Poll Results: Who was/is the best home run hitter of all time?

There was not an overwhelming voter turnout, but there was a definite consensus on Babe Ruth being the best home run hitter of all time. Out of the six votes cast, Ruth received all but one. The lone vote went to Henry Aaron.

Ruth, of course, set the standard. He also was so far ahead of his contemporaries that arguments regarding quality of pitching and not facing African-American competition could be put to the side. In fact, the argument regarding African-American competition can go by the wayside. Ruth faced, in many exhibitions, Negro League team. Accounts of these games note Ruth's success. Even African-American newspapers and first-hand accounts by Negro League players cited Ruth's great blasts.

The vote cast for Aaron, was based on Aaron's durability and longevity. Six weeks ago I would agree with this point. However, after reading The Year Babe Ruth Hit 104 Home Runs, I again have to come to Ruth's defense. During Aaron's era he had better training equipment, diet and training. Nothing compared to today's standard. But what Aaron had available to him versus Ruth is night and day. Too note one example, Ruth was knocked unconscious when he collided with a teammate chasing a fly ball. The solution to reviving Ruth was to throw a glass of water in his face. This revived Ruth and he continued the game. If that happened today we would be watching a multi-millionaire being gently carried off the field with his head immobilized on a flat board.

The others I had listed as part of the poll where Jimmy Foxx, Reggie Jackson and Barry Bonds. He had positives. Bonds, who may have been able to come close to the mark with out medical enhancements, is definitely worthy or mention. Jackson may have been the best of his time even through Mike Schmidt was close (of course he seemed to kill the Cubs during is seven visits to Wrigley Field a year). Double-X is worthy of a posting of his own one-day. He is often overlooked as one of the greatest.

If you want an in-depth read on the history of the home run, I suggest paging through the Year Babe Ruth Hit 104 Home Runs. Bill Jenkins has a lot of qualitative research to go along with the quantitative information from The Baseball Encyclopedia.