Former Cardinals legend flexes his hitting prowess even after retirement

Albert Pujols has been retired for over three years now. For many former players, retirement hits hard, and they fully embrace the freedom that comes with no more baseball. For others, retirement is simply a transition to a different side of baseball. Pujols fits into the latter group.

Since his retirement, Albert has managed in the Dominican Winter League and in the Caribbean Series. He'll manage once again in the Dominican Winter League for the 2026-2027 season. He's remained in the sport of baseball, and he's on the fast track to managing in Major League Baseball in the near future.

That involvement in baseball has allowed Pujols to maintain his physique and his strong baseball acumen. He flexed his muscle at the World Baseball Classic during a Dominican Republic practice session recently.

Former St. Louis Cardinals great Albert Pujols shows that he could still play during batting practice at the World Baseball Classic.

In videos posted on social media by Wilber Sanchez, a prospect guru, and Master Flip, a New York Mets supporter, Pujols was seen swinging a bat in the cages and setting an example for his team, the Dominican Republic.

Pujols, 46, still has quite the stroke even after being away from the game for so long.

Master Flip also stated in his post that Pujols challenged his players saying, "If I don't hit one out, I'll cover the whole team's dinner tonight. But if I do, you're paying." Having hit 703 long balls in his career, The Machine knows a thing or two about hitting home runs. It isn't shown in the video, but I would imagine Pujols hit a home run and won the bet.

The Dominican Republic has clinched a spot in the quarterfinals already, and they're looking to repeat in the semifinