Hank Aaron steps to fundraising plate for Democrat Michelle Nunn

Baseball legend Hank Aaron — who recently rocked national headlines by suggesting that Republicans wearing “neckties and starched shirts” were racist — has now thrown his weight into the Georgia Senate race, backing Democrat Michelle Nunn.

In an email, he pressed supporters of Ms. Nunn to send in money.

“The 755 home runs I hit in my time mean a lot to me, but there’s another record that I’m proud to hold — the all-time record for runs batted in (RBI). You see, games aren’t won or lost on the efforts of one person, they rest on the shoulders of a team. And every RBI is a result of teammates working together to achieve one common goal — victory. If each one of us steps up to the plate and contributes during this 24-hour fundraising effort called a ’money bomb,’ I know we can bring home the single-biggest fundraising day of Michelle’s campaign,” Time reported.

He wrapped with this brief remark: “Now that’s an RBI I’d like to add to my records. Will you help me do it?”

Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. has also stepped forward to support Ms. Nunn, a newcomer to the political scene who’s facing off against Republican businessman David Perdue.

Mr. Aaron, in April, made controversial statements about the state of politics and race in modern-day America, saying that though the nation’s come far, there is still a lot more work to be done — and that Republicans are largely to blame for stymieing the president.

His words then, as reported first by USA Today: “We can talk about baseball. Talk about politics. Sure this country has a black president, but when you look at a black president, President Obama is left with his foot stuck in the mud from all of the Republicans with the way he’s treated. We have moved in the right direction and there have been improvements, but we still have a long ways to go in the country. The bigger difference is that back then they had [KKK] hoods. Now they have neckties and starched shirts.”