Appreciating Albert Pujols’ Hall of Fame Career

On Saturday night in St. Louis, Albert Pujols played in the final game of his 22-year career in Major League Baseball. In his final at bat for the St. Louis Cardinals, in the bottom of the 8th inning of Game 2 of the N.L. Wild Card series, Pujols singled sharply down the left field line. He was removed for a pinch-runner; the Cards lost in the next inning, swept in two games by the Philadelphia Phillies. Overall, the Cardinals’ designated hitter went 2-for-4 in what his 88th and final postseason game.

The early exit from the postseason represented a disappointing end to what was an unlikely career rebirth for Pujols in the 2nd half of the 2022 season, one in which he became the fourth player in baseball history to reach the milestone of 700 home runs. In Pujols’ first stint with the Redbirds, from 2001-2011, he was far and away the best player in baseball. He was a three-time National League MVP and won two World Championships. In the years since, mostly with the Los Angeles Angels, the superstar known as “The Machine” was an inferior copy of the all-time great he had been. Prince Albert was reunited with the Cardinals for the 2022 campaign, thanks to the implementation of the universal designated hitter.

Pujols came into the season with 679 career home runs. Given that he was slated to hit mostly against left-handed pitchers, it was uncertain that he would reach the milestone. In the first half of the season, Pujols slumped badly, so badly that he considered walking away from the game. The Machine delivered a weak first-half slash line (.215 BA/.301 OBP/.376 SLG), hitting just 6 home runs with 20 RBI. Those 6 taters put him at 685 for his career, putting the milestone of 700 seemingly out of reach.

Despite his lowly offensive production, Pujols was honored with his 11th and final All-Star appearance, a nod to his career accomplishments. Pujols was also included in the Home Run Derby, and he actually managed to defeat Kyle Schwarber in the first round of the Derby before losing to Juan Soto in the second round.

The Second-Half Renaissance

The second-half resurgence for Albert Pujols actually began in early July. As ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez reported, “Pujols began toying with the idea of starting his hands slightly lower and holding the bat marginally more upright in order to shorten his path through the strike zone and potentially sync up more consistently with the high leg kick he had begun incorporating more regularly the prior summer.” Pujols tried it in a pinch-hitting appearance on July 4 and then used it in a start two days later. He went 2 for 3 with a double in that game and stuck with the swing tweak for the rest of the season. Pujols’ batting average was actually just .189 going into that Independence Day tilt; he had a grand total of 4 home runs for the season. In the last 7 games of the first half of the season, armed with renewed confidence, he hit .333 with two long balls.

Amazingly, Pujols maintained his proverbial fountain of youth for the rest of the 2022 campaign. His second-half performance was not just spectacular for a 42-year-old player; it was just superb, period. Over the summer months, Pujols ceased to be a pinch-hitter and part-time DH against left-handed starters. He became a regular presence in the lineup and one of the key reasons the Cardinals ran away with the N.L. Central title.

The Machine’s second-half slash line (.323/.388/.715) gave him the second-best OPS (1.103) in all of Major League Baseball, behind only the Yankees’ Aaron Judge, who was busy finishing a season that will almost result in an MVP trophy. Additionally, only Judge’s 29 second-half taters surpassed the 18 swatted by Pujols.

Pujols had several memorable moments in a short span of time in August as he reminded the Cardinal faithful of his prime years:

• On August 10, he had a four-hit night in Colorado with a home run, raising his average from .228 to .244.
• Four days later, with the Cards hosting the Milwaukee Brewers, their chief rivals in the N.L. Central, Pujols went 2 for 4 with a pair of taters. The second homer, a titanic three-run 8th-inning blast to left-center field, extended the Cards’ lead from 3-2 to 6-2. The pair of homers were #688 and #689 for his career.
• Another four days hence, on August 18, Pujols hit the first pinch-hit grand slam of his career for #690.
• Two days later, Pujols delivered two more home runs, off Arizona’s Madison Bumgarner. His 691st career tater also allowed him to pass Stan Musial to become second all-time in baseball history in Total Bases (behind only Hank Aaron). When he hit #692 two innings later, it gave him a total of 6 in a span of just 8 games, suddenly putting 700 in reach.

