If you have watched a Home Run Derby in recent years and seen a whole field of sluggers wearing the same number, you are not imagining it.
When MLB players wear 44 together, they are honoring Hank Aaron, the Hall of Famer who wore that number for all but one of his 23 big-league seasons and broke Babe Ruth’s career home run record on April 8, 1974.
The league has turned to 44 for two full-scale tributes. In July 2021, every player and coach at All-Star Workout Day in Denver, including the Home Run Derby, wore 44 just months after Aaron’s death. In July 2025, National League hitters at the Atlanta Home Run Derby wore 44, while American League hitters wore Babe Ruth’s No. 3.
Outside those nights, you will still spot 44 on any given game day. Stars like Yordan Alvarez, Julio Rodríguez, and Elly De La Cruz wear it as their regular number, and several players have picked it specifically because of Aaron.
This guide walks through each moment, the man behind the number, and how 44 differs from baseball’s other tribute numbers.
Who Was Hank Aaron, and Why Does 44 Matter?
Hank Aaron is one of the most accomplished hitters the game has ever produced, and 44 is the number fans tie to nearly every chapter of his career.
He debuted on April 13, 1954, with the Milwaukee Braves and played his final game on October 3, 1976, with the Milwaukee Brewers.
A few numbers explain his standing in the sport:
- 755 career home runs, the record from 1974 until Barry Bonds passed him in 2007
- 2,297 runs batted in, still the most in MLB history
- 25 All-Star selections and a 1957 World Series title with Milwaukee
- Hall of Fame induction in 1982
Aaron wore No. 5 as a rookie in 1954, then switched to 44 for the rest of his career. Both the Braves and the Brewers have retired the number in his honor.
The record chase carried weight far beyond the box score. As Aaron closed in on Ruth’s 714, he received a flood of racist hate mail and threats, yet he kept producing.
His 715th home run, hit at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, became a landmark moment in both American sports and civil rights history.
Here is a piece of trivia many fans miss: Al Downing, the Dodgers pitcher who gave up No. 715, also wore 44 that night.
After his playing days, Aaron served as a Braves executive. In 1995, he and his wife Billye founded the Chasing the Dream Foundation to fund scholarships for young people. He died on January 22, 2021, at age 86.
2021: Every Player Wore 44 at All-Star Workout Day
The first league-wide 44 tribute came on July 12, 2021, at Coors Field in Denver. During All-Star Workout Day, including the Home Run Derby, every player, coach, and manager swapped their usual number for 44.
The look was simple by design. Players kept their regular team uniforms and changed only the number on the back. Max Scherzer, for example, wore his Washington Nationals jersey with 44 instead of his usual 31. Players even posed for team photos in the tribute jerseys.
The timing made it personal. Aaron had died that January, and Billye Aaron and other family members attended both Workout Day and the 91st All-Star Game the following night.
The game had been relocated from Atlanta to Denver earlier that year, so the tribute carried a piece of Atlanta’s baseball identity to Colorado.
Pete Alonso of the Mets won the Derby that night, claiming his second straight title with Aaron’s number on his back. That image of a home run champion in 44 is a big reason fans still ask this question every summer.
2025: 44 Meets 3 at the Home Run Derby in Atlanta
MLB brought the number back on July 14, 2025, when All-Star week came to Truist Park, home of the Braves. This time the tribute had a twist: National League hitters wore 44 for Aaron, while American League hitters wore No. 3 for Babe Ruth.
The calendar did the storytelling. The Derby fell on 7/14 and the All-Star Game on 7/15, matching Ruth’s 714 career home runs and Aaron’s record-breaking 715th. Hall of Famer CC Sabathia, now a special assistant to the commissioner, proposed the idea after noticing that connection.
There is a franchise link, too. Ruth hit his final home run, No. 714, as a member of the Boston Braves, the same club that later moved to Milwaukee and then Atlanta. Both numbers on the field that night trace back to the Braves family tree.
At the All-Star Game the next evening, MLB also marked the 51st anniversary of No. 715 with a special in-game presentation.
Other Moments When 44 Takes Center Stage
League-wide jersey swaps are rare, but Aaron’s number appears throughout the baseball calendar.
