LOS ANGELES – Albert Pujols became the fourth member of the 700-man home run club on Friday night, and he did so in an emphatic fashion, launching two home runs in front of a packed crowd at the Stadium. Dodgers.
The first homer – a 434-foot burst that ran twice to the left flank – came from the Dodgers left-hander Andrew Heaney in the third inning. The second is a triple hit in the fourth turn to the right Phil Bickford. Therefore, St. Louis Cardinals led 5-0 and Pujols took the lead in all of his team’s runs.
As he passed the home sign after the 700th game, Pujols ran to the back to hug Adrian Beltre, his longtime rival and one of his best friends. Soon after, he found Yadier Molina and hugged him in a deep hug.
The Cardinals continued to win with the score 11-0.
Pujols, finishing the final season of his career in the Hall of Fame, joins Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth in the 700-man home run club. He was the only one of them to hit numbers 699 and 700 on the same night. Pujols now has 2,208 RBIs to her career, just 6 more to force Ruth into second on the all-time list.
Perhaps it’s fitting that the 42-year-old designated smash hit an incredible milestone here at Dodger Stadium, which he often says played a key role in energizing the team. he played one final season in 2022.
Pujols joined the Dodgers last May, shortly after he was released from prison Angel of Los Angeles, and has been resurrected serving as a part-time game starter and pinch-hitter player for the past five+ months. He is very effective against lefties and is a major influence in an all-veteran club that is affectionately known as “Tio Albert.”
Before the game, the Dodgers edited the Pujols, with Julio Urias, Hanser Alberto, Justin Turner, Max Muncy, Will Smith and Dave Roberts provide heartfelt messages. Pujols and Molina were given golf bags to celebrate their final season, after which Pujols grabbed the mic to thank fans of the Dodgers and their organization.
“It brings me so much joy, not only for me but for my whole family,” Pujols, speaking to the media before the game, said when asked what the atmosphere at Dodger Stadium meant. like for him. “I think it brought something inside of me, that boy again missed that part of the game.”
Pujols’ final season saw him play some of his best baseball games in a long time. After 2v4 Friday night, he is beating .319 / .381 / .696 with 15 home runs and 38 RBIs in 48 games of the second half. The 15 hosts and his 1,076 OPS were all ranked second best in professional leagues during that time period, behind only Yankees star Aaron Judge. This increase has also coincided with the fact that Cardinals are practically running away from the rest of the National League Center.
Pujols started this season as a squad pick at DH, but he’s become one of the Cardinals’ best matches and essentially an everyday player as they head into the phase. post-season period.
Pujols now has 21 home runs for the year, giving him 18 20-game seasons in his career, the third most in history behind only Aaron (20) and Bonds (19). He joins Ted Williams as the only players to reach 20 home runs in both their first and final seasons. He owns the most games after turning 42 in major league history, with four.
“I don’t chase numbers,” Pujols said earlier this week. “I didn’t chase 100, and I had 698. Same thing – trust my process.”