Pujols hit 6 more home runs in his 24 games, giving him 698 career HR with 17 games left in the regular season. Most notable among those six blasts was #697, a ninth-inning blast in Pittsburgh that helped the Cardinals to a come-from-behind victory against the Pirates and also put him in 4th place on the all-time list, breaking the tie at 696 with Alex Rodriguez.

Albert Pujols’ Hist0ry-Making Final Weeks

Four men in the history of Major League Baseball have hit 700 or more home runs. On September 23 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, Albert Pujols clubbed the 700th home run of his 22-year MLB career, putting him in the exclusive quartet with Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, and Barry Bonds. The 4th-inning 3-run blast was actually Pujols’ second tater of the game; he had swatted a two-run tater in the previous frame.

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Pujols had a quiet three-game stretch after his 700th career homer but then finished his regular-season career with a flourish. In his final five games, Pujols went 6 for 12 with three more HR and six RBI. His final career home run (#703), a two-run blast in Pittsburgh, also gave Prince Albert 2,216 career RBI, giving him the 2nd most official RBI in baseball history. At the beginning of the at bat, Pujols was tied with Ruth with 2,214. With two more RBI next day, Pujols finished his career with 2,218.

Pujols finished his career near the top of the lists of many of baseball’s most notable statistics:

• 703 Home Runs: 4th all-time (behind Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, and Babe Ruth)
• 2,218 RBI: 3rd all-time (behind Ruth)
• 3,384 Hits: 10th all-time
• 1,914 Runs: 12th all-time
• 6,211 Total Bases: 2nd all-time (behind Aaron)
• 686 Doubles: 5th all-time (behind Tris Speaker, Pete Rose, Musial & Ty Cobb)

The Dominican-born Pujols is one of the greatest right-handed hitters in the history of the sport. If he had retired after the 2011 season, his 11th in the majors and final season with the St. Louis Cardinals, he would have almost certainly been a first-ballot Hall of Famer. The same is true today. With Albert Pujols’ glorious career ending after his comeback 2022 campaign, he’ll have a plaque in Cooperstown with his name and visage on it in 2028.

Cooperstown Cred: Albert Pujols (1B)

• St. Louis Cardinals (2001-11, 2022), Los Angeles Angels (2012-21), Los Angeles Dodgers (2021)
• Career: .296 BA, 703 HR, 2,218 RBI, 3,384 Hits
• Career: 145 OPS+, 101.7 WAR (Wins Above Replacement)
• 2001 N.L. Rookie of the Year
• Three-time N.L. MVP (2005, 2008, 2009)
• 11-time All-Star
• 2-time Gold Glove Award Winner
• Career post-season: .321 BA, 19 HR, 54 RBI, 1.007 OPS
• Won two World Series titles (2006 & 2011) with St. Louis

(Cover Photo: New York Daily News)

This piece was originally posted in May 2018, when Pujols collected his 3,000th career hit. It has been updated several times since then in Pujols’ final years.

Albert Pujols the Outfielder or Third Baseman (2001-2003)

In Albert Pujols’ rookie season in St. Louis, the Cardinals had an established first baseman (slugger Mark McGwire). The 21-year-old rookie became one of the greatest-hitting utility players in the history of the game.

Pujols started 52 games at 3rd base,  38 in left field, 33 in right field, and 31 at first base. Wherever he played, Pujols hit, batting .329 with 37 HR, 130 RBI, and a 157 OPS+. The performance earned him an All-Star berth, a Rookie of the Year trophy, and a 4th-place finish in the N.L. MVP voting.

