For more than a decade, Tony La Russa got to pencil Albert Pujols' name into the St. Louis Cardinals' lineup every day and watch the hulking first baseman torment National League pitchers with his immense power and preternatural hitting ability.
La Russa, now the Arizona Diamondbacks' chief baseball officer, doesn't work with Pujols anymore, but the 71-year-old has a different first baseman in his employ that reminds him very much of the three-time MVP: Paul Goldschmidt.
"He is exactly Albert [Pujols]," La Russa told Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
Though Goldschmidt may still be underappreciated in certain corners, he is the consensus top first baseman in the game today, just as Pujols was throughout his idyllic tenure in St. Louis. Goldschmidt's accomplishments through his age-27 season pale in comparison to Pujols' at the same stage in his career, but the Diamondbacks star has still hit .321/.435/.570 (164 wRC+) since 2013 while managing the fourth-most WAR in baseball despite missing 53 games with a hand injury two years ago.
Career stats through age-27 season
| Name | HR | wRC+ | ISO | BB/K | SB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albert Pujols | 282 | 166 | .289 | 1.31 | 38 |
| Paul Goldschmidt | 116 | 148 | .236 | 0.61 | 67 |
Now, La Russa said, if the Diamondbacks can find a way to get back to the postseason for the first time since 2011, Goldschmidt can get the national attention he deserves.
"We need to get him to October so everyone sees him," La Russa said.
Diamondbacks closer Brad Ziegler is similarly convinced that if his club is a bit more competitive, Goldschmidt - the NL MVP runner-up twice in the last three years - will get a little more love from the voting members of the Baseball Writers' Association of American.
"We watch Goldy every day and we see what he does, and if we can get to the playoffs, maybe those second-place finishes for the MVP becomes wins," Ziegler said.
