JUST MY TYPE

HANK AARON

HAMMERS IT HOME

At 82, the Hall of Fame slugger can't heft a bat anymore, but that doesn't mean he can't take his cuts at hitters who are unfazed by whiffing.

DAN PATRICK:When's the last time you hit a baseball?

HANK AARON: It's been a long time since I picked up a bat. [Last month] I had the privilege of throwing out the last pitch at [Atlanta's] Turner Field. My arm got to a certain point before it said, Don't be a fool. Drop the ball and leave it alone.

DP:What kind of memorabilia do you have that might surprise me?

HA: I don't have anything. I've given everything I have to the Hall of Fame. I don't even have a ring.

DP:Hitters don't mind striking out anymore. Would you be a different hitter now?

HA: I was talking to Willie Mays about four weeks ago, and I said to him, "If we played today, they'd send us back to the minor leagues because we made too much contact." The most embarrassing thing to me in my 23 years of playing was walking back to the dugout after striking out. Regardless of who was pitching—[Sandy] Koufax, [Bob] Gibson or any of the Hall of Famers. Nowadays I see hitters strike out, go back to the dugout and almost laugh about it.

DP:I'm not sure why it doesn't bother batters more.

HA: I was talking to Jackie Robinson before he passed away [in 1972], and he said the best thing you can do is to step up to home plate and then make sure you touch home plate again. That's the way I felt. The batting average was good. The home runs were good. But runs batted in were even better. And runs scored were even better than that.

DP:What did Jackie Robinson mean to you?

HA: I would always pick his brain. I would always sit and talk with him. He said the game of baseball is great, but the greatest thing is what you do after your career is over. That stuck in my mind for the 23 years I played.

DP:Could you have done what Robinson did [breaking baseball's color barrier]?

HA: I don't think so. He really went through an awful lot. Anyone who says they could have taken what he did ... I don't think they understood the things that he went through. I had enough problems when I was chasing the Babe's record. I know that was the tip of the iceberg compared to what [Robinson] went through.

DP:Did you save any of the hate mail you got during the home run chase?

HA: I saved most of it. The reason I did is because I'm blessed with five grandchildren. I just want them to understand that it wasn't long ago that I, too, was [affected] by racial discrimination.

GUEST SHOTS

SAY WHAT?

Louisville QB Lamar Jackson told me his mother, Felicia James, is much tougher than coach Bobby Petrino. "We used to practice and hit in the backyard," Jackson said. "She always had on shoulder pads and a helmet." ... Former Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood talked about trying to reach out to disgraced Chicago fan Steve Bartman: "I just wanted to grab a beer with him. I wanted to sit down and apologize for everything that happened and hear about what he's been doing. His life was the one that changed, not ours." ... Clippers coach Doc Rivers said he understands why Kevin Durant went to the Warriors. "I was just an average player, but I wanted to win too," Rivers explained. "It's not just the stars. It's a good thing. You should want to win."