McGwire retired following the 2001 season, but Pujols didn’t immediately move to first base. The team signed veteran Tino Martinez to play first; Pujols was primarily a left fielder in 2002 and 2003. Pujols had an excellent hitting year in 2002 (.314 BA, 34 HR, 127 RBI, 151 OPS+), which earned him a 2nd place finish (to Barry Bonds) in the N.L. MVP vote.

It’s often been said that Pujols was cheated out of multiple MVP Awards by the steroid-using Bonds. In fairness, if you go back and look at the numbers for 2002, taking Bonds out of the mix, position players Vladimir Guerrero, Shawn Green, and Jeff Kent all had compelling cases as well, not to mention pitcher Randy Johnson.

2003 was a different story. Pujols led the league with a .359 average, 137 runs, 212 hits, and 51 doubles. He hit 43 home runs, had 124 RBI, and posted a 187 OPS+, which was 2nd best in the league to Bonds. The Giants left fielder, in his age 38 season, took home his 6th MVP trophy while Pujols finished in 2nd place, in this case, robbed of the honor.

2004-06 (MVP and Post-Season Star)

The Cardinals decided to move their big left fielder to first base after the 2003 season, trading Martinez to Tampa Bay. Pujols settled in nicely, and instantly became one of the best fielders in the league at the position.

Offensively, Pujols remained as consistent as ever. In 2004, he hit .330 with 46 HR, 123 RBI, a 173 OPS+, and an MLB-leading 133 Runs. He finished 3rd in the MVP voting (to Bonds and the Dodgers’ Adrian Beltre, another great young player from the Dominican Republic).

In 2004, Pujols got his first taste of the World Series. He was instrumental in getting the Redbirds to the Fall Classic, earning MVP honors in the team’s 7-game NLCS win over the Houston Astros. In those seven games, The Machine slugged 4 home runs, and drove in 9, all while hitting .500 with a 1.563 OPS.

The Cards fell in four games to the miracle Boston Red Sox and fellow Dominican David Ortiz, but, all in all, it was a great October for Prince Albert.

Ironically, it was in the 2005 NLCS (again against Houston) in which Pujols delivered his signature October blast, a titanic home run hit off the Astros’ Brad Lidge in Game 5. The Astros were one out away from going to the World Series when Pujols turned a 2-run deficit into a 5-4 lead with one of the longest home runs anyone’s ever seen. St. Louis fell to Houston in Game 6, but Albert’s October legend was building.

Pujols won his first regular-season MVP in the 2005 season, hitting a typical .330 to go with 41 HR, 117 RBI, and 129 runs scored. Ironically, it was probably a lesser offensive season than the previous two, but he didn’t have Bonds to deal with anymore.

In 2006, now at the age of 26, Pujols established career highs with 49 HR and 137 RBI, all while posting his usual .330 BA and a league-leading 178 OPS+. With his first Gold Glove to boot, Pujols probably deserved to win the MVP that year as well, but the Phillies’ Ryan Howard slugged 58 home runs (with 149 RBI) and edged Prince Albert for the award.

2006 ended happily, however, for Pujols and St. Louis as they captured the World Series Championship in a 5-game series win over Detroit. It was Pujols who set the tone in the 3rd inning of Game 1, blasting a 2-run tater to right field off the Tigers’ rookie right-hander Justin Verlander.

2007-2010: Two More MVPs for Albert Pujols

2007 represented an “off” year for Pujols offensively. He “slumped” to then-career lows of 32 HR, 103 RBI, and 99 Runs. Yes, those were career lows for a seven-year career. Still, The Machine hit .327 with a 157 OPS+.

With his best-ever defensive metrics, Pujols posted his fifth straight season with a WAR of over 8. That’s how consistently superb this player was. His Wins Above Replacement were 8.7 (2003), 8.5 (2004), 8.4 (2005), 8.5 (2006) and 8.7 (2007). He hit .336 for these five years with a 173 OPS+, which is 73% above league average.

