Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s all-time home run record on April 8, 1974, and the achievement nearly killed him — not physically, but through the avalanche of racist death threats, hate mail, and FBI protection that accompanied his pursuit of the most sacred record in American sports. Aaron needed a bodyguard, his children needed security details, and he received more mail than any non-politician in American history — much of it promising to kill him if he passed Ruth.

This episode traces Aaron from his Mobile, Alabama childhood through the Negro League beginnings, the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves career, the nightmare of the record chase, and the quiet dignity that defined his response to American racism.

• Aaron’s childhood in segregated Mobile and his start in the Negro Leagues
• The consistent, quiet excellence that accumulated 755 home runs without flash or spectacle
• The racist death threats, the hate mail, and the FBI protection during the 1973-74 record chase
• Breaking the record, the muted celebration, and Aaron’s lasting legacy beyond the numbers