Albert Pujols Appreciation Thread

[rushgoober]

Well, in the wake of my extreme disappointment in Barry Bonds, I need to find a new baseball hero to admire. Could it be Albert Pujols?

 

There's no way that Pujols can maintain the level he's been playing at for a whole career as it would be inhuman, but at his young age, the guy is EXTREMELY impressive by anyone's standards:

 

2001: 161 G, 194 Hits, 112 Runs, 130 RBI's, 37 HR, .329, OBP .403, SLG .610

 

2002: 157 G, 185 Hits, 118 Runs, 127 RBI's, 34 HR, .314, OBP .394, SLG .561

 

2003: 157 G, 212 Hits, 137 Runs, 124 RBI's, 43 HR, .359, OBP .439, SLG .667

 

2004: 154 G, 196 Hits, 133 Runs, 123 RBI's, 46 HR, .331, OBP .415, SLG .657

 

2005: 161 G, 195 Hits, 129 Runs, 117 RBI's, 41 HR, .330, OBP .430, SLG .609

 

Of course this is pretty meaningless, but in the first 3 games of 2006, he's had 5 hits, 3 HR, 5 Runs and 6 RBI's.

 

He's won the MVP once, and would have won it 3 times already in his first 5 years if not for Bonds. I can only hope he'll be as an exciting a player this year and in years to come...

[Tick]

awesome player , maybe the games best . keep an eye out for david wright of the mets , very special talent. Edited April 7, 2006 by tick

[daveyt]

those numbers are f***ing insane

[anagramking]

If not for Bonds, he would have had three MVPs by now.

[rushgoober]

I know it's still insanely early in the season, so these numbers mean virtually nothing, but after 12 games, this is where Pujols stands:

 

2005: 12 G, 14 Hits, 15 Runs, 17 RBI's, 8 HR, .341, OBP .491, SLG .951

 

Today he had 3 home runs including a walk-off HR. The guy is just amazing...

Edited April 17, 2006 by rushgoober

[launchpad67a]

At some point, he will become the 'greatest hitter' of all time !

Go CARDS !!!

[anagramking]

QUOTE (launchpad67a @ Apr 16 2006, 11:21 PM)

At some point, he will become the 'greatest hitter' of all time ! Go CARDS !!!

It could happen, but keep in mind the beginning of Frank Thomas' career. Now, he's certinaly no shoo-in for Cooperstown.

[rushgoober]

QUOTE (anagramking @ Apr 17 2006, 02:44 PM)

QUOTE (launchpad67a @ Apr 16 2006, 11:21 PM) At some point, he will become the 'greatest hitter' of all time ! Go CARDS !!! It could happen, but keep in mind the beginning of Frank Thomas' career. Now, he's certinaly no shoo-in for Cooperstown. yeah, he has to maintain his career for a bit longer to be a shoo-in for the hall of fame. even if he slips somewhat, he'll still make it, but there are a lot of people who have fantastic numbers for a time and then trail off. don mattingly comes to mind, and you're not gonna see dwight gooden in the HOF at all. he could be one of the best ever if he continues to be an outstanding player for a few more years...

[Weakly Criminal]

Anybody see what AP did yesterday? Incredible. Three hits, three homers. 4 Runs scored.

 

 

Last 10 Games (Season Game Log) Season to Date

Date Opponent Score AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS

Apr 16 CIN W 8-7 4 4 3 0 0 3 5 1 0 0 0 .341 .491 .951 1.442

Apr 15 CIN W 9-3 4 2 2 1 0 1 2 1 1 0 0 .297 .460 .730 1.190

Apr 14 CIN L 0-1 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .273 .444 .636 1.081

Apr 13 MIL L 3-4 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 .276 .463 .690 1.153

Apr 12 MIL W 8-3 3 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 .308 .472 .769 1.241

Apr 10 MIL W 6-4 3 1 1 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 .304 .469 .826 1.295

