MVP Profile: Albert Pujols, 2009

First Baseman, St. Louis Cardinals

Age:  29

9^th season with Cardinals

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’3”    Weight: 240 

Prior to 2009:

A native of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, Pujols immigrated to Independence, Missouri with his father and grandmother at age 16. Impressive in high school and after attending Metropolitan Community College – Maple Woods, he was drafted by the Cardinals in the 1999 amateur draft. He spent most of 2000 with the Peoria Chiefs of the Class A Midwest League and batted .324 with 32 doubles, 17 home runs, and 84 RBIs, earning quick advancement to the Carolina League and Memphis of the Pacific Coast League to finish out the year. He primarily played third base in his quick rise through the minors. Entering 2001 he was expected to be a reserve for the Cardinals but played his way into the lineup. He started out fast by driving in 27 RBIs in April on the way to batting .329 with a .403 on-base percentage, 47 doubles, 37 home runs, and 130 RBIs. In addition to his hitting prowess, Pujols displayed versatility in filling four positions, primarily appearing at third base, first base, and in the outfield. He received NL Rookie of the Year honors in addition to being an All-Star and placing fourth in league MVP voting. Playing primarily in left field in 2002 following his outstanding rookie season, Pujols again produced impressively at the plate, batting .314 with a .394 on-base percentage along with 40 doubles, 34 home runs, and 127 RBIs. He placed second in league MVP voting. Settling in at first base in 2003, Pujols was an All-Star for the second time as he topped the National League in runs scored (137), hits (212), doubles (51), batting (.359), and total bases (394). He again was the runner-up for MVP in the NL and received a Silver Slugger. He also proved to be a good fit defensively at first base (defense had been considered the weakest aspect of his game in the earliest part of his career). The Cardinals topped the NL Central and won the league pennant in 2004 as Pujols again led the NL in runs scored (133) and total bases (389) to go along with 51 doubles, 46 home runs, 123 RBIs, a .331 average,.415 OBP, and a .657 slugging percentage. This time he placed third in MVP balloting. In the postseason Pujols was the MVP of the NLCS win over Houston with his .500 average, 4 home runs, and 9 RBIs in the seven games. St. Louis again won the NL Central title in 2005 but came up short against Houston in the NLCS. Pujols topped the league in runs scored (129) while batting .330 with 41 home runs, 117 RBIs, a .430 OBP, and a .609 slugging percentage. This time he also gained selection as the NL MVP. The Cardinals topped the NL Central in 2006 with a mediocre 83-78 record, which was only the fifth best in the league, and went on to win the NL pennant and the World Series. Pujols had a typically productive season, leading the league in slugging (.671) while hitting .331 with 49 home runs, 137 RBIs, and a .431 OBP. He even received a Gold Glove for his defensive performance at first base while placing second in league MVP voting. In a down year for the team in 2007 in the wake of the championship season, Pujols remained a steady force in the lineup batting .327 with 32 home runs, 103 RBIs, a .429 OBP, and a .568 slugging percentage. Pujols received MVP recognition for a second time in 2008 as he hit .357 with 44 doubles, 37 home runs, 116 RBIs, a .462 OBP, and NL-leading totals in slugging (.653) and total bases (342).

2009 Season Summary

Appeared in 160 games

1B – 159, PH – 2, DH – 1

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 700 [5]

At Bats – 568

Runs – 124 [1]

Hits – 186 [6]

Doubles – 45 [2]

Triples – 1

Home Runs – 47 [1]

RBI – 135 [3]

Bases on Balls – 115 [3]

Int. BB – 44 [1]

Strikeouts – 64

Stolen Bases – 16

Caught Stealing – 4

Average - .327 [3]

OBP - .443 [1]

Slugging Pct. - .658 [1]

Total Bases – 374 [1]

GDP – 23 [5, tied with Adrian Gonzalez]

Hit by Pitches – 9 [16, tied with eight others]

Sac Hits – 0

Sac Flies – 8 [9, tied with four others]

League-leading runs scored were +11 ahead of runner-up Ryan Braun

League-leading home runs were +1 ahead of runner-up Prince Fielder

League-leading int. bases on balls drawn were +22 ahead of runner-up Adrian Gonzalez

League-leading OBP was +.017 ahead of runner-up Nick Johnson

League-leading slugging percentage was +.056 ahead of runner-up Prince Fielder

League-leading total bases were +18 ahead of runner-up Prince Fielder

Midseason snapshot: 2B – 22, HR – 32, RBI – 87, AVG - .332, SLG – .723, OBP – .456

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Most hits, game – 4 (in 4 AB) vs. Pittsburgh 5/6, (in 5 AB) at KC Royals 6/21, (in 5 AB) at NY Mets 8/4 – 10 innings