The 50th anniversary of No. 715
On April 8, 2024, the Braves held a pregame ceremony at Truist Park with Billye Aaron, members of the 1974 team, and Georgia leaders.
The club painted “715” in center field, the Hall of Fame announced a new Aaron statue, and the U.S. Postal Service unveiled a commemorative stamp.
The Hank Aaron Award
MLB created the award in 1999, on the 25th anniversary of the record, to honor the top offensive performer in each league.
Winners are chosen through a mix of fan votes, past winners, and baseball legends. The 2026 winners will be announced on November 11 in Las Vegas, and two of this year’s finalists, Yordan Alvarez and Elly De La Cruz, wear 44 themselves.
Truist Park in 2021
Throughout that season, the Braves displayed a giant 44 in the outfield in Aaron’s memory.
Why Today’s Players Choose 44 on Their Own
If you spot 44 on a regular game day, you are most likely looking at a player who wears it full-time. Unlike No. 42, Aaron’s number is not retired across the league, so any club outside Atlanta and Milwaukee can issue it.
During the 2026 season, 44 belonged to a long list of notable names, including:
- Yordan Alvarez, Houston Astros
- Julio Rodríguez, Seattle Mariners
- Elly De La Cruz, Cincinnati Reds
- Andy Pages, Los Angeles Dodgers
- Jesús Luzardo, Philadelphia Phillies
- Aroldis Chapman, Boston Red Sox
For some players, the choice is a direct nod to Aaron. Detroit’s Justyn-Henry Malloy is named partly after his father, Henry, who was himself named for Hank Aaron. When Malloy reached the majors in 2024, Tigers coach Gary Jones gave up 44 so the rookie could wear it, and left the jersey in his locker as a surprise.
The tribute reaches the umpiring crew as well. Malachi Moore, the first umpire to come out of MLB’s youth academy in Compton, wears 44 in honor of his mentor, Kerwin Danley, who wore it before retiring after the 2021 season.
The number also carries a deep bench of other greats. Reggie Jackson (retired by the Yankees), Willie McCovey (retired by the Giants), Paul Goldschmidt, Roy Oswalt and Anthony Rizzo all wore 44.
44 vs. 42 vs. 4: Clearing Up the Confusion
Baseball has several tribute numbers, and they are easy to mix up.
42 is Jackie Robinson
MLB retired 42 for every team in 1997, 50 years after Robinson broke the color barrier. It is the only number retired league-wide, and every player wears it each April 15 on Jackie Robinson Day.
44 is Hank Aaron
It is retired by the Braves and Brewers only. League-wide 44 tributes happen on special occasions, such as the 2021 and 2025 All-Star weeks.
4 is Lou Gehrig
On Lou Gehrig Day, held this year on June 2, all 30 teams wear a No. 4 patch to raise awareness of ALS.
A simple rule of thumb: if every player wears the same number in mid-April, it is 42. If a whole Home Run Derby field wears the same number in July, look for 44.
Key Dates in the Story of 44
These are the milestones worth bookmarking if you want the full arc of Aaron’s number in one place:
- April 13, 1954: Aaron debuts with the Milwaukee Braves, wearing No. 5
- 1955: He switches to No. 44 and keeps it for the rest of his career
- April 8, 1974: Aaron hits No. 715 in Atlanta to pass Babe Ruth
- October 3, 1976: He plays his final game with the Milwaukee Brewers
- 1982: Aaron is inducted into the Hall of Fame
- 1999: MLB launches the Hank Aaron Award
- January 22, 2021: Aaron dies at age 86
- July 12, 2021: Every player wears 44 at All-Star Workout Day in Denver
- April 8, 2024: The Braves celebrate the 50th anniversary of No. 715
- July 14, 2025: NL hitters wear 44, and AL hitters wear 3 at the Atlanta Derby
- November 11, 2026: The 2026 Hank Aaron Award winners are announced
What 44 Really Represents
When MLB players wear 44, they are doing more than changing a jersey. They are pointing back to a hitter who chased the game’s most famous record under enormous pressure and finished with numbers that still anchor the record book.
That is why the tribute keeps returning. It links today’s sluggers to a spring night in Atlanta in 1974, and it reminds a new generation of fans that the history of the long ball runs straight through Hank Aaron.
