While Albert Pujols is set to retire at the end of the 2022 MLB season, the St. Louis Cardinals slugger might want to reconsider. Entering Monday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds, he was hitting .273/.346/.519 with 14 home runs. Pujols added to that total on Monday and made MLB history in the process.
In the top of the third inning, Pujols went the other way with a pitch Cincinnati’s from Ross Detwiler. The ball went over the right field fence at the Great American Ball Park. It was the 15th home run of the season for Pujols and the 694th of his career. None of the first 693 came against Detwiler, making him the 450th pitcher that Pujols has ever taken deep. That’s an MLB record, surpassing Barry Bonds.
6️⃣9️⃣4️⃣!
Albert Pujols has now homered off of 450 different pitchers, passing Barry Bonds for the most all-time in MLB history.TV: Bally Sports Midwest
Stream: https://t.co/A9n8ZIGcvJ#STLCards pic.twitter.com/b94mCFJ1Ln— Bally Sports Midwest (@BallySportsMW) August 30, 2022
Pujols’ chase to become only the fourth player in MLB history to reach 700 home runs has been one of the sport’s biggest storylines of the season. Naturally, every home run he hits garners a lot of attention.
When one of those home runs doubles as a record-setter, it’s going to get even more attention. That’s exactly what happened here.
84.9% of current Hall of Famers (135/159) have 449 or fewer homeruns.
Albert Pujols has a homerun against 450 different pitchers
— Reek (@CardinalsReek) August 30, 2022
Albert Pujols would lead the #WhiteSox in HRs.
— Ryan McGuffey (@RyanMcGuffey) August 30, 2022
Pujols broke the record for homering off of 450 different pitchers tonight passing Barry Bonds. That’s absolutely wild to me. Gg machine ❤️
— CreamFriche (@Cream_Friche) August 30, 2022
The most surprising thing about this factoid is that Albert Pujols had never previously homered off Ross Detwiler. https://t.co/w5T8slvRrC
— Anthony Castrovince (@castrovince) August 30, 2022
Sometimes I just have to sit back and revel in the fact that in my first year covering professional sports I am covering something/someone as special as Albert Pujols.
Something I am really trying not to take for granted.
— Carter Chapley (@CarterChapley) August 30, 2022
One of the biggest rule changes this season has been instituting the universal DH. A byproduct of that decision is that it opened a door for Pujols to return to St. Louis that otherwise would not likely have been there, at least in a full-time capacity.
As it is, he’s gotten to return to the site of the best days of his career while chasing — and continuing to make — history.
[Bally Sports Midwest on Twitter]
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