Apr 9 @ CHC L 4-8 3 1 1 0 0 0 2 1 1 0 0 .300 .444 .750 1.194

Apr 8 @ CHC L 2-3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 .294 .435 .824 1.258

Apr 7 @ CHC L 1-5 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .357 .474 1.000 1.474

Apr 6 @ PHI W 4-2 4 1 2 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 .500 .600 1.400 2.000

Season Total 41 15 14 1 0 8 17 13 5 2 0 .341 .491 .951 1.442

 

Batting

Last 3 years Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS

2004 STL 154 592 133 196 51 2 46 123 84 52 5 5 .331 .415 .657 1.072

2005 STL 161 591 129 195 38 2 41 117 97 65 16 2 .330 .430 .609 1.039

2006 STL 12 41 15 14 1 0 8 17 13 5 2 0 .341 .491 .951 1.442

Career 802 2995 644 996 228 11 209 638 414 349 31 15 .333 .418 .625 1.043

 

 

There is just no hole in this guys swing. He hits it hard in all parts of the zone, and could probably hit bad pitches if he needed to. He makes it look so effortless too. Truly a 'Natural'. And he's only 25!!!

Edited April 18, 2006 by Weakly Criminal

[rushgoober]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 16 2006, 05:12 PM)

I know it's still insanely early in the season, so these numbers mean virtually nothing, but after 12 games, this is where Pujols stands: 2005: 12 G, 14 Hits, 15 Runs, 17 RBI's, 8 HR, .341, OBP .491, SLG .951 Today he had 3 home runs including a walk-off HR.  The guy is just amazing...

From sports illustrated:

 

QUOTE

Pujols tied Todd Helton of the Rockies for the second-fastest active player to reach 1,000 hits with his 11th homer. He and Helton needed 3,003 at-bats, or 26 more than Ichiro Suzuki of the Mariners.

Also:

 

QUOTE

Pujols also set a franchise homer record for April, topping the mark set by Mark McGwire in his 70-homer season in 1998, with nine games to spare.

Again, I know it's insanely early in the season and these numbers are virtually meaningless, but still, check out his stats through the first 16 games:

 

2006: 16 G, 19 Hits, 19 Runs, 24 RBI's, 11 HR, .358, OBP .507, SLG 1.038

 

Now obviously he can't keep up these kind of numbers across the board, because if you multiply these by 10 for a full season, you get some impossible numbers, but regardless it'll be fascinating to see what he CAN do. Is he on his way to one of the best offensive seasons EVER??? Stay tuned...

Edited April 22, 2006 by rushgoober

[liquidcrystalcompass]

You can add A-Rod to the list.

[anagramking]

QUOTE (liquidcrystalcompass @ Apr 22 2006, 12:00 PM)

You can add A-Rod to the list.

A-Rod needs to get a few clutch hits before he can be compared to Pujols. He's a great player, but he's horrible in clutch situations. From a Fantasy Baseball League perspective, one of the great debates today is whether to draft Pujols or A-Rod first. There are great arguments to be made for either player being drafted first. But when it comes down to which guy I want to build a team around in real life, I wouldn't hesitate to choos Pujols over A-Rod. I want a player who never has slumps, and who doesn't save his best stuff for Tampa Bay's mop up relievers.

[liquidcrystalcompass]

QUOTE (anagramking @ Apr 22 2006, 12:16 PM)

QUOTE (liquidcrystalcompass @ Apr 22 2006, 12:00 PM) You can add A-Rod to the list. A-Rod needs to get a few clutch hits before he can be compared to Pujols. He's a great player, but he's horrible in clutch situations. From a Fantasy Baseball League perspective, one of the great debates today is whether to draft Pujols or A-Rod first. There are great arguments to be made for either player being drafted first. But when it comes down to which guy I want to build a team around in real life, I wouldn't hesitate to choos Pujols over A-Rod. I want a player who never has slumps, and who doesn't save his best stuff for Tampa Bay's mop up relievers. I agree. I just looked at the stats and Puljos's slugging percentage is outrageous. If he keeps this up he could shatter some records.   A-Rod is on pace to break the HR record. Injuries have a way of changing a career. I thought that Ken Griffey Jr. would break all of the records but injuries have cost him late in his career.