Incredibly, the future Hall of Famer got better in 2008 and 2009, years in which he won his 2nd and 3rd N.L. MVP Trophies:

• 2008: .357 BA, 37 HR, 116 RBI, 192 OPS+, 9.2 WAR
• 2009: .327 BA, 47 HR, 135 RBI, 124 Runs, 189 OPS+, 9.7 WAR

In both seasons, Pujols led the N.L. in Slugging, OPS+, and WAR. He also led the majors in HR and Runs in 2009 while posting an N.L.-best .443 on-base%.

In 2010, Prince Albert led the N.L. with 42 HR, 118 RBI, 115 Runs, and a 173 OPS+. Even though his 7.5 WAR was his “worst” in eight years, he led N.L. position players in that category for the sixth straight season. Still, he finished 2nd in the N.L. MVP vote (for the 4th time), this time to the Reds’ Joey Votto.

The First Ten Years of a Remarkable Career

I’ve already written that Albert Pujols could have made the Hall of Fame if he had retired after the 2011 season, his 11th and final campaign in St. Louis. The truth is, he could have made the Hall after his first ten seasons (the minimum requirement for a Cooperstown plaque). WAR (Wins Above Replacement) is not the be-all-end-all statistic for comparative analysis, but it’s a useful tool to start to compare players across eras.

So, with that disclaimer aside, take a look at the top 10 position players in MLB history (ranked by WAR) for their first 10 seasons in MLB:

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Anyway, if you believe in WAR, only Ted Williams, in the history of baseball, had a better first ten seasons than Albert Pujols. A couple of other nuggets about those first 10 campaigns:

• Pujols hit better than .300, more than 30 HR, and delivered more than 100 RBI in each of those ten campaigns. The only player in history to do this more than ten times is Babe Ruth. Pujols is the only player to do it in 10 straight seasons.
• In 9 of his first 10 seasons, Pujols hit over .300, had an on-base% over .400, and a slugging% over .500 while hitting at least 30 HR. Only Ruth, Bonds, and Lou Gehrig accomplished this more than the 9 times Pujols did it.
• To normalize Albert’s slash line for the prolific offensive era in which he played, we’ll use OPS+, which adjusts for ballparks and the overall MLB hitting environment. In all 10 years, Pujols slugged 30 HR with an OPS+ above 150. The only players to reach those benchmarks more than 10 times are Bonds, Ruth and Aaron. Mike Schmidt, Jimmie Foxx while Gehrig also did it 10 times.

(Incidentally, Pujols’ longtime Angels’ teammate Mike Trout would likely be 3rd on this WAR list if not for the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign).

Albert Pujols the Defensive Stud

One of the forgotten facts about the greatness of Albert Pujols is what a truly superb defensive player he was, consistently one of the best at the position during his last 8 years with St. Louis.

From 2004 to 2011, Pujols led the N.L. in putouts four times. He led the league in assists twice (finishing 2nd four other times). He also led all N.L. first sackers in double plays turned five times in those eight seasons. Pujols’ greatest asset as a first baseman has always been that he brought an outfielder’s or third baseman’s arm to the right side of the diamond.

Using advanced metrics, Baseball-Reference credits Pujols with leading the league in “Total Zone Runs as 1B” for six straight years from 2004-2009.

Pujols was awarded the Gold Glove in 2006 and 2010 but, according to advanced fielding metric gurus John Dewan and Ben Jedlovec (in The Fielding Bible), he deserved to win seven years in a row from 2005-2011.

Swan Song in St. Louis

If there was any indication that Albert Pujols was on the decline, it’s that his 2011 season (his final in St. Louis) was not quite up to the ridiculously lofty standards he had previously set for himself. He hit 37 home runs (not bad) while driving in 99 (again, not bad, but a career-low to that point).

For the first time, his batting average dipped below .300, although when I say dipped, I mean dipped; Pujols hit. 299. Albert’s OBP (.366) and SLG (.541) also represented career lows, as did his 148 OPS+, the first time he was below 150. His WAR was a career-low 5.3, a “mere” 10th best in the league.

