Albert Pujols moved into a tie with Willie Mays for fifth place on the all-time home run list. His home run Sunday in the eighth inning of Carlos Estévez of the Colorado Rockies was the 660th of his career.
6️⃣6️⃣0️⃣!!! pic.twitter.com/O31nUhiqWu
— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) September 13, 2020
Career Milestones
The home run is the 215th that Albert Pujols has hit as a member of the Los Angeles Angels. It is the latest in a long career of impressive milestones for him.
In 2019, he added two of those milestones when he hit his 646th double and when he recorded his 2,000th RBI. The double put him eighth on the all-time list at the time. The RBI made him one of five players in history with 2,000 RBI.
He also became a member of the 3,000 hit club in 2017, one of only 32 players in MLB history to join that elusive club. He is currently 15th on the all-time hit list.
Historic Company
The home run cements his legacy as one of the greatest home run hitters of all time. The only four players with more home runs are Barry Bonds (762), Hank Aaron (756), Babe Ruth (714), and Alex Rodriguez (696).
At this stage of Pujols’s career, it was unlikely that he would catch Rodriguez in a full season, and that is out of the question for 2020 with the abbreviated season.
His contract with the Angels expires after 2021. Therefore, a lot of things will need to go right for Pujols to catch Rodriguez. As an Angel, he averages 24 home runs per season. For argument’s sake, if he hits ten more this season, he reaches 670. An average season in 2021 puts him short of Rodriguez as well as 700.
Reaching that milestone puts him in even more exclusive company than he already is. Not reaching it has no impact on his status as a future Hall of Famer and one of the greatest right-handed hitters of all time.
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
