Pro Athelete of The Week..(past and present players eligible)Albert Pujols.

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Albert Pujols is regarded as one (or perhaps the very best) of the best players in the baseball today.
Recently Pujols was voted the runaway winner as the Most Feared Hitter in baseball in a poll of all 30 big-league managers.

He already ranks 107th on the List of the Top 500 home run hitters in the history of the game, in less than eight seasons.
On July 4th, 2008, Albert hit his 300th career home run, off Chicago Cubs' setup man Bobby Howry, a screaming line drive off the foul pole, in the eighth inning at Busch Stadium, becoming the fifth-youngest player (28 yrs., 170 days) in MLB history to hit # 300.


Since coming up in 2001 through the 2007 seasons, Pujols has led the major leagues in total bases (2,514) and extra-base hits (593).

He was second in home runs (282) to Alex Rodriguez (329) - second in RBI (861) to Rodriguez's 908 - second in runs (847) to Rodriguez's 874,
second in doubles (298) to Todd Helton's 318 and fourth in hits (1,344) to Ichiro Suzuki (1,592), Juan Pierre (1,378), and Derek Jeter (1,348).
Albert was also second in batting average (.3315) to Suzuki (.3335).


As of June 25 2008, Pujols has passed Suzuki as the active career batting average leader, .332 to .330.

He also won the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 2001.Pujols is an excellent defensive player at first base, winning the Gold Glove award in 2006.

0600603_SN_PujolsEX.jpg


During the 2006 season, he became the first Major League player to hit 30 or more home runs in each of his first six seasons, and the youngest to hit 250 home runs. He extended his 30-HR streak to seven consecutive years in 2007.

Pujols is also the first player since Ted Williams (8 yrs.; 1939-1942 and 1946-1949) to begin his career with seven straight 100+ RBI seasons he should tie Williams this year for 8 straight season with 100 RBI.


In the 2003 season, Pujols had one of the best individual seasons in Cardinals history batting .359 with 43 home runs and 124 RBI, winning the National League batting title, while also leading the league in runs, hits, doubles, extra base hits and total bases.


300px-Pujols_facing.JPG


At 23, Albert became the youngest NL batting champion since 1962 and joined Rogers Hornsby as the only players in Cardinals history to record 40+ homers and 200+ hits in the same season.

The 2005 season saw Pujols establish career highs in walks and stolen bases, while leading his team in almost every offensive category.
He finished batting .330 with 41 home runs, 117 RBI, 97 walks, and 16 stolen bases (leading all major league first basemen).
However, due to continually nagging leg injuries, he finished with a career-low 38 doubles.


His performance in 2005 earned him the National League Most Valuable Player award.

After appearing in the playoffs with the Cardinals in four of his first five years in the big leagues but falling short each time, Pujols won his first championship ring when the Cardinals won the 2006 World Series, defeating the Detroit Tigers four games to one.

Albert is the only player in baseball history to start his career with seven consecutive seasons with a .300 batting average, 30 HRs, 100 RBI, and 99 runs. (Ted Williams 23 HRs in 1940, Joe DiMaggio 29 HRs in 1936).

He won the prestigious Fielding Bible Award, given to only one MLB player at each position, for his defensive excellence at first base.

Accomplishments
Seven-time All-Star (2001, 2003-08)
48-game consecutive on-base streak in 2001, from July 28 - September 22.
Pujols had finished in the top four in the voting for MVP of the National League every year of his career, winning once (2005) and
coming in second three times (2002, 2003 & 2006) until 2007.


National League Batting Champion, 2003.

Only Ralph Kiner hit more home runs (215) in his first five seasons than Albert (201 home runs from 2001 through 2005).

Named to Major League Baseball's Latino Legends Team in 2005 as the starting first baseman.

Hit the first Cardinal home run in new Busch Stadium (Apr. 10, 2006)
Became the 35th player to hit home runs in four consecutive at-bats, and the 20th batter to hit four home runs in four consecutive plate appearances, on April 16 and 17, 2006.


Holds the record for most home runs in the month of April with 14 in 2006, tied with Alex Rodriguez, 2007.

Became the fastest player in Major League history to reach 19 home runs in a season, doing so on May 13, 2006.

Became the third-fastest, after Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire, to reach 25 home runs in a season, doing so on May 29, 2006.

Became first player in MLB history to hit 30 home runs in each of his first seven seasons (2001-07).

Became the 16th batter to hit three home runs in a game twice in the same season in 2006 (April 16 & September 3).

20 of his 49 home runs accounted for the game-winning RBI in 2006, breaking Willie Mays' single-season record set in 1962.

In the 2005 post-season, hit a monster game-winning home run against Brad Lidge that would have been out of the park had the stadium's
roof been open.


2006 World Series Championship.

Became only the third player in baseball history to start his career with seven consecutive seasons of 100+ RBIs, on September 26, 2007.
Joe DiMaggio (1936-1942), and Ted Williams (1939-1942, 1946-1949) were the only other players to accomplish that feat.


Became the only player in baseball history to start his career with seven consecutive seasons with a .300 batting average, 30 HRs, 100 RBIs.

42-game consecutive on-base streak in 2008, from April 1 - May 15, the longest in baseball since Derek Jeter had 53-games in 1999.

Hit his 300th career home run on July 4th, 2008.


Became the fastest player to get career home run 300 from their 1st (April 6th, 2001 - July 4th 2008), totaling 2,646 days, beating Alex Rodriguez by 572 days (June 12th, 1995 - April 3rd, 2003).

Became only the second player to hit 300 home runs in his first eight seasons. Ralph Kiner, the first to do it, had 329 home runs
in his first eight seasons.


Became one of only four players in major league history with a career batting average of .330 or higher [.332] and fewer than 500 strikeouts
at the time of their 300th home run. Ted Williams, Stan Musial, and Joe DiMaggio were the others.


Hit his 6th career grand slam against the Los Angeles Dodgers (at Busch Stadium) on August 6th, 2008 for the game-winning hit, breaking a 3-3 tie in a 9-6 win.

Awards
Rookie of the Year, 2001
Three-time Silver Slugger (2001, 2003-04) (Note: Pujols has won a Silver Slugger at three different positions: First Base, Third Base, and Left Field).
National League Player of the Month for both May and June 2003 and for April 2006.
Hank Aaron Award, 2003
Batting Title Champion 2003
TSN Player of the Year, 2003
NLCS MVP, 2004
National League MVP, 2005
Fielding Bible Award at first base, 2006
Gold Glove Award at first base, 2006
Fielding Bible Award at first base, 2007


Albert will be only 29 this offseason (January 16th). The future holds untold records in store for him and even at this early age Puhols is assured a spot in Cooperstown when he is finished.

This may be considered blashphemy to old time Cardinal fans but if Pujols continues at his present pace, when he finally hangs them up he will have to be judged the greatest Cardinal ever. Thats right even greater than The Greatest Cardinal of them all to decades of Cardinal fans everywhere: Stan "The Man" Musial..

Facts from Wikipedia.

wil.
 
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Lifetime STL fan here. Laying in the bed with an am radio to Bob Gibsons no hitter against the Pirates . Eleven yrs old. Never forget that.
 

Rx. Junior
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Hell yeah. Guy is an animal.

I agree ASU but you knew I would.

What do Cardinals fans and Gays have in common?

They both like "POO-HOLES"
 

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