For his efforts, Pujols finished “only” 5th in the N.L. MVP voting, behind Ryan Braun, Matt Kemp, Prince Fielder and Justin Upton.

In many ways, however, 2011 was one of the most satisfying campaigns in Prince Albert’s career, as the Redbirds won a thrilling 7-game World Series against the Texas Rangers. Pujols hit .353 during the ’11 post-season with a 1.155 OPS, 5 HR, 15 Runs, and 16 RBI in 18 games.

The Machine’s October record was marked by two signature games. In Game 2 of the NLCS, Pujols went 4 for 5 with a home run, 3 doubles, 3 runs scored, and 5 RBI. In Game 3 of the World Series, Albert went 5 for 6 with 3 homers, 6 ribbies, and 4 runs scored.

In Game 6, one of the greatest Fall Classic tilts of all time, the Redbirds trailed the Rangers 7-5 in the bottom of the 9th inning. The Cardinals were down 3 games to 2 in the series so the season was on the line. With one out, Pujols doubled off Texas closer Neftali Feliz. After a walk to Lance Berkman and a strikeout by Allen Craig, David Freese hit a triple to right field to score Pujols and Berkman to tie the game.

The Cards had to come back from two runs again in the 10th and then Freese famously won the game 10-9 with a solo blast to lead off the 11th.

On October 28th, as his team finished off Game 7 with a 6-2 win, Albert Pujols wore the Cardinals uniform for the last time. He had his second World Series ring, while manager Tony La Russa (in his final game as a big-league manager until his comeback for the 2021 campaign) won his third.

Albert Pujols’ Second Career in Anaheim

It seemed unthinkable that a franchise icon like Albert Pujols would not finish his playing career in St. Louis, but in today’s big-money world of free agency, that’s exactly what happened.

The Cards allegedly offered Albert a princely sum of $210 million over ten years, but much of that money was deferred. The Redbirds’ offer was trumped by a 10-year, $254 million offer from the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, with milestone incentives that could bring the total up to $280 million.

Money talks and Pujols walked. In retrospect, the Cardinals’ franchise dodged a $210 million bullet because Pujols’ “off-year” in 2011 was the beginning of a multi-year decline.

“If we want to call ‘decline’ going from superhuman to great, I don’t think we’ve seen the last great days of Albert Pujols, or we wouldn’t be sitting here today.”

— Jerry DiPoto, Angels General Manager (Dec. 8, 2011)

In 2012, his first and best year with the Angels, Pujols hit .285 with 30 HR, 105 RBI, and a 138 OPS+. Still a good defensive player, Pujols posted a 4.8 WAR, the lowest of his career but still a very solid number.

Ironically, after having been the best player in the sport for a decade in St. Louis, Pujols found himself in Anaheim with a young teammate (center fielder Trout) who was a rookie in 2012 and started putting Albert-Esque numbers right out of the box. Pujols, once the best in the game, has had the pleasure of being a teammate of the best in the game.

Anyway, 2012 was by far the best season for Pujols in an Angels uniform. In 2013, Pujols was in the midst of the worst season of his career (116 OPS+) when he missed the last two months of the campaign with surgery to repair a partially torn plantar fascia on his right foot.

Pujols was healthy enough to play at least 149 games in four of his first five seasons with the Angels but his productivity declined year after year after year. From 2014-16, he averaged 33 HR and 106 RBI with a 119 OPS+, not up to his previously lofty standards but respectable. His WAR was 4.0 in 2014, 3.0 in 2015, and, with more games used as a designated hitter, dropped to 1.3 in 2016.

2017-2019: Milestones but Not Much Else

For Albert Pujols, 2017 was pretty brutal. There wasn’t much positive to write about outside of his 600th career home run, a grand slam. Albert hit 23 home runs and drove in 101 but, thanks to a woeful .286 OBP and most of his games played as a DH, he wound up with a WAR of -1.8.

