MLB: Three Best Fits For Future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols
One of the best MLB players ever is suddenly without a team. Where will Albert Pujols end up?
If you’ve seen more than three MLB players better than Albert Pujols, at least one of the following three things are true:
You are over the age of eighty.
You are under the age of ten.
You are wrong.
Admittedly, there’s some overlap between those second and third points. And as for the octogenarians joining us, full kudos on finding your way to the MLB blogosphere. But while there might be some overlap with the above, there is zero hyperbole.
Albert Pujols is one the greatest players to ever play the game of baseball, and might be the greatest in the last thirty years. I’d say it’s neck and neck between Pujols, another past his prime legend in Miguel Cabrera, and Pujols’ former teammate Mike Trout.
That’s right, I did say former teammate Mike Trout. For Thursday afternoon saw the Los Angeles Angels make the somewhat shocking decision to outright release the future first ballot Hall of Famer.
Again, one of the best of all time. As for where he ranks on some baseball-wide or first base specific Mount Rushmore, I’ll leave the litigation of that to others. Something tells me those articles won’t be in short supply. What is of particular interest to me is what happens to the legend in the here and now, and whether or not Pujols has in fact played his last MLB game.
If he did, those May 4th ticket stubs just became collector’s items, and Rays reliever Hunter Strickland just achieved a small piece of baseball immortality. Strickland induced Pujols to popout in his last at bat with the Angels.
However, I would be extremely surprised if that was the last MLB at bat we’ll see from him. Something tells me Albert Pujols will want to go out slightly more on his own terms than what unfolded Thursday afternoon. So, assuming we don’t find out in the next few days Pujols just walked into Joe Maddon‘s office and told him he was done, here are the three best fits for the third and final act of Pujols’ MLB career.
Starting with….
Albert Pujols and the NL Central Return
Could Albert Pujols return to the St. Louis Cardinals?
Not impossible, but not likely. But a return to the NL Central can’t be ruled out.
Only the Pirates can be considered out of it in Pujols’s former division, and two of the contenders arguably have vacancies at first base.
First up, the Cincinnati Reds, who would love to make a surprise run this season after so much irrelevance. Their own aging superstar first baseman, Joey Votto, just went down with a broken thumb, and could miss as much as a month. Bringing in Pujols would immediately provide that same veteran presence in the lineup Votto had been providing for the young club.
Or what about the Milwaukee Brewers. There was a reason Pujols was cut, but there was an even bigger reason Milwaukee’s Opening Day first baseman was just sent back down to the minors. Keston Hiura has been horrible this year, and with Christian Yelich returning to the disabled list, the Brew Crew’s offense can use a spark. Any kind of spark. They’re alive entirely because of their rotation, which is easily the best in the division. The offense? Pujols is currently batting .198 this year…and he’s nearly fifty points ahead of Hiura. He’d be tied for the team lead in homers.
Starting the rest of the way is on the table in Milwaukee. Starting for another month, and then rotating with Votto in Cincinnati. Or the slight chance St. Louis brings him back for a farewell tour in complete backup duty.
He won’t be a Cub or a Pirate, but he could easily be NL Central bound. Unless…
Albert Pujols and the Championship Chase
…Albert Pujols decides he wants to make a run at a third World Series championship.
In that case, he’s headed right for the Bronx or Chavez Ravine, and signing on with the Yankees or the Dodgers.
My money would be on the Yankees in the title chasing scenario. The only thing current first baseman Mike Ford has going for him is that he kind of looks like fictional Yankees Triple Crown winner Clu Haywood from Major League. Unfortunately for Ford, facial hair is the only offensive category he’s currently leading in. Coming into Friday, he’s batting a staggering .107 points less than Pujols.
Of course, Ford is only starting because Luke Voit has been out all season. That’s expected to end next week. Still, given how 2021 has played out injury wise, it’s no lock that knee doesn’t flare up again. Pujols seems like pretty good Voit insurance, and hitter friendly Yankee stadium seems like more than a pretty good final landing spot for a hitter that might still believe he has a shot at joining the 700 HR club.
As for joining the Dodgers? Well, it’s not like he’d have to pack. That injury to Cody Bellinger gives him a short-term window for some meaningful at bats for the cross town club. More importantly though, the Dodgers are clear favorites for winning it all this season. He’s good enough to help out off the bench.
That being said, if playing time was the reason Albert Pujols left the Angels, he likely won’t find enough to his liking with any of the championship contenders. If regular at bats and padding the career stats are the goal, there’s really one clear choice:
Albert Pujols and the Old Man
This is the one that is happening for Albert Pujols, folks. Lock it down right now.
Tony La Russa is going to try to bring his former player over to the Chicago White Sox. Seeing as how Pujols helped La Russa cement his career legacy in their St. Louis days, it shouldn’t surprise anyone if La Russa decides Pujols might help him keep from throwing that legacy out the window with his new team.
The White Sox are keeping their heads above water in the AL Central, and doing so despite losing their best two hitters to serious injuries. They’ll be back in action around the same time the Chicago Bears are. Not what the organization was hoping for when they brought in a World Series winning manager.
Pujols could alternate between first base and DH, doing whatever Jose Abreu wasn’t that particular day. For those thinking La Russa wouldn’t take Yermin Mercedes out of the lineup to give Pujols at bats, I’m not sure what manager you’ve been watching this season. La Russa is the tenured professor of MLB skippers this season, or at least is acting like it. It’s not not a fit roster wise, and it’s a perfect hit for Pujols seeing regular action.
Albert Pujols has reached the end of his Los Angeles Angels career. But his MLB career?
Next. End Of The Line For Pujols. dark
I wouldn’t count on him being out of work for long.