Major League Baseball is a little bit different than the other major sports where players are called up from the minors and sent back down pretty regularly.
Some players have instant success and stay up in the Majors for the rest of their careers while others get called up and sent back down multiple times.
It is interesting to see some of baseball’s all-time great players and their stories from the start of their careers.
According to MLB on ‘X,’ Albert Pujols wasn’t sure how long he would stay with the St. Louis Cardinals major league club when he debuted in 2001.
Albert Pujols wasn't sure how long he would stay with the Cardinals when he made his debut in 2001.
He soon cemented his spot on the team and a legendary career followed. pic.twitter.com/8bM2S4UT5W
— MLB (@MLB) September 19, 2024
Pujols describes his first series after being called up in 2001 as not great, where he went 1 for 9 against the Colorado Rockies.
After this slow first series, Pujols picked up his game where he went 8 for 13 against the Arizona Diamondbacks including his first career home run.
This sparked a historic 22-year career for Pujols who’s career stats include a .296 batting average with 703 home runs, 2218 runs batted in, and a .918 on base plus slugging percentage.
Pujols won the Rookie of the Year award with the Cardinals in 2001 and also took home 3 Most Valuable Player awards with them in 2005, 2008, and 2009.
Along with these personal awards, he was also a World Series winner with the Cardinals twice in 2006 and 2011.
It is hard to believe that a player of Pujols’ stature was ever worried about getting sent back down to the minor leagues.
Cardinals fans are thankful that wasn’t the case and look forward to seeing Pujols enter the Hall of Fame when he becomes eligible in 2028.
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