If you believe the calculation, the Angels could have plucked a player from their AAA affiliate in Salt Lake City, and the team would have won two more games than they did in reality. I don’t personally believe that. Even in the steep decline phase of his career, Pujols smelled RBI opportunities. In 2017, he slugged .448 with runners in scoring position, compared to a .374 slugging percentage with the bases empty.

Overall, Pujols’ career OPS with RISP is .994, over 100 points higher than his career OPS with the sacks empty (.890). Even in his down years, he was an RBI man, even if one with vastly reduced overall hitting skill.

Although he played in just 117 games in 2018, it was a slightly more productive season than 2017; thanks to a decreased double-play rate and increased slugging percentage, Pujols had a 0.3 WAR in ’18. The Machine reached another milestone, in early May, when hit a soft line drive to right field to record his 3,000th career hit. Pujols became the fourth member of an elite group of players, those who have 600 home runs and 3,000 hits, joining Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Alex Rodriguez in this exclusive club.

In 2019, Pujols had another season that could be described as mediocre (0.2 WAR, 94 OPS+), especially compared to his earlier career and in particular because he continued to hit in the middle of the order. As he’s done throughout his career, Pujols outperformed his overall numbers in RBI situations. In 163 PA with runners in scoring position, Pujols hit .294 with a .913 OPS. In 292 PA with the bases empty, he hit .212 with a .634 OPS. (Of course, when you’re tasked with driving in runs, it helps to have Mike Trout hitting in front of you).

Albert Pujols’ 2019 Milestones

Albert Pujols did reach some significant milestones in 2019. On April 26th in Kansas City, Pujols hit his 637th career home run, a two-run blast that raised his career runs batted in total to 1,995. That homer moved Pujols into a tie for 6th on the RBI list with Lou Gehrig. Two days later, Prince Albert drove in two more runs, giving him 1,997, which moved him ahead of both Gehrig and Barry Bonds.

Nearly two weeks later, Pujols launched his 639th career longball, a solo blast that more significantly represented his 2,000th career RBI.

Albert Pujols in 2020, 2021, and 2022

2020 was another disappointing season for Pujols and the Angels, who finished outside the playoffs for the 6th straight season. Of course, it was also a truncated campaign due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prince Albert played in just 39 of the team’s 60 games; he hit just .224 (with a 77 OPS+). He did swat two notable home runs in September, his 660th (to tie him with Willie Mays for 5th on the all-time HR list), and his 661st five days later, putting him in 5th place alone. Earlier in the season, Pujols drove in his 2,087th run, putting him in 3rd place on the all-time RBI list, passing Alex Rodriguez.

Early last year, in May, it appeared that Pujols’ career was ending when the Angels designated him for assignment to give him his unconditional release. In what was the final year of his 10-year contract with the Angels, Pujols slashed .198/.250/.372 in 92 plate appearances, with 5 HR and 12 RBI. Given that the Angels had two-way star Shohei Ohtani (the A.L. MVP) on the squad, there was no room for an aging designated hitter on the squad.

Pujols’ final five years with the Angels were tough. Bothered by injuries, most notably to his feet, The player dubbed “The Machine” during his days in St. Louis slowly broke down. From 2017-2021, he posted a -2.0 WAR (Wins Above Replacement) in Anaheim, with a lowly 85 OPS+.

In what was a surprise to many, however, Pujols’ playing career did not end when his release was official. Four days later, he was signed by the Angels’ neighbors to the north, the Los Angeles Dodgers. Given that the Angels were still responsible for his 2021 salary, the Dodgers were able to ink the then 41-year-old Pujols for the major league minimum. The Dodgers, a team that always searches for platoon advantages, utilized Pujols as an occasional starter at first base (mostly against left-handers) and a pinch hitter. (Pujols’ OPS was .498 higher vs. lefties compared to righties while with the Dodgers).

