An era in Atlanta Braves history ended 45 years ago this week.
It was on Nov. 2, 1974, that the Braves officially cut ties with the man who had become synonymous with the franchise over the preceding 20 years. Atlanta traded Hank Aaron, who had set baseball’s all-time home run record earlier that year, to the Milwaukee Braves for outfielder Dave May and a player to be named later.
The deal sent Aaron back to the city where he first achieved fame. He had joined the Milwaukee Braves as a 20-year-old rookie in 1954, and starred for the team for 12 seasons before they moved to Atlanta in 1966.