How Dale Earnhardt and Richard Childress’ Ties With Atlanta Braves Insiders Led to Austin Dillon Getting a Hank Aaron Autograph

The late Hank Aaron is considered one of the greatest baseball players in history. Unlike his counterparts, he signed autographs for his fans often back in the day. But Austin Dillon and his brother Ty Dillon were successful in getting their ball signed by him. The former narrated how, in an interview with The Athletic.

The Dillon boys had accompanied their grandfather, Richard Childress, and Dale Earnhardt to the old Braves Stadium once. Austin said, “Dale (Earnhardt) and my grandfather (Richard Childress) and a bunch of the guys on their team were close with Braves like (manager) Bobby Cox and Ned Yost, who was the third base coach at the time.”

“I think Ned met us at the front of the stadium and probably said, “Hey, that’s Hank walking right there. You should ask him for an autograph. He doesn’t really do this very often.” So, me and Ty, ran up to him and got an autograph.” He also detailed that Aaron did not sign autographs back then and that it was a big deal to get his name on the ball.

Interestingly, he still has that ball along with a bunch of other signatures on it. However, Austin Dillon does wish that it had just been Aaron’s. The icon played for the Atlanta Braves for 21 seasons and the Milwaukee Brewers for two seasons. He passed away in 2021 at the age of 86.

So the question is – What association did Dale Earnhard have with the Braves?

Dale Earnhardt was a huge fan of the Atlanta Braves

NASCAR was beginning to be increasingly sponsor-driven and money-minded in the 1990s. Drivers were forced to wear clothes that would increase merchandise sales. This was the era when Earnhardt came to be known with his GM Goodwrench partnership. But being who he is, ‘The Intimidator’ did not always sport the merchandise. Instead, he was often spotted wearing a Braves cap at racetracks.

This showcased how big a fan he was of the team. As Dillon said, he had many friends there. Ned Yost, in particular, even wore a #3 jersey in honor of Earnhardt when coaching the Milwaukee Brewers. Chipper Jones, another team icon, said about the driver on X earlier this year, “He was so cool…..and a huge Braves fan!”

Thanks to his affinity for the Braves and these strong connections, the Dillons were able to secure a remarkable autograph. One can only hope that a young fan would want either of their autographs with the same zeal someday.