Albert Pujols biography

 Albert Pujols biography

Albert Pujols, in full José Alberto Pujols Alcántara, (born January 16, 1980, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic), Dominican-born American skilled baseball participant who was some of the prolific hitters of the early twenty first century.

Pujols was launched to baseball early in life by his father, who was a well-liked pitcher within the Dominican Republic. The Pujols household immigrated to the United States when Albert was 16, and so they ultimately settled in Independence, Missouri. Pujols impressed main league scouts together with his play at each the highschool and collegiate degree, and he was chosen by the St. Louis Cardinals within the thirteenth spherical of the 1999 draft. He held out for a greater signing bonus, nonetheless, and didn't enter the minor leagues till the 2000 season. That was his solely season within the minors, as a formidable efficiency in spring coaching earned him a spot on the Cardinals’ 2001 opening-day roster.

Presumed to be a reserve as he entered his first season, Pujols as an alternative performed his means into the beginning lineup. He appeared in 161 video games, posted a .329 batting common with 37 residence runs and 130 runs batted in (RBIs), and was the unanimous selection for 2001 National League (NL) Rookie of the Year. Pujols continued to place up spectacular offensive numbers within the following seasons and was twice (2002 and 2003) the NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) runner-up to Barry Bonds. Pujols collected various different awards, together with the 2004 NL Championship Series MVP and Silver Slugger awards in 2001, 2003, and 2004. In 2005 he hit .330 with 41 residence runs and 117 RBIs and was named NL MVP.

In 2006 Pujols bettered the batting statistics of his earlier season, hitting .331 with 49 residence runs and 137 RBIs, and completed as MVP runner-up for the third time in his brief profession. That yr he additionally skilled his biggest postseason success, as he helped lead St. Louis to a commanding four-games-to-one win over the closely favoured Detroit Tigers within the World Series, giving the Cardinals their first title since 1982.

In 2008 Pujols was named NL MVP after ending the season with a .357 batting common and 116 RBIs. The following yr he hit .327 with 47 residence runs and 135 RBIs and gained his third NL MVP award. Pujols had a reasonable setback in 2011, as he batted below .300 for the primary time in his profession (.299), with 37 residence runs and 99 RBIs. However, his lowered manufacturing didn't forestall the Cardinals from staging one of many largest comebacks of all time to qualify for the postseason (after trailing within the Wild Card standings by 81/2 video games with a month remaining within the season) and in the end defeat the Texas Rangers within the World Series.

Pujols’s contract state of affairs was an oft-discussed matter in the course of the 2011 season after he did not comply with a contract extension with the Cardinals throughout spring coaching. After the staff gained the World Series, he turned some of the sought-after free brokers in baseball historical past and signed a 10-year $254 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. However, his first seasons with the Angels, whereas nonetheless higher than these of the typical main leaguer, didn't stay as much as expectations. Pujols posted profession lows in residence runs (30) and batting common (.285) in 2012, and he was on tempo to publish even worse numbers in 2013 when {a partially} torn foot ligament sidelined him for the remainder of the yr with 61 video games remaining within the season. He rebounded to a level in 2014 by batting .272 and driving in 105 runs. Despite ending 2015 with a brand new career-low .244 common, Pujols was chosen to his first All-Star staff as a member of the Angels that yr and hit 40 residence runs. In 2016 he led the Angels with 116 RBIs whereas batting .268. On June 3, 2017, Pujols turned the ninth participant in Major League Baseball historical past to hit 600 profession residence runs. He completed the 2017 season with a career-low .241 batting common. Pujols had a equally pedestrian 2018 season that led to August when he had season-ending knee surgical procedure. In 2019 he batted .244 and hit 23 residence runs because the Angels went 72–90, their worst report throughout Pujol’s time with the membership.