Longest hitting streak – 12 games

Most HR, game – 2 on ten occasions

HR at home – 22

HR on road – 25

Multi-HR games – 10

Most RBIs, game – 7 vs. Houston 4/11

Pinch-hitting – 1 for 2 (.500) with 1 HR & 1 RBI

Fielding

Chances – 1671

Put Outs – 1473

Assists – 185

Errors – 13

DP - 150

Pct. - .992

Postseason Batting: 3 G (NLDS vs. LA Dodgers)

PA – 13, AB – 10, R – 0, H – 3, 2B – 0,3B – 0, HR – 0, RBI – 1, BB – 3, IBB – 3, SO – 1, SB – 0, CS – 0, AVG - .300, OBP - .462, SLG -.300, TB – 3, GDP – 0, HBP – 0, SH – 0, SF – 0

Awards & Honors:

NL MVP: BBWAA

MLB Player of the Year: Sporting News

Silver Slugger

All-Star (Started for NL at 1B)

Top 5 in NL MVP Voting:

Albert Pujols, StL.: 448 points – 32 of 32 first place votes, 100% share

Hanley Ramirez, Fla.: 233 points – 52% share

Ryan Howard, Phila.: 217 points – 48% share

Prince Fielder, Mil.: 203 points – 45% share

Troy Tulowitzki, Col.: 172 points – 38% share

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The Cardinals went 91-71 to finish first in the NL Central Division by 7.5 games over the Chicago Cubs. The Cardinals led the NL Central or stayed in close contention from the season’s start, but the hitting declined in September, not denying the club a division title, but presaging postseason defeat. Lost NLDS to the Los Angeles Dodgers, 3 games to 0.

Aftermath of 2009:

With the Cardinals trying to lock up their star first baseman with a contract extension (which failed) Pujols had another excellent season in 2010, topping the NL in runs scored (115), home runs (42), and RBIs (118) while hitting .312 with a .414 OBP and .596 slugging percentage. He placed second in league MVP voting. The wild card-qualifying Cardinals won the NL pennant and the World Series in 2011 with Pujols contributing 37 home runs, 99 RBIs, a .299 average, .366 OBP, and .541 slugging percentage. He had a three-home run, 6-RBI performance in Game 3 of the World Series against Texas. A free agent in the offseason, he rejected a 10-year, $210 million offer from the Cardinals and signed with the Los Angeles Angels for 10 years and $254 million. Off to a slow start with his new club in 2012 that had home fans booing him, he rallied to finish at .285 with 50 doubles, 30 home runs, 105 RBIs, a.343 OBP, and a .516 slugging percentage. In the offseason he had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. Pujols followed up with a poor season in 2013 in which a foot injury limited him to 99 games and he hit .258 with 17 home runs, 64 RBIs, and a .330 OBP. He was utilized primarily as a Designated Hitter. Pujols performed better in 2014, appearing more regularly at first base and batting .272 with 37 doubles, 28 home runs, 105 RBIs, and a .324 OBP. Hitting well in 2015, Pujols was among the American League’s home run leaders in June and was an All-Star for the only time with the Angels. Although hindered by a foot injury that required offseason surgery, he hit .244 for the year with 40 home runs, 95 RBIs, and a .307 OBP while appearing in 157 games (95 at first base and 62 as a DH due to the foot injury). Primarily a DH in 2016, Pujols batted .268 with 31 home runs, 119 RBIs, and a .323 on-base percentage. He had one last 100-RBI season in 2017 (totaling 101) and his production continued to dwindle until he was dealt to the Dodgers during the 2021 season. A free agent in the offseason Pujols returned to the Cardinals for one last season in 2022 where, with the universal DH now in play, the 42-year-old could continue to contribute with his bat, overcoming a slow first half of the season to hit .270 with 24 home runs, 68 RBIs, a.345 OBP, and a .550 slugging percentage. Upon retirement, for his major league career Pujols batted .296 with 3384 hits that included 686 doubles, 16 triples, and 703 home runs. He scored 1914 runs and compiled 2218 RBIs and drew 1373 walks. His OBP was .374 and his slugging percentage .544. Usually able to make contact during his at bats, his strikeout total of 1404 included no 100-strikeout seasons, a rarity for sluggers in the modern era. With the Cardinals his totals were a .326 batting average with 2156 hits, 469 doubles, 15 triples, 451 home runs, 1349 RBIs, a .417 OBP, a .614 slugging percentage, and 1003 walks drawn. Pujols appeared in 88 postseason games and hit .319 with 19 home runs and 54 RBIs. An 11-time All-Star, he received six Silver Sluggers. Along with winning three MVP awards, he finished in the top 10 eleven times. 

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MVP Profiles feature players in the National or American leagues who were winners of the Chalmers Award (1911-14), League Award (1922-29), or Baseball Writers’ Association of America Award (1931 to present) as Most Valuable Player.