Pujols appeared in 9 of the Dodgers’ 12 postseason games, earning three starts against lefties. Overall, Pujols hit .294 with a pair of runs scored.

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During the lockout of the 2021-22 offseason, it was hardly assured that Pujols would return for a 22nd and final season. When the lockout was lifted on March 10, Pujols did not have a team and wasn’t sure if he wanted to return. In the first two weeks post-lockout, Pujols had three offers, but none were from the St. Louis Cardinals. However, towards the end of March, rookie manager Oliver Marmol decided that he needed a right-handed-hitting designated hitter (2022 was the first non-COVID year of the universal DH) and asked Pujols to come back to the city where he had had so much glory.

Pujols was signed to a 1-year, $2.5 million contract for his reunion tour in St. Louis. The entire season was a sentimental ride for Cardinals fans, as this was also the final season for catcher Yadier Molina and possibly the final campaign for pitcher Adam Wainwright. Both Molina and Wainwright were teammates with Pujols when the Cardinals won the World Series in 2006 and 2011.

And, of course, as we chronicled at the beginning of the piece, Pujols finished his final MLB season in style, giving the Redbird faithful a flashback to the all-time great player he was when previously in St. Louis.

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Closing Thoughts on Pujols’ Hall of Fame Career

Let’s finish by throwing out a few more nuggets about the greatness of Albert Pujols.

Besides what we’ve already shared, there was a terrific piece penned a few years ago by Jayson Stark of The Athletic in which he offered a few other neat numbers. You can click here to see the piece, but The Athletic is by subscription only (it’s worth it) so I’ll share just a handful of Stark’s numbers (now updated) here if you’re unable to read it.

• 41.5% of Pujols’ 3,388 hits have been for extra bases.
• As of 2017, he was one of 3 players in the 3,000-hit club to surpass a .300 BA and a .900 OPS against both right-handed and left-handed pitchers (the others being Mays and Stan Musial). That statistic is slightly off now but still impressive: Pujols has hit .295 against righties (.905 OPS) and .301 against southpaws (.954 OPS).
• Pujols had 19 consecutive seasons with more than 400 plate appearances and fewer than 100 strikeouts. In the last 50 years, the only other players to accomplish this are Eddie Murray, Robin Yount, and Bonds.

I finished with the note about strikeouts last. In his career, Pujols walked 1,373 times with just 1,404 strikeouts. In this current strikeout-happy culture with multiple relief pitchers throwing in the high 90s, Prince Albert’s lack of strikeouts compared to walks is striking. Now, in fairness, he has had more K’s than BBs in his last 11 years, but the disparity was so great early in his career that he still stands with almost more career free passes than whiffs.

“Some guys in this era think the strikeout is a little overrated. They’re like, ‘I don’t care about it.’ I do. It’s something in this game I really, really don’t like.”

— Albert Pujols (as told to ESPN)

From 2001 to 2011, Pujols was one of 26 players with at least 250 home runs (leading all of them with 445). Only he, Bonds, and Chipper Jones accomplished this while walking more than they struck out.

Oh, by the way, just to put an exclamation point on The Machine’s 11-year record in St. Louis, there were 137 players with at least 4,000 plate appearances from 2001-2011.

Pujols led all of them in WAR, OPS+, Home Runs, RBI, Runs Scored, Doubles, Batting Average, and Slugging%. He was 2nd in On-Base% (.004 behind Todd Helton, who played half of his games in Coors Field) and 3rd in hits (behind Ichiro Suzuki, and Derek Jeter, who was officially inducted into the Hall of Fame last summer). And he did this while posting the 7th highest number on Baseball-Reference for the component of WAR that measures fielding.

2022 is the end of the line for The Machine. Albert Pujols was an all-time great, and he’ll have a Hall of Fame plaque in Cooperstown in July 2028.

Thanks for reading.

Chris Bodig

Please follow me on Twitter @cooperstowncred.

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