Angels first baseman Albert Pujols thrust himself into rarefied air Tuesday night, blasting the 500th home run of his illustrious career off right-hander Taylor Jordan during the fifth inning of his club's clash with the Nationals.
[Courtesy: MLB.com]
Pujols' 500th homer, his second of the game, further cements his legacy as one of history's greatest hitters -- another accolade for the slugger whose induction to Cooperstown will most assuredly highlight the 2026 class.
Once considered a legitimate contender to eclipse Barry Bonds' all-time record of 762 homers, Pujols' torrid pace was slowed considerably by age and injuries in recent years. Though he's enjoyed an impressive resurgence during the nascent stages of 2014, the 34-year-old Dominican native saw a marked decline in isolated power in each of the last four seasons, while a bout of plantar fasciitis limited him to a career-low 99 games in 2013.
Age also ravaged Pujols' ability to avoid outs with uncanny regularity, as his batting average and on-base ability have waned appreciably of late. A noted spike in swinging-strike rate and increased tendency to chase pitches outside the strike zone colored Pujols' last few seasons, and he hasn't managed an on-base percentage greater than .366 since 2010, his penultimate campaign with the Cardinals.
Pujols' recent regressions should not dampen his legacy, as his blend of hitting skill and prodigious power place him in elite company through his age-34 season. Only two other men, both Hall-of-Famers, managed 500 home runs, a .315 batting average, and an adjusted OPS greater than 150 before reaching the age of 35.
| Player | HR | OPS+ | BA | G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jimmie Foxx | 527 | 164 | 0.328 | 2213 |
| Babe Ruth | 516 | 211 | 0.346 | 1791 |
| Albert Pujols | 500 | 165 | 0.321 | 1978 |
[Courtesy: Baseball-Reference Play Index]
The first few weeks of 2014 are showing glimpses of old Albert, the pious slugger who signed a 10-year, $240-million deal with the Angels after 11 glorious seasons in St. Louis, a stint that yielded three Most Valuable Player awards and two World Series championships.
As Pujols approaches his dotage, these flashes of brilliance -- usually a mighty whack followed by a lumbering trot around the bases -- will become increasingly sporadic. So relish Tuesday night's display not as a bittersweet milestone for an aging veteran sure to be pilloried by the weight of an absurd contract, but rather as a rite of passage of one of the best hitters to ever play the game, and one of just 26 men to ever reach the vaunted 500-homer plateau.
