The Braves won the pennant this year, and then defeated the Yankees in the World Series, their only one in Milwaukee. It was the franchise's first championship since 1914. Their young star right fielder, Henry Aaron, was awarded with the MVP. Incredibly, it was the only one he would win in his long, long career.

        The legend of Hank Aaron is fairly well known, and from what I gather, most of the amazing parts are true. Aaron really did hit cross-handed when he was young; I can't imagine how anyone could hit like that, but Aaron was a special player. He was also a shortstop before he joined Milwaukee, and probably could have played the position quite well in the majors, but the Braves decided that he would have a better chance of staying healthy in the outfield. And he did, playing 23 years in the majors, and hitting a record 755 career home runs.
        Of course, there was more to Henry Aaron than just the home runs. His 2297 career RBI is also a record; Aaron also had 3771 hits in his career, third all-time. He is also among the all-time leaders in runs scored and doubles, and he stole 240 bases in his career and won three Gold Gloves. He scored 100+ runs in thirteen straight seasons, also won a pair of batting titles and in his career walked more often than he struck out. He was an All-Star every year from 1955-1975. He batted .393 with three home runs in the World Series this year; in his postseason career, Aaron batted .362 with six homers.
        What is even more remarkable about Aaron is that for much of his career, the elements were against him. County Stadium in Milwaukee was a terrible park to hit in; the Braves' powerful trio of Aaron, Mathews and Adcock lost many home runs to their home park. In 1966, the Braves moved to Atlanta, where they played in "The Launching Pad"; Aaron hit a huge number of home runs in his late 30's, making up for the ones that he lost earlier in his career. Even still, the 1960's was not a friendly decade for hitters. Even still, Aaron quietly went about his business, and for two decades was one of the most consistent and productive players in baseball history. His breaking of Ruth's home run mark in 1974 remains one of the game's greatest moments.
        My favourite Hank Aaron story revolves around an umpire named Tom Gorman. Aaron was batting one day, and Gorman was the umpire behind the plate. Aaron had two strikes; a pitch came in on the outside part of the plate, and Gorman bellowed out "Strike three!" when he saw that it was going to catch the corner. But at the last moment, Aaron snapped his incredibly strong wrists, and muscled the ball out of the park for a home run. As Aaron rounded the bases, the catcher looked back, and asked Gorman what the heck he was doing. "Just practicing," was Gorman's reply.
        Frank Robinson was 21, Hank Aaron 23, Willie Mays 26, Stan Musial 36. Incredibly, the old man was still able to out-hit the young lions. If there is any doubt about Stan Musial's place among the greatest players ever, I would have to think that seasons like this one should settle the question. Mays was in his prime, Aaron won the MVP Award... yet Musial was as good as any of them.
        Willie Mays also became one of five players in history to have 20+ doubles, triples and homers in the same season. He was probably the league's best player, but I think Aaron was a great choice too, especially since his team won the pennant.
         Red Schoendienst began the year with the Giants, but was traded midway through the season to the Braves, and helped them win the World Series. He was great, at the plate and in the field, and finished a close third in the MVP voting. I'm rating Schoendienst slightly ahead of Eddie Mathews, who was also a standout for the Braves.
        I'm leaving Ernie Banks out of the top four, which seems strange because his numbers were so stunning — and he was shortstop! Ah well, these decisions are difficult. But the Cubs stunk pretty badly this year, not that you can blame Ernie.