Athletes - Albert Pujols

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	Athletes - Albert Pujols

José Alberto Pujols (born January 16, 1980 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) is a Major League Baseball player with the St. Louis Cardinals. He is widely regarded as one of the best offensive players in the game and hits consistently for average and power. In recent years he has also become an above-average defensive player at first base. On August 5th, 2005, Pujols became the first player in Major League history to hit 30 or more home runs in each of his first five seasons. On August 31st of that year, he became the first Major League player since Ted Williams to reach the 100 RBI mark in each of his first five seasons.

Early career

Born into poverty in the Dominican Republic, Pujols's family immigrated to the United States in the early 1990s, first to New York City and then later to Independence, Missouri. In the U.S., Pujols gained his love for baseball, batting over .500 in his first season of high school baseball. After high school, Pujols attended Maple Woods Community College in the Kansas City area. In his first season with the community college, Pujols showed off his talent, hitting a grand slam and turning an unassisted triple play in his first game and batting .461 for the year.

The St. Louis Cardinals became interested in Pujols, eventually drafting him in the 13th round of the 1999 draft. However, Pujols initially turned down a mere USD $10,000 bonus and opted to play in the Jayhawk League in Kansas instead. However, by the end of the summer of 1999, the Cardinals had increased their bonus offer to $60,000 and Pujols signed with the Cardinals and was assigned to the developmental leagues.

By 2000, Pujols was assigned to the Peoria Chiefs of the single-A Midwest League, where he was voted league MVP. Pujols quickly progressed through the ranks of the St. Louis farm clubs, first at the Potomac Cannons in the high-A Carolina League and then with the Memphis Redbirds in the Class AAA Pacific Coast League. In just seven games with the Redbirds in 2000, Pujols hit .367 with two home runs.

Major leagues

During spring training in 2001, the Cardinals were preparing for Pujols to join the Major League ranks, but the Cardinals' roster was already full of talented players, including Mark McGwire, Fernando Viña, Edgar Rentería, Ray Lankford, Jim Edmonds and J.D. Drew. However, an injury to bench player Bobby Bonilla freed up a roster spot, and Pujols played on Opening Day against the Colorado Rockies in Denver.

In the season's second series, playing against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Pujols hit a home run, three doubles and eight runs batted in, securing his spot on the team. By May, he was named National League Rookie of the Month. By June, he was named to the Major League Baseball All-Star Game by NL manager Bobby Cox, the first Cardinal rookie named to the team since 1955. Pujols continued with his phenomenal rookie season, helping the Cardinals earn a tie for the National League Central Division title. For the season, Pujols batted .329 with 37 home runs and 130 runs batted in and was unanimously named the National League Rookie of the Year.

In 2002, Pujols struggled early as pitchers learned to pitch to him, but he continued to bat well throughout the season, hitting .314 with 34 homers and 127 RBIs. The Cardinals finished first in the NL Central during a difficult campaign that saw the death of team announcer Jack Buck and the sudden death of pitcher Darryl Kile. The Cardinals defeated the Diamondbacks in the first round of the playoffs, but lost to the San Francisco Giants in the NL Championship series.

In the 2003 season, Pujols had his best season yet, batting .359 with 43 home runs and 124 RBIs, winning the National League batting title, but the Cardinals failed to make the playoffs, faltering in the stretch to the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central. Pujols also finished second in the MVP voting, losing the award to Barry Bonds.

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Athletes - Albert Pujols

Early career

Major leagues

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