There is a moment, right before the end of an emotional, grueling, years-long relationship, when you start to think about whether you might be better off without that significant other. You picture yourself going through an average day without that person — waking up, making a sandwich, watching “Jim Rome is Burning” — and contemplate whether you might be happier on your own. After 10 years of blissful marriage, it seems the St. Louis Cardinals and Albert Pujols may be reaching that point. And if you’re a Cardinals fan, you can’t even begin to imagine life without him.
Think about it like this: In the 1990’s, St. Louis failed to win or reach the World Series, and won its division only once. Since Pujols joined the franchise in 2001 (at a ripe 22 years of age, allegedly) the Cardinals have won the NL Central 6 times, reached the World Series twice, and won it in 2006. The difference is night and day.
Obviously, Pujols’ presence alone isn’t responsible for all that success. But when you look at his stats, and then take a gander at the caliber of players that filled out the rest of those rosters, it’s glaringly obvious that Pujols was largely the reason for St. Louis’ ability to score runs (not to take anything away from Scott Spiezio, David Eckstein or Scott “disabled list” Rolen). In 2007, Pujols hit .327 with 32 homers and 103 RBI’s, and this is widely considered his worst offensive season as a pro. He owns a career .331 average, hits an average of 41 homers per year, and has never struck out more than 93 times in a season (that being his rookie campaign). At this rate, he will have over 600 long balls by 2015. The question is: Will the majority of those be hit in St. Louis?
Not only are Pujols’ offensive statistics almost unfathomable, his work ethic has made him one of the elite defensive first basemen in major league baseball. He came into the big leagues primarily as a third baseman, but after drifting between that position and the corner outfield spots the team decided to move him permanently to first base. Once thought of as a defensive liability, Albert quickly adjusted to his new position, and has since won two gold glove awards (2006, 2010). He is an effortless worker with tremendous skill and a small ego, and that’s not something that can be found around any street corner (or in Boston or New York). For all intensive purposes, Albert Pujols is the type of player that only comes along once in a lifetime.
With all that said, it’d be nice to see St. Louis not end up like the NBA’s Cleveland. Pujols is a free agent after the 2011 season, and is looking for a contract in the neighborhood of 10 years and $275 million to stay in St. Louis. Yes, that is an astronomically large amount of money, but it just so happens that St. Louis can afford it. They have the most dedicated fan base in the MLB, a group that consistently buys merchandise and sells out Busch Stadium. To keep the fans happy, it seems St. Louis can’t afford not to re-sign him.
And honestly, in professional sports right now there is no safer bet. Pujols is called “The Machine” for a reason; he puts up MVP-caliber numbers season after season, never gets injured, and hasn’t caught a cold or flu yet. Just as Julia Roberts claimed to be a “sure thing” in bed in “Pretty Woman,” Albert Pujols is a sure thing on the baseball field. And that consistency is worth rewarding.