When Albert Pujols was playing for St. Louis he was arguably the best hitter in the game. He had the numbers to back it up; in eleven total years with the Cardinals he hit .328/.420/.617 with an average WAR of 7.85 and a total of 445 Home Runs and 1,329 Runs Batted In. He won six Silver Slugger awards and made nine All-Star Game appearances. Let’s not forget his three MVP awards and his Rookie of the Year award along with being a part of two World Series Championship Clubs. Those stats and awards are Hall of Fame worthy.
After all the success with St. Louis, Albert Pujols signed with the Los Angeles Angels on December 8, 2011, it was a 10-year deal worth $254 million. Many fans were disappointed in St. Louis while many others were ecstatic in Los Angeles.
In Pujols first season with the Angels (2012) he struggled. He batted .285/.516/.859, which were career low numbers at that point. He only achieved 173 hits, walked 52 times and was intentionally walked 16 times and because of this his OBP and OPS dropped to a career low at that point. I believe Albert Pujols wasn’t performing at a regular rate because he was trying to hard compete with the young super-star Mike Trout. Mike Trout was overshadowing Pujols, many expected this, but not this early. Trout was a sensation in the MLB, he hit .326/.399/.564 those are stunning numbers for a 20-year-old fresh out of high school and Pujols just couldn’t compete with Rookie of the Year, Mike Trout.
Pujols second year with the Angels (2013) only got worse. Pujols was dealing with injury issues and he only played in 99 games that season. Almost all of his numbers were new career lows. His stat line read .258/.330/.437 with only 101 hits in those 99 games. Fans and analysts began wondering if this was the end of Pujols reign. While Pujols continued to cause doubt, Trout was making history achieving 2nd in the MVP race, Silver Slugger and he made the All Star Game. Pujols was truly in the shadows of young Mike Trout.
Pujols was determined to make a change going into the 2014 season. Pujols said, “In my heart and mind, I know I can hit anybody. I’m always relaxed. It’s hard to explain. It’s like playing with my kids. It feels natural.” He knew that he was ready to get back to his old self. He was off to a hot start in Spring Training batting .321/.375/.536. Even though that was only Spring Training he came into the 2014 MLB Season with confidence and high expectations for a bounce back season.
As the Regular Season came around Pujols was ready for action! He came in with confidence, and poise. In his first nine games he was batting only .219 and it was starting to look like another down season for Pujols, but it was too early to truly judge him. As Pujols continued his hopeful comeback season Trout was off to a fast start hitting a home run in his first at bat!
Pujols ended the month of April strong batting .280/.345/.589. Considering his previous numbers these were great stats for Pujols. He entered the month of May and continued to heat up! In all seven games in May has reached safely in six of those games. During May he has an average of .364 and is on his way to a great year of baseball!
Overall this season Albert Pujols is batting .293/.358/.579 and he has been building confidence. Pujols in on pace to hit 48 Home Runs and 124 RBI. Those numbers sound a little extreme.
Albert Pujols is making an early case for MLB Comeback Player of The Year.
For the latest sports injury news, check out our friends at sports injury alert.
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on twitter – @LastWordEvan. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
“You like baseball? Get involved! Check out LWOS Partners Bases Loaded EU for fantastic podcasts, news and a growing message board community of baseball fans like you!”
