After rejuvenating his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Albert Pujols returned to the St. Louis Cardinals for what he said would be a final season.
Pujols was selected by the Cardinals in the 13th round of the 1999 MLB Draft and he would go on to make his debut two years later. Pujols earned unanimous National League Rookie of the Year honors after batting .329 with 37 home runs and 130 RBI in 161 games.
Pujols spent the first 11 seasons of his career with the Cardinals before signing a 10-year, $240 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels prior to the 2012 campaign.
The future Hall of Famer was productive during the first half of his stint in Anaheim but saw his numbers decline toward the end. He was released in May 2021 and signed a contract with the Dodgers for the remainder of the season.
Despite a successful showing with the Cardinals this year, Pujols moved forward with retiring by filing necessary paperwork, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com:
For those wondering whether Albert Pujols’ amazing second half might tempt him to return in 2023, he officially signed his retirement papers with the Cardinals today, per source. Next stop: Cooperstown.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) October 31, 2022
Pujols enjoyed his best statistical campaign in over a decade, posting an .895 on-base plus slugging percentage with 24 home runs in 109 games for the ardinals.
Pujols went on a tear in the second half of the 2022 season as he batted .293/.346/.604 with 14 home runs and 37 RBI in 56 games. The 42-year-old became the fourth player in MLB history to join the 700-home run club with two blasts against the Dodgers on Sept. 23.
“I feel like I could continue to play if I wanted to next year,” Pujols said on the historic night. “But these kids, this family behind me is more important to me. I want to stay focused on them.
“That’s why I made my decision in Spring Training to say this is my last year, because I knew if a moment like this would happen, I knew I would change my mind, and I didn’t want that.”
Pujols concluded his career with a .296/.374/.544 batting line, 703 home runs and 2,218 RBI in 3,080 games. He helped the Cardinals win two World Series titles (2006 and 2011), was an 11-time All-Star and three-time NL MVP.
Albert Pujols: 700 home runs not possible without playing for Dodgers
Upon returning to Dodger Stadium this season, Pujols mentioned the Dodgers as having played a significant role in him hitting 700 home runs.
“I think when you have an organization that has your back, which the Dodgers did give me that opportunity and believe in me, knowing I was able to help the organization a lot last year with the role I was given. It opened the door for me to have the Cardinals going after me,” Pujols said.
“I was talking to Friedman and Doc in batting practice, if they wouldn’t have given me that opportunity, I don’t think I would be sitting here today. Because of that and the way they respected me, the whole coaching staff, whole organization from the owner all the way down, it was pretty amazing moment. It allowed me to really find that joy in this game.
“What a special night. First of all, to have my family in town and be able to do it here at Dodger Stadium, where I said it earlier, my joy pretty much came back last year being in the postseason and the clubhouse a few feet away from here. It’s pretty special.
“Especially with the Dodger fans, so they get to enjoy this, and to do it in a Cardinals uniform, it’s special. Just pretty awesome. I was thanking God while I was running around the bases for allowing me to do this, especially with my family around.”
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