[rushgoober]

QUOTE (liquidcrystalcompass @ Apr 22 2006, 09:19 AM)

QUOTE (anagramking @ Apr 22 2006, 12:16 PM) QUOTE (liquidcrystalcompass @ Apr 22 2006, 12:00 PM) You can add A-Rod to the list. A-Rod needs to get a few clutch hits before he can be compared to Pujols. He's a great player, but he's horrible in clutch situations. From a Fantasy Baseball League perspective, one of the great debates today is whether to draft Pujols or A-Rod first. There are great arguments to be made for either player being drafted first. But when it comes down to which guy I want to build a team around in real life, I wouldn't hesitate to choos Pujols over A-Rod. I want a player who never has slumps, and who doesn't save his best stuff for Tampa Bay's mop up relievers. I agree. I just looked at the stats and Puljos's slugging percentage is outrageous. If he keeps this up he could shatter some records.   A-Rod is on pace to break the HR record. Injuries have a way of changing a career. I thought that Ken Griffey Jr. would break all of the records but injuries have cost him late in his career. Injuries, or just a general loss of power later in a ballplayer's career will usually keep people from making the same numbers 15-20 years into their careers then 5-10 years in. Still, another solid 5 seasons from Pujols and we're talking one of the greatest players of this age easily...

[liquidcrystalcompass]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 22 2006, 12:27 PM)

QUOTE (liquidcrystalcompass @ Apr 22 2006, 09:19 AM) QUOTE (anagramking @ Apr 22 2006, 12:16 PM) QUOTE (liquidcrystalcompass @ Apr 22 2006, 12:00 PM) You can add A-Rod to the list. A-Rod needs to get a few clutch hits before he can be compared to Pujols. He's a great player, but he's horrible in clutch situations. From a Fantasy Baseball League perspective, one of the great debates today is whether to draft Pujols or A-Rod first. There are great arguments to be made for either player being drafted first. But when it comes down to which guy I want to build a team around in real life, I wouldn't hesitate to choos Pujols over A-Rod. I want a player who never has slumps, and who doesn't save his best stuff for Tampa Bay's mop up relievers. I agree. I just looked at the stats and Puljos's slugging percentage is outrageous. If he keeps this up he could shatter some records.   A-Rod is on pace to break the HR record. Injuries have a way of changing a career. I thought that Ken Griffey Jr. would break all of the records but injuries have cost him late in his career. Injuries, or just a general loss of power later in a ballplayer's career will usually keep people from making the same numbers 15-20 years into their careers then 5-10 years in. Still, another solid 5 seasons from Pujols and we're talking one of the greatest players of this age easily... agreed

[rushgoober]

It's still really early on and a slump could make these numbers infinitely less impressive, but after 19 games these are his stats:

 

2006: 19 G, 22 Hits, 21 Runs, 28 RBI's, 12 HR, AVG .344, OBP .482, SLG .969

 

These numbers are insane, and you have to figure his pace on runs, rbi's, home runs and slugging percentage have to drop off, otherwise we're looking at some ridiculous totals and some potential triple crown kind of numbers.

 

 

Another stat of his I find interesting are his walks and strikeouts:

 

2001: 69 BB, 93 K

2002: 72 BB, 69 K

2003: 79 BB, 65 K

2004: 84 BB, 52 K

2005: 97 BB, 65 K

2006: 18 BB, 7 K (after 19 games)

 

He gets a lot of walks and really very few strikeouts. In addition to just having great numbers when he does hit, he obviously has a great eye and doesn't swing at bad pitches very often. This guy is such an amazing hitter.

Edited April 25, 2006 by rushgoober

[anagramking]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 25 2006, 12:02 PM)

It's still really early on and a slump could make these numbers infinitely less impressive

Pujols does not have slumps.

