Albert Pujols

“My life’s goal is to bring glory to Jesus. My life is not mostly dedicated to the Lord, it is 100% committed to Jesus Christ and His will. God has given me the ability to succeed in the game of baseball. Baseball is simply my platform to elevate Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior.”

Prologue:

Albert Pujols is arguably the best player in Major League Baseball. In fact, he’s off to the best start of any player in baseball history statistical and has already many awards, honors, and a championship in his very successful career. Aside from being an amazing baseball player, Albert is a devout Christian who has had an incredible impact on countless lives and communities that shows his life is more than just about playing baseball. He came from a very humble background and was overlooked in the draft but because of his firm faith in God and his moral character, Albert was separated himself from the rest of baseball and is now the model of what an ambassador for Christ looks like.

His Story:

José Alberto Pujols Alcántara was born on January 16, 1980 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He was raised by his grandmother early in his life as his father, Bienvenido, was in and out of his life from an early age. His 10 aunts and uncles also looked after him and were more like brothers and sisters to him. The Pujols family lived in extreme poverty, living off of government assistance programs.

Despite his humble surroundings, Albert was well adjusted and happy about his life. Thanks to his grandmother, America, who treated him like a son, he was introduced to Christ and had a solid role model in his life. Albert’s passion for baseball came from his father, who was a great well-known pitcher for the Dominican Republic. At the age of six, Pujols started playing baseball and his favorite player was Julio Franco.

Soon after, the Pujols family began migrating to the United States. Albert and his father joined them when he turned 16. The Big Apple turned out to be much more expensive and violent than they expected and after Albert witnessed a man being shot to death, they decided to move again. The Pujols family decided on Independence, Missouri. Albert then began playing shortstop in American Legion ball becoming one of the top players in the country. He entered Fort Osage High School as a sophomore and began to quickly learn the English language. Baseball dominated Albert’s life and he established a personal dedication that few his age had for the game.

During his senior year, Albert met his future wife, Deidre at a Latin dance club. After lying about his age, he confessed and found out Deidre had a daughter, Isabella, who had been diagnosed with Down Syndrome. Albert quickly bonded with Isabella and Didre was amazed at the maturity of this teenage boy.

After his senior year, Albert entered the MLB Amateur Draft, but wasn’t selected until the 13th round by the St. Louis Cardinals. He turned them down and instead chose to play in the Jayhawk League, a Kansas circuit for college players. After tearing it up in the league and leading the team in nearly all offensive categories; the Cardinals upped their signing bonus from $10,000 to $60,000 and Albert accepted. He played in the Arizona Fall League learning a new position, third base. During that winter, he and Deidre were married on New Year’s Day 2000.

Albert began his professional career on the Peoria Chiefs of the Class A Midwest League playing third base. He played outstanding defense, hit .324, with 32 doubles, 17 home runs, and 84 RBIs–striking out a mere 37 times in about 400 at-bats. He was named league MVP after the season. Pujols quickly rose up the minor league system and eventually helped the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds win the PCL championship series. He was named the league’s postseason MVP.

As the 2001 season began, Albert was targeted to start the year in Triple-A, but his spring training performance quickly changed the organization’s minds. Along with his performance, a slew of injuries and off-season trades, Albert started the season on the big league club and he then took the league by storm. Albert ended April with eight homers and made the All-Star team in July. By the end of the year he composed a .329 batting average, 37 homers, 130 RBIs and 112 runs scored. He was named NL Rookie of the Year unanimously and broke nearly every rookie franchise record.

By 2003, Albert was considered by many to be a superstar and some even thought of him as the best player in the game. He battled an elbow injury for the 2nd half of the season, but still managed to hit .359, with 43 homers, and 124 RBIs. In 2004, Albert signed a 7 year, $100 million contract with the Cardinals and then led them to their first World Series since 1987 . He was later named in NL MVP. The Cardinals would go on to be swept against the surging Red Sox though in the World Series. In 2005, Pujols would have another spectacular year, nearly winning the NL Triple Crown belting 41 homers, batting .330, and collecting 117 RBIs. Despite not getting back to the World Series, Albert had a memorable November as his wife gave birth to their daughter, Sophia.

