Hammerin' Hank Hangs Out at Harleys

It's not every day that one of the best baseball players of all-time make a stop in Shorewood, but it happened Saturday, August 3rd at Harleys.

You might say that Jordan Herbert received an early wedding present on Saturday.  Herbert, a former baseball standout at Nicolet High School, is getting married next week, and was at Harleys for Men on Oakland Avenue to pick up his wedding suit when baseball Hall of Famer Hank Aaron popped into the store unannounced.  Herbert said he initially decided to leave Aaron alone. "I didn't want to be 'that guy,'" he told Patch. So, Herbert tried on his suit, then took it off and asked himself, "When will I ever get a chance like this again?"

He approached the Home Run King and said: "It would be an honor to get my picture taken with you in the suit I'm getting married in."  Aaron "graciously" agreed to the request, Herbert put his custom-made suit back on and the two snapped a photo that will undoubtedly be framed in the new home Herbert and his fiance just purchased in Whitefish Bay.

Jeff Brand, the buyer for Harleys, said Aaron has been in the store at least three or four times before. While he didn't make a purchase on Saturday, he has bought suits from Harleys in the past, Brand said.


"He had some free time, so he decided to stop in and take a look around," Brand said.


Herbert, who is a corporate insurance salesman, had a stellar pitching career at Nicolet High School, earning pitcher of the year honors in 2005 and 2004. In his senior year, he was considered one of the best high school pitchers in the state, and went 5-3 with a 1.18 ERA while striking out 84 batters. He went on to play for Miami University of Ohio and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.


So, did he and Aaron talk a little baseball during their brief encounter?


"I really didn't want to bother him," Herbert said. "I’m happy to get my picture taken with him, and I felt like he did plenty just by doing that"