[rushgoober]

QUOTE (anagramking @ Apr 25 2006, 09:21 AM)

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 25 2006, 12:02 PM) It's still really early on and a slump could make these numbers infinitely less impressive Pujols does not have slumps. We'll see, man.   I mean I hope he doesn't have a slump, but if you project his numbers out from 19 games throughout a season and he can really pull that off, we're in for one of the best seasons in MLB history.

[liquidcrystalcompass]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 25 2006, 12:28 PM)

QUOTE (anagramking @ Apr 25 2006, 09:21 AM) QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 25 2006, 12:02 PM) It's still really early on and a slump could make these numbers infinitely less impressive Pujols does not have slumps. We'll see, man.   I mean I hope he doesn't have a slump, but if you project his numbers out from 19 games throughout a season and he can really pull that off, we're in for one of the best seasons in MLB history. Barring injury, one of the greatest careers ever.   Did you read the SI article on Bonds?

[rushgoober]

QUOTE (liquidcrystalcompass @ Apr 25 2006, 09:52 AM)

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 25 2006, 12:28 PM) QUOTE (anagramking @ Apr 25 2006, 09:21 AM) QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 25 2006, 12:02 PM) It's still really early on and a slump could make these numbers infinitely less impressive Pujols does not have slumps. We'll see, man.   I mean I hope he doesn't have a slump, but if you project his numbers out from 19 games throughout a season and he can really pull that off, we're in for one of the best seasons in MLB history. Barring injury, one of the greatest careers ever.   Did you read the SI article on Bonds? Which one? I've read a lot of stuff on SI about Bonds, including the big story that broke awhile back in anticipation of the book. I've written a lot about it in the Bonds thread, including a recent post if you'd like to talk about him there. I'd rather not pollute the Pujols thread ( ) with Bonds talk...

[liquidcrystalcompass]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 25 2006, 01:09 PM)

QUOTE (liquidcrystalcompass @ Apr 25 2006, 09:52 AM) QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 25 2006, 12:28 PM) QUOTE (anagramking @ Apr 25 2006, 09:21 AM) QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 25 2006, 12:02 PM) It's still really early on and a slump could make these numbers infinitely less impressive Pujols does not have slumps. We'll see, man.   I mean I hope he doesn't have a slump, but if you project his numbers out from 19 games throughout a season and he can really pull that off, we're in for one of the best seasons in MLB history. Barring injury, one of the greatest careers ever.   Did you read the SI article on Bonds? Which one? I've read a lot of stuff on SI about Bonds, including the big story that broke awhile back in anticipation of the book. I've written a lot about it in the Bonds thread, including a recent post if you'd like to talk about him there. I'd rather not pollute the Pujols thread ( ) with Bonds talk... oops! sorry!

[liquidcrystalcompass]

This is ridiculous...... The league leader in HR's, RBI, Slugging PCT., Runs Scored, while batting .357.

 

Batting avg. .357, 29 RBI, .929 Slugging percentage (goodness gracious), 23 Runs Scored in only 21 games.....

 

 

[rushgoober]

Last night Pujols tied the major league record with 13 home runs in the month of April.

 

His stats after 23 games:

 

2006: 23 G, 27 Hits, 25 Runs, 31 RBI's, 13 HR, AVG .351, OBP .495 SLG .909

 

 

 

 

Impressed yet?

 

 

 

[liquidcrystalcompass]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 29 2006, 10:16 AM)

Last night Pujols tied the major league record with 13 home runs in the month of April. His stats after 23 games: 2006: 23 G, 27 Hits, 25 Runs, 31 RBI's, 13 HR, AVG .351, OBP .495 SLG .909 Impressed yet?

No he's totally an average player.

[rushgoober]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Apr 29 2006, 07:16 AM)

Last night Pujols tied the major league record with 13 home runs in the month of April.

Today he hit #14 - the most ever in the month of April.