Los Angeles Angels: Albert Pujols nears 600 HR, but no one seems to care

There’s been a noticeable lack of fanfare surrounding Albert Pujols’ impending 600th career home run. What gives?

If you’re a Los Angeles Angels or dedicated Albert Pujols fan, you’re probably aware that the veteran first baseman is just one home run away from 600 in his 17-year career. If not, it may come as something of a surprise that he’s closing in on such a major milestone. Only eight players have reached this lofty plateau, after all. You’d think the baseball would be buzzing with anticipation right now.

Yet Pujols is chasing history to relative obscurity… and plenty of empty seats. He launched his 599th blast on Tuesday night in Anaheim against the Braves. Angels reliever Huston Street couldn’t help but notice the lack of fanfare. Per ESPN.com:

“The stadium was not packed last night – was not packed,” Street said, referencing a Tuesday night when Pujols lifted career home run No. 599. “There was a time when that would have never happened.”

According to ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez, Wednesday night’s game at Angel Stadium was about 10,000 fans below capacity, despite the fact that Pujols could have potentially hit his 600th home run. In front of a home crowd, no less.

So why the collective yawn in the face of Pujols’ impending achievement?

As Gonzalez points out, the controversy surrounding baseball’s steroid era has taken the shine off many home run records that were once among baseball’s most revered. Growing up, Hank Aaron‘s 755 homers were a legendary and awe-inspiring mark. Now many fans still don’t accept Barry Bonds as the all-time leader.

Pujols has never been credibly linked to performance-enhancing drugs, but suspicion has followed pretty much every slugger who was routinely sending baseballs into the stratosphere in the 1990s and 2000s. That’s unfair, but it’s an unfortunate reality. Case in point, look at the way some Hall of Fame voters refuse to cast ballots for anyone who played during that period.

Perhaps we’ve also come to take Pujols for granted. He was so consistently great for so long, incredible feats were simply expected of him. With the St. Louis Cardinals from 2001 to 2011, Pujols slashed .328/.420/.617 while averaging 40 home runs, 121 RBI and 155 games played per season. Like clockwork. They didn’t call him “The Machine” for nothing.

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Of course, his star has dimmed somewhat since signing a monster 10-year, $254 million contract with the Angels prior to the 2012 season. Over his first five years in Anaheim, Pujols averaged a .266/.325/.474 line with 29 homers and 98 RBI per campaign. Not poor production by any stretch, but well below what we had grown accustomed to seeing from Pujols.

He’s off to a tepid start in 2017, hitting .254/.303/.409 with eight homers in 48 contests, though his 38 RBI are good for third in the American League. (Thank you, Mike Trout.)

Pujols has never been much of a media lightning-rod either, and that could play somewhat of a role as well. Like any cyborg, he can be a bit… bland. But you can hardly blame him for that and he’s certainly not alone in that category. The characteristically humble Pujols has downplayed his upcoming milestone in talking with the media. Via MLB.com:

“When I play the game during the season, it’s hard for me to focus on what’s in front of me,” Pujols said Tuesday. “I’m aware of the history, don’t get me wrong. I respect that, but I think that’s the kind of distraction I don’t want to bring into the game.”

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If the man himself isn’t making a huge deal out of it, maybe we shouldn’t either. When Pujols eventually gets inducted into Cooperstown, his final home run tally will just be one part of his legacy. That doesn’t mean his 600th homer should go unnoticed, or that we shouldn’t continue to appreciate him in his declining years. With nearly five seasons left on his current deal, there will be many more historic moments to come.

Pujols will have the next four games to try to notch No. 600 in front of the Angels faithful before the team heads out on a six-game road trip.