3	19	*9/3H	AS,MVP-3
1970	36	ATL	NL	150	598	516	103	154	26	1	38	118	9	0	74	63	.298	.385	.574	.958	149	296	13	2	0	6	15	*9H3	AS,MVP-17
1971	37	ATL	NL	139	573	495	95	162	22	3	47	118	1	1	71	58	.327	.410	*.669*	*1.079*	*194*	331	9	2	0	5	21	39H	AS,MVP-3
1972	38	ATL	NL	129	545	449	75	119	10	0	34	77	4	0	92	55	.265	.390	.514	.904	147	231	17	1	0	2	15	*39/H	AS,MVP-16
1973	39	ATL	NL	120	465	392	84	118	12	1	40	96	1	1	68	51	.301	.402	.643	1.045	177	252	7	1	0	4	13	79H	AS,MVP-12
1974	40	ATL	NL	112	382	340	47	91	16	0	20	69	1	0	39	29	.268	.341	.491	.832	128	167	6	0	1	2	6	7H	AS
1975	41	MIL	AL	137	543	465	45	109	16	2	12	60	0	1	70	51	.234	.332	.355	.687	95	165	15	1	1	6	3	*D/H7	AS
1976	42	MIL	AL	85	308	271	22	62	8	0	10	35	0	1	35	38	.229	.315	.369	.684	102	100	8	0	0	2	1	DH/7
23 Yrs				3298	13941	12364	2174	3771	624	98	755	2297	240	73	1402	1383	.305	.374	.555	.928	155	6856	328	32	21	121	293
162 Game Avg.				162	685	607	107	185	31	5	37	113	12	4	69	68	.305	.374	.555	.928	155	337	16	2	1	6	14
				G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB	Pos	Awards
ATL (21 yrs)				3076	13090	11628	2107	3600	600	96	733	2202	240	71	1297	1294	.310	.377	.567	.944	159	6591	305	31	20	113	289
MIL (2 yrs)				222	851	736	67	171	24	2	22	95	0	2	105	89	.232	.326	.360	.686	98	265	23	1	1	8	4

NL (21 yrs)				3076	13090	11628	2107	3600	600	96	733	2202	240	71	1297	1294	.310	.377	.567	.944	159	6591	305	31	20	113	289
AL (2 yrs)				222	851	736	67	171	24	2	22	95	0	2	105	89	.232	.326	.360	.686	98	265	23	1	1	8	4

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 5/27/2024.

Awards and Accolades

Babe Ruth

2× All-Star (1933, 1934)
7× World Series champion (1915, 1916, 1918, 1923, 1927, 1928, 1932)
AL MVP (1923)
AL batting champion (1924)
12× AL home run leader (1918–1921, 1923, 1924, 1926–1931)
5× AL RBI leader (1919–1921, 1923, 1926)
AL ERA leader (1916)
Combined no-hitter (June 23, 1917)
New York Yankees No. 3 retired
Monument Park honoree
Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame
Major League Baseball All-Century Team
Major League Baseball All-Time Team
Inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame (1936, as a member of the inaugural class)

Hank Aaron

25× All-Star (1955–1975)
World Series champion (1957)
NL MVP (1957)
3× Gold Glove Award (1958–1960)
2× NL batting champion (1956, 1959)
4× NL home run leader (1957, 1963, 1966, 1967)
4× NL RBI leader (1957, 1960, 1963, 1966)
Most career RBIs (2,297)
Most career total bases (6,856)
Most career extra-base hits (1,477)
Atlanta Braves No. 44 retired
Milwaukee Brewers No. 44 retired
Braves Hall of Fame
American Family Field Walk of Fame
Milwaukee Brewers Wall of Honor
Major League Baseball All-Century Team
Inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame (1982, first-ballot)

Moments of Greatness

Ruth’s “called shot” in the 1932 World Series remains one of baseball’s most iconic moments. His 60-home run season in 1927 established a new standard for power hitting.

Aaron’s breaking of Babe Ruth’s home run record on April 8, 1974, was more than a sports achievement; it was a significant moment in American history. The dignity with which he handled the intense racial hostility he faced made his accomplishment even more profound.

Enduring Legacies

Babe Ruth’s name remains synonymous with home runs and baseball greatness. Monuments, museums, and even candy bars bear his name. His larger-than-life persona and impact on the game are celebrated to this day.

Hank Aaron’s legacy transcends his on-field achievements. His work in civil rights and his role as a trailblazer in baseball management for African Americans have left an enduring legacy. The Hank Aaron Award and various tributes continue to honor his contributions to the game and society.

Conclusion

Comparing Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron is almost impossible. Ruth’s unmatched power and charisma helped usher baseball into a new era, while Aaron’s consistency, dignity, and resilience broke records and barriers alike. Both players are celebrated for their achievements and remain towering figures in baseball history, admired by fans who appreciate their unparalleled contributions to the sport.