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Albert Pujols

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Albert Pujols

Albert Pujols

Position First Base
Team St. Louis Cardinals
Years of Experience 5 years
Age 26
Height 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight 225 lbs.
Bats Right
Throws Right
College Maple Woods Community College
2005 Salary $11,000,000
Place of Birth Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Selection 13th round amateur draft, 1999
Drafted by St. Louis Cardinals
Major League Debut April 2, 2001

José Alberto Pujols (born January 16, 1980 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) is a Major League Baseball player with the St. Louis Cardinals. He is widely regarded as one of the best offensive players in the game and hits consistently for average and power. In recent years he has also become an above-average defensive player at first base. On August 5th, 2005, Pujols became the first player in Major League history to hit 30 or more home runs in each of his first five seasons. On August 31st of that year, he became the first Major League player since Ted Williams to reach the 100 RBI mark in each of his first five seasons.

Early career

Born into poverty in the Dominican Republic, Pujols's family emigrated to the United States in the early 1990s, first to New York City and then later to Independence, Missouri. In the U.S., Pujols gained his love for baseball, batting over .500 in his first season of high school baseball. After high school, Pujols attended Maple Woods Community College in the Kansas City area. In his first season with the community college, Pujols showed off his talent, hitting a grand slam and turning an unassisted triple play in his first game and batting .461 for the year.

The St. Louis Cardinals became interested in Pujols, eventually drafting him in the 13th round of the 1999 draft. However, Pujols initially turned down a mere USD $10,000 bonus and opted to play in the Jayhawk League in Kansas instead. However, by the end of the summer of 1999, the Cardinals had increased their bonus offer to $60,000 and Pujols signed with the Cardinals and was assigned to the developmental leagues.

By 2000, Pujols was assigned to the Peoria Chiefs of the single-A Midwest League, where he was voted league MVP. Pujols quickly progressed through the ranks of the St. Louis farm clubs, first at the Potomac Cannons in the high-A Carolina League and then with the Memphis Redbirds in the Class AAA Pacific Coast League. In just seven games with the Redbirds in 2000, Pujols hit .367 with two home runs.

Major leagues

During spring training in 2001, the Cardinals were preparing for Pujols to join the Major League ranks, but the Cardinals' roster was already full of talented players, including Mark McGwire, Fernando Viña, Edgar Rentería, Ray Lankford, Jim Edmonds and J.D. Drew. However, an injury to bench player Bobby Bonilla freed up a roster spot, and Pujols played on Opening Day against the Colorado Rockies in Denver.

Pujols playing first base.

In the season's second series, playing against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Pujols hit a home run, three doubles and eight runs batted in, securing his spot on the team. By May, he was named National League Rookie of the Month. By June, he was named to the Major League Baseball All-Star Game by NL manager Bobby Cox, the first Cardinal rookie named to the team since 1955. Pujols continued with his phenomenal rookie season, helping the Cardinals earn a tie for the National League Central Division title. For the season, Pujols batted .329 with 37 home runs and 130 runs batted in and was unanimously named the National League Rookie of the Year.

In 2002, Pujols struggled early as pitchers learned to pitch to him, but he continued to bat well throughout the season, hitting .314 with 34 homers and 127 RBIs. The Cardinals finished first in the NL Central during a difficult campaign that saw the death of team announcer Jack Buck and the sudden death of pitcher Darryl Kile. The Cardinals defeated the Diamondbacks in the first round of the playoffs, but lost to the San Francisco Giants in the NL Championship series.

In the 2003 season, Pujols had his best season yet, batting .359 with 43 home runs and 124 RBIs, winning the National League batting title, but the Cardinals failed to make the playoffs, faltering in the stretch to the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central. Pujols also finished second in the MVP voting, losing the award to Barry Bonds.

For 2004, Pujols was nagged by hamstring problems, but was still a powerful hitter, hitting .331 with 46 home runs and 123 RBI. In addition, Pujols was chosen to appear on the cover of EA Sports' video game, MVP Baseball 2004. He was also the MVP of the 2004 National League Championship Series, helping his team reach the World Series, where they were swept by the Boston Red Sox.

The 2005 season saw Pujols establish career highs in walks and stolen bases, while leading his team in almost every offensive category. He finished with a .330 batting average, a .430 on-base percentage, a .609 slugging percentage, 41 home runs (including his 200th career homer), a grand slam, 117 RBIs, 97 walks, and 16 stolen bases. However, due to continually nagging leg injuries, he finished with a career-low 38 doubles. The Cardinals were eliminated 4 games to 2 in the National League Championship Series, but Pujols hit a memorable home run in game 5—a 2-out, 3-run blast in the top of the 9th inning, off of Houston Astros closer Brad Lidge to stave off elimination. After the season, Pujols received his first National League MVP award, underscoring his critical role in keeping the injury-plagued Cardinals on track throughout the season.

Personal

Pujols married his wife, Deidre on January 1, 2000. They have three children, Isabella (Deidre's daughter, adopted by Albert), Albert, Jr. and Sophia. Albert and his wife are active in the cause of people with Down syndrome, as Isabella was born with this condition. In 2005, they launched the Pujols Family foundation which is dedicated to "the love, care and development of people with Down syndrome and their families," as well as helping the poor in the Dominican Republic. Pujols and his wife are very active Christians; as the foundation's website says, "In the Pujols family, God is first. Everything else is a distant second." More information on the foundation can be found at their website: www.pujolsfamilyfoundation.org

Accomplishments

Statistics

Career Statistics:
Hitting

G AB H 2B 3B HR R RBI BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS OPS+
790 2,954 982 227 11 201 629 621 401 344 .332 .416 .621 1.037 169

162-game Averages

AB H 2B 3B HR R RBI BB SO
606 201 47 2 41 129 127 82 71

All-Time MLB Career Ranks

AVG OBP SLG OPS OPS+
.332 .416 .621 1.037 169
30th 23rd 4th 7th 9th

Comparison

  • Each player's first five years are averaged together:


Pujols Alex Rodriguez Ken Griffey Jr. Ted Williams Joe DiMaggio Hank Aaron Barry Bonds
Games 158 103 147 147 137 146 143
Batting Average (BA) .332 .313 .303 .353 .343 .316 .265
Home Runs (HR) 40 21 26 33 34 28 23
Runs Batted In (RBI) 124 70 91 128 138 99 67
Stolen Bases (SB) 6 19 15 2 3 2 34
Runs Scored (R) 126 77 85 137 123 99 94
Preceded by National League Rookie of the Year
2001 		Succeeded by
Preceded by National League Most Valuable Player
2005 		Succeeded by
incumbent
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