The following year, 2006, Albert and the Cardinals barely made the playoffs despite another outstanding year individually from him. They began playing well again as the playoffs began and reached the World Series. The Cardinals were heavy underdogs to the Detroit Tigers, but thanks to errors and lack of hitting by the Tigers, the Cardinals won the series 4 games to 1. Albert had finally reached the pinnacle of a ballplayer’s career, winning the World Series! But, winning the World Series was not Albert’s highlight of the season as he states in his personal testimony:

“If you asked me about the pinnacle of 2006, you would probably be surprised to learn that winning the World Series or winning my first Gold Glove at first base was not the highlight moment of the season for me. My personal favorite moment during that season was seeing two of my friends and teammates come to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.”

Although the Cardinals have failed to make a splash in the standings in the past few years, Albert continues to put up record numbers winning his second MVP award in 2008. Last year was arguably his best season to date as he hit .327, scored 124 runs, totaled 47 homers, and drove in 135 runs. He would end up with his second straight MVP award and his third overall.

Albert and Deidre now have four children, Isabella, Albert Jr., Sophia, and Ezra. Recently, a new center for adults with Down syndrome opened in Chesterfield, Missouri that Albert founded. Not only is Albert off to the best start for any player in baseball history statistically, but he’s also one of the most beloved, well-liked, and respected people in all of baseball. His priorities are simple: Faith. Family. Others. Then baseball. As he stated with this quote stats and personal glory are a distant second in his life:

“I don’t play for numbers. I play first of all to glorify God and to accomplish in this game what everybody wants to accomplish, which is getting to the World Series and coming up with a win at the end. Those are the things that I really try to focus on and try to make sure that I do every day for the rest of my career.”

His Impact:

Albert isn’t just a phenomenally talented baseball player, he is also a man of great faith, love, and compassion for others. Pujols actively participates with Down Syndrome foundations as his daughter, Isabella, has down syndrome. In 2005, Albert founded the Pujols Family Foundation which is about helping people that have or are affected by Down Syndrome. This foundation holds annual golf tournaments in which members from the Cardinals play golf to raise money to send dentists to the Dominican Republic. Also he is very active in outreach programs that target poor people living in his home country, the Dominican Republic. Albert was named the 2008 winner of the Roberto Clemente Award, which awards the player who displays the sportsmanship, community involvement, and superb contribution to his team.

Lesson From His Legacy:

Albert’s life is a testimony to a life of passion, hard work, compassion, and love for people. From his life, we are reminded that our gifts and abilities are given to us from God and to used for His glory. From this we should be reminded to be humble with what God has given us, always giving Him the glory and honor. Another thing to take away from his legacy is that God puts a passion for a certain group of people in our heart throuhgout circumstances in our lives. It’s our responsibility to discover who God has called us to impact (with Albert it’s children with Down syndrome) and make an lasting difference in their lives displaying the love of Christ to them. Finally, remember to work towards the Lord, not towards men. The world seeks praise from their peers, friends, family members, but we must seek praise from the audience of One–God. Albert’s legacy is growing with each passing year and when it’s all said and done, he may go down as the greatest player to ever play the game. Albert’s legacy though will be much greater–he will be remembered for his love, compassion, generosity, and impact he had on people. Loving God and loving others–that’s what Albert will be remembered by. There’s no greater calling to pursue!

Trivia:

• From 2001 to 2005, Pujols hit 201 home runs, second all-time for the most hit in a player’s first five seasons.
• By 2009, he reached the 350-homer plateau at the age of 29—the third-youngest to do so—and surpassed Ralph Kiner’s record for most home runs in his first nine seasons.
• Albert is the second player in Major League Baseball to post nine consecutive seasons with 30 doubles, a .300 batting average, 30 home runs, and 100 runs batted in or better. The only other player in baseball history who can claim this–Lou Gehrig.
• In his first 5,000 career at bats, Pujols has amassed 372 doubles, 358 home runs, and 14 triples for a total of 744 extra-base hits, the most in NL history.
• Albert has been selected to 8 All-Star Games, has 5 Silver Slugger Awards, and won a Gold Glove in 2006.

Sources:

http://www.jockbio.com/Bios/Pujols/Pujols_bio.html

http://www.albert-pujols.net/albert-pujols-bio.php

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Pujols

http://www.pujolsfamilyfoundation.org/faith/