Future Hall of Fame slugger Albert Pujols has had a magnificent career spanning 22 MLB seasons. The slugger has won three MVP awards on his way to etching his name among baseball’s all-time greats.
On Friday, Pujols accomplished his latest feat, his 701st career home run at the MLB level.
The occasion came in the bottom of the fourth inning with the St. Louis Cardinals trailing the Pittsburgh Pirates 1-0 at home. But that all changed once Pujols came to the plate.
A six-time Silver Slugger, Pujols, facing a 1-2 count, took a Johan Oviedo pitch deep to the upper deck of left field, going 398 feet.
The thousands of fans in attendance at Busch Stadium quickly rose to give Pujols, 42, a standing ovation on what might be one of the final home games of his career. The Cardinals have two more games at Busch Stadium, coming on Saturday and Sunday, so if you want one final chance to catch an absolute legend on the diamond, now might be one of your last opportunities.
For Pujols, it was his 22nd home run this season, giving him 59 RBI.
Pujols also hits the road for one last trip, heading to take on the Pirates for a three-game set at PNC Park from Monday to Wednesday next week. They may very well be the final regular season games of his storied career.
Not to worry though. The playoffs are coming, and the Cards are in first place of the NL Central division, meaning we could still see a few Pujols home runs in October just yet. Pujols has smacked 19 home runs in 352 plate appearances in the playoffs, none of which count toward his career regular-season total of 701.
Even at 701, Pujols still remains in fourth place on MLB’s all-time home runs leader list, 13 behind Babe Ruth, with 714. Barry Bonds (762), and Hank Aaron (755), aren’t sweating their placement any time soon.
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