Come back or not, Pujols leaves a unique legacy

You just knew. That was the point. You knew it before he went to bat. The game could be in the 10th inning, and the turn of Albert pujols maybe it wouldn’t arrive until the 11th, and everyone knew that he was going to end up sending everyone home.

If the Dominican’s career came to an end, that should be his legacy, as much or more than anything else. He surely would like to be remembered for sentencing games – winning them – more than for anything else. And few players have done that as well or as often.

Of course, we could also refer to him as the greatest right-hander since Hank Aaron. And we would be correct. But to really appreciate the slugger that Pujols has been, the first thing to understand is that the man was a guarantee. I was going to beat you the game. The only question was when and how.

Of course it’s possible that Pujols, who was standing in the waiting circle when AJ Pollock grounded out to end the Dodgers’ season with a 4-2 loss to the Braves in Game 6 of the Championship Series. the National League on Saturday night at Truist Park, decide not to retire. Not yet. The solid production he showed in these months for the Dodgers could have opened the door to play in 2022, if he wants to. But, for now, he has no contract. And there are no guarantees that one of the greatest players of all time is going to play again.

Either way, his legacy is unassailable. He is the leader among active players in home runs, RBIs, hits, doubles and walks. He is a three-time MVP winner and there are many in St. Louis who say he should have a couple more.

He has won the Golden Glove twice, which reminds us of something that should not be forgotten. Pujols was a complete player. He is an exemplary defender at first base, a smart and aggressive, a high average hitter and a high OBP who also hit home runs in droves.

Batting is difficult for anyone. It was difficult for Pujols even in the best years of his career. But he made it look easy. His serene way of standing at the plate, that absolute focus and his immaculate decision-making process when swinging made him a hitter who never looked like he was having a hard time on offense. Pass him a pitch nearby, and you were going to regret it. He was going to take revenge, he was not going to bother. You couldn’t get him out of his mind.

Even as a rookie the game didn’t seem difficult for him. He appeared in the majors as a star in 2001, earning a spot on the Cardinals roster with a brilliant spring and then tormenting NL pitchers for six months.

All of that from a hitter who had started the previous year in Class A Low. Don’t forget that part of the story, either. He was taken in the 13th round of the draft straight from a small local college in the Kansas City area. He spent three-quarters of the season in Class A Low, took 81 at-bats in Class A High, made three regular-round games at Triple-A and the postseason and voila. A few months later, he was starring in one of the best rookie years in the game’s history.

That started a streak from season to season that has rarely been seen. Between 2001 and 2010, Pujols left an offensive line of .331 / .426 / .624. He hit 408 home runs in that stretch. If he had retired on the day he completed the minimum required service time (10 years), he would have entered the Hall of Fame directly.

When he left St. Louis after 2011, his name was already on pages and pages of the Cardinals’ records, ranking second – behind only Stan Musial – in home runs, doubles, bases hit, walks, RBIs and extra-base hits. He also helped win two World Series and thus restore the old glory of a franchise that, by his standards, had spent much of the last decade a bit adrift.

The second half of his career obviously didn’t quite reach the heights of the first, but Pujols was an above-average hitter, a dangerous gunner, well into his 30s. And even to the end, he remained one of the smartest players. Major League Baseball, a figure revered by his teammates and an unmistakable presence.

If it’s all over, all of us baseball fans should just say thank you. It has been a privilege to watch Albert Pujols hit, and watch him play baseball. The game is better because of him and there is no better legacy than that.