ATLANTA — The 50th anniversary of Hank Aaron’s 715th home run was marked Monday with announcements of a new statue at Baseball’s Hall of Fame and a new commemorative stamp from the U.S. Postal Service.

Meanwhile, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred helped honor Aaron in Atlanta by joining the Braves in announcing the $100,000 endowment of a scholarship at Tuskegee University, a historically Black university in Aaron’s home state of Alabama.

Manfred noted the Henry Louis Aaron Fund, launched by the Braves following Aaron’s death in 2021, and the Chasing the Dream Foundation, created by Aaron and wife Billye, were designed to clear paths for minorities in baseball and to encourage educational opportunities.

“I got to know Hank later in his life and he had that amazing presence that the great ones usually have, and he was undoubtedly a force for change in our society,” Manfred said at the Atlanta History Center, where a new exhibit honoring Aaron was unveiled.

“I’m sure that commitment to improving the life of others was in part a product of what he went through as a player. Hank’s legacy goes way beyond baseball.”

The exhibit will remain open through the 2025 All-Star Game in Atlanta.

Billye Aaron attended the unveiling of the exhibit and spoke in a video about Aaron’s record-breaking homer in 1974. She said while watching from her seat near the field, she was upset to see two 17-year-old fans, Britt Gaston and Cliff Courtenay, run onto the diamond and join Aaron as he ran around the bases.

“It just made me angry,” Billye Aaron said, adding she thought the young fans were “stealing his thunder” but noted her husband was not upset.

“If I had been Henry running around the bases, I would have given them more than an elbow,” she said.

Another fan, Charlie Russo, told The Associated Press he followed Aaron’s family onto the field and for the first time he made available a video reproduction of the 8mm film he shot that night.

Manfred said much has changed in the last 50 years, including security. “I think we’re better than letting fans onto the field,” he said.

Aaron’s 715th home run topped the record 714 hit by Babe Ruth in a career from 1914-35. Aaron hit 755 home runs from 1954-76, a mark that stood until Barry Bonds hit 762 from 1986-2007, a feat assisted by performance-enhancing drugs.

Baseball’s Hall of Fame will unveil a bronze statue of Hank Aaron on May 23 on the first floor of its museum in Cooperstown, New York.

Aaron was elected to the hall in 1982. A 25-time All-Star, he set a record with 2,297 RBI. He continues to hold the records of 1,477 extra-base hits and 6,856 total bases.

PAYROLL: San Diego cut payroll by $96 million in the past year, the New York Mets by $50 million and the Los Angeles Angels by $49 million, among nine teams that slashed spending in a tepid free-agent market that sparked player unrest.

The average salary increased 1.5% to $4.98 million on Opening Day, according to a study by The Associated Press. That was down from an 11.1% rise last year to $4.91 million and a 6% increase in 2022 following the end of the spring training lockout.

Other teams cutting were the Chicago White Sox (by $47 million), Colorado ($33 million), Minnesota ($32 million), Detroit ($20 million), Boston ($15 million) and Milwaukee ($12 million).

Several top free agents – including two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell and 2019 NL MVP Cody Bellinger – remained unsigned into spring training and took shorter-team deals than they anticipated.

PITCH CLOCK: New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole faulted Major League Baseball and the players’ association for bickering over the pitch clock last weekend, comparing their behavior to divorced parents.

The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner and former member of the union’s eight-man executive subcommittee spoke about the union’s statement Saturday that questioned whether the clock caused pitcher injuries and MLB’s response dismissing the concerns. Cole has been sidelined since spring training by right elbow inflammation.

“I’m just frustrated it’s a combative issue,” he said. “It’s like, OK, we have divorced parents and the child’s misbehaving and we can’t get on the same page to get the child to behave, not that the players are misbehaving, but we have an issue here and we need to get on the same page to at least try and fix it.”

Cole spoke for about 20 minutes after throwing for the first time since he was diagnosed with the elbow injury. The 33-year-old right-hander is on the 60-day injured list and hopes to return in June. After addressing reporters, he went to the dugout to watch the solar eclipse.

Players’ association head Tony Clark in a statement Saturday claimed a shorter pitch clock – which MLB instituted despite player opposition – has contributed to a series of pitcher injuries. Cleveland’s Shane Bieber, Atlanta’s Spencer Strider, the New York Yankees’ Jonathan Loáisiga, Miami’s Eury Pérez and Oakland’s Trevor Gott are among the pitchers recently diagnosed with elbow injuries.

MLB said the union’s claim “ignores the empirical evidence and much more significant long-term trend, over multiple decades, of velocity and spin increases that are highly correlated with arm injuries.”

ASTROS: Houston scratched All-Star left-hander Framber Valdez from his scheduled start against the Texas Rangers because of left elbow soreness.

The Astros called up right-hander Blair Henley from Triple-A Sugar Land to start in place of Valdez. The 26-year-old was set for his major league debut at the home of the Rangers, just a few miles from his hometown of Fort Worth.

Valdez had no-decisions in his first two starts, both Houston losses. He has allowed three runs in 121/3 innings with six walks and 10 strikeouts.

Valdez was 12-11 with a 3.45 ERA in a second consecutive All-Star season in 2023. He won 17 games in 2022.

RANGERS: Two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom began throwing from 90 feet, another step in his rehab from right elbow surgery 10 months ago with hope of pitching for the Texas Rangers down the stretch this season.

While deGrom started playing catch at the start of spring training, he has now progressed from 75 to 90 feet. He made 25 throws in the outfield from that longer distance, which he will continue through this week with the plan to then increase to 50 throws for a week, and 75 for another week after that.

“Once you start throwing, you kind are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. And then each time you complete a distance, you’re moving back, you’re getting that much closer to getting to the mound,” deGrom said. “So every step right now is big. Definitely happy with how it felt today.”

Manager Bruce Bochy watched deGrom throw and liked what he saw.

“It’s amazing how free and easy he’s throwing, and the carry he’s got on it,” Bochy said. “You would think watching that, you know, that he wasn’t that far out. You get excited, but you realize he still has a ways to go. We’re looking at early August.”

REDS: Infielder Jonathan India was scratched after he was hit by a batted ball during batting practice, adding another issue to the team’s long list of injuries.

The Reds also announced that reliever Tejay Antone is going to have season-ending surgery on his right arm, likely on Friday. Antone departed Sunday’s 3-1 loss to the New York Mets after throwing one pitch and grabbing at his right elbow.

An MRI on Monday showed significant damage.

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