Albert Pujols is UNDERRATED

I know the statement sounds crazy for a guy who a Top 5 finisher in the MVP every year, but when the question of best player in baseball comes up, it always Arod or Barry when he played. Albert is a Gold Glover at 1B, granted he is not as smooth as Derek Lee in terms how he does it defensively.

Everyone talks about Manny's offensive prowess, and while Manny is one of the great offensive players, Albert has never had a Big Papi or any other big time players around him.

Albert's career numbers are sick
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr class="ysptblthbody1" align="right"><td class="yspdetailttl" align="left" height="18" width="18%">Year</td><td class="yspdetailttl" align="left" width="6%">Team</td><td class="yspdetailttl">G</td><td class="yspdetailttl">AB</td><td class="yspdetailttl">R</td><td class="yspdetailttl">H</td><td class="yspdetailttl">2B</td><td class="yspdetailttl">3B</td><td class="yspdetailttl">HR</td><td class="yspdetailttl">RBI</td><td class="yspdetailttl">BB</td><td class="yspdetailttl">K</td><td class="yspdetailttl">SB</td><td class="yspdetailttl">CS</td><td class="yspdetailttl">AVG</td><td class="yspdetailttl">OBP</td><td class="yspdetailttl">SLG</td><td class="yspdetailttl">OPS</td><td>
</td></tr><tr class="ysprow1" align="right"><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16"> 2001</td><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16">STL</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">161</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">590</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">112</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">194</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">47</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">4</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">37</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">130</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">69</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">93</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">3</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.329</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.403</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.610</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1.013</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">
</td></tr><tr class="ysprow2" align="right"><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16"> 2002</td><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16">STL</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">157</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">590</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">118</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">185</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">40</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">2</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">34</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">127</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">72</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">69</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">2</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">4</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.314</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.394</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.561</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.955</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">
</td></tr><tr class="ysprow1" align="right"><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16"> 2003</td><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16">STL</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">157</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">591</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">137</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">212</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">51</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">43</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">124</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">79</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">65</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">5</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.359</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.439</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.667</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1.106</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">
</td></tr><tr class="ysprow2" align="right"><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16"> 2004</td><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16">STL</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">154</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">592</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">133</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">196</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">51</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">2</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">46</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">123</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">84</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">52</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">5</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">5</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.331</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.415</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.657</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1.072</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">
</td></tr><tr class="ysprow1" align="right"><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16"> 2005</td><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16">STL</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">161</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">591</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">129</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">195</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">38</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">2</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">41</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">117</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">97</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">65</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">16</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">2</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.330</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.430</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.609</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1.039</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">
</td></tr><tr class="ysprow2" align="right"><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16"> 2006</td><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16">STL</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">143</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">535</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">119</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">177</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">33</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">49</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">137</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">92</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">50</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">7</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">2</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.331</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.431</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.671</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1.102</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">
</td></tr><tr class="ysprow1" align="right"><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16"> 2007</td><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16">STL</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">158</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">565</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">99</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">185</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">38</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">32</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">103</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">99</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">58</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">2</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">6</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.327</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.429</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.568</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.997</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">
</td></tr><tr class="ysprow2" align="right"><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16"> 2008</td><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16">STL</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">105</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">371</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">71</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">130</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">27</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">0</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">24</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">74</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">78</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">39</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">6</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">2</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.350</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.462</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.617</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1.079</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">
</td></tr><tr class="ysprow1" align="right" height="16"><td class="yspscores" align="left" height="16"> Career</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">
</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1196</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">4425</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">918</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1474</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">325</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">13</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">306</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">935</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">670</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">491</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">44</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">25</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.333</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.424</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">.620</td><td class="yspscores" height="16">1.044</td></tr></tbody></table>

I believe if he played in NYC, CHI or LA, he would be billboarded every where.

i dont think its a crazy statement at all. in fact, i remember having a talk with a buddy a few months ago about how kobe bryant is underrated as well. ostensibly, those sound like ridiculous statements. but theres a lot of truth to both. kobe bryant is a very polarizing athlete (for obvious reasons) but we have the opportunity to watch the best player of this new generation ... and we are looking for reasons to tear the guy down because he's not jordan. big fucking deal. bryant is the closest thing to jordan were going to see and he needs to be appreciated a lot more than he is. as for pujols, i dont disagree. he is truly one of those guys who, every time up, you honestly think is going to hit for an extra base. every single time. his swing is that good. he doesnt fly completely under the radar. but he also doesnt get nearly the credit he deserves either.

In my opinion the best hitter in the game

He is the best there ever was. Just like Roy Hobbs.

prodigy said:

i dont think its a crazy statement at all. in fact, i remember having a talk with a buddy a few months ago about how kobe bryant is underrated as well. ostensibly, those sound like ridiculous statements. but theres a lot of truth to both. kobe bryant is a very polarizing athlete (for obvious reasons) but we have the opportunity to watch the best player of this new generation ... and we are looking for reasons to tear the guy down because he's not jordan. big fucking deal. bryant is the closest thing to jordan were going to see and he needs to be appreciated a lot more than he is. as for pujols, i dont disagree. he is truly one of those guys who, every time up, you honestly think is going to hit for an extra base. every single time. his swing is that good. he doesnt fly completely under the radar. but he also doesnt get nearly the credit he deserves either.

Click to expand...

Yep, exactly. He is just such a complete hitter, it's truly amazing to watch him every single at-bat. I laugh out loud by myself sometimes after a hit, because it's just sick that a player could be that consistently good.

Illini said:

He is the best there ever was. Just like Roy Hobbs.

Click to expand...

Better than Shoeless Joe Jackson? :missingte

I agree he is underrated. I rank him as the second best hitter in the game. A-Rod is number one by a wide margin in my opinion, but Albert is the best in the NL. Him, Han-Ram and David Wright are by far the three best players in the NL.

He would be my number one hitter to start a franchise with, only because A-Rod is in his 30's.

OTK said:

I agree he is underrated. I rank him as the second best hitter in the game. A-Rod is number one by a wide margin in my opinion, but Albert is the best in the NL. Him, Han-Ram and David Wright are by far the three best players in the NL.

He would be my number one hitter to start a franchise with, only because A-Rod is in his 30's.

Click to expand...

I'll admit that I watch Pujols probably more than anyone on here, and I'm also biased. But how can you say that ANYONE is better that Pujols by a wide margin? Pujols is gonna go down as one of the greatest hitters of all time.

agreed

OTK said:

I agree he is underrated. I rank him as the second best hitter in the game. A-Rod is number one by a wide margin in my opinion, but Albert is the best in the NL. Him, Han-Ram and David Wright are by far the three best players in the NL.

He would be my number one hitter to start a franchise with, only because A-Rod is in his 30's.

Click to expand...

Excuse my homerism, but Chase Utley has got to be in the top three players in the NL with Pujols...

OTK said:

I agree he is underrated. I rank him as the second best hitter in the game. A-Rod is number one by a wide margin in my opinion, but Albert is the best in the NL. Him, Han-Ram and David Wright are by far the three best players in the NL.

He would be my number one hitter to start a franchise with, only because A-Rod is in his 30's.

Click to expand...

:think2::think2:

Pujols, and Manny for that matter, in my opinion are both better hitters than Arod.............

We've gone through this before, sure AROD will have the career numbers, and will not take that away from him.

However, not as good an all-around hitter as Pujols........not close really.

Can you imagine if Pujols played for the Yankees...........he would be considered not only the greatest hitter of today, of all-time..........and quite possibly a top ten athlete of all-time by the media and the huge following of fans they have.

Pujols, much like Musial, is an HIGHLY UNDERrated player, for the simple fact he doesn't play in NY.......and by a lesser degree, BOS or CHI.

Fishhead said:

Can you imagine if Pujols played for the Yankees...........he would be considered not only the greatest hitter of today, of all-time..........and quite possibly a top ten athlete of all-time by the media and the huge following of fans they have.

Pujols, much like Musial, is an HIGHLY UNDERrated player, for the simple fact he doesn't play in NY.......and by a lesser degree, BOS or CHI.

Click to expand...

Stan Musial....now you are talking Fishhead...wish some of the younger guys could have seen him play....

OTK said:

I agree he is underrated. I rank him as the second best hitter in the game. A-Rod is number one by a wide margin in my opinion, but Albert is the best in the NL. Him, Han-Ram and David Wright are by far the three best players in the NL.

He would be my number one hitter to start a franchise with, only because A-Rod is in his 30's.

Click to expand...

See this is exactly what I am talking about, how can you say Arod is number one by a wide margin. Yes, Arod has better power numbers, but Albert's worst season is .314. Arod's 2nd best season is .321, is not better than Albert's 2nd worst season .327.

That is the point of my argument, how can you say a guy whose 2nd worst season in terms of batting average is behind a guy whose 2nd best season is only .321.

Arod strikes out 100 times every season, since 2002, Albert has not struck out more than 69 times in any season.

Bot 8th: LA Angels - A. Pujols homered to deep left, M. Trout scored

#25 on the year

guess he just had to get situated

He's actually going to have a good season ( for anybody but him) after that horrible start.

Pulhous first 5 years in the majors are only surpassed by the 1st 5 years of Ted Williams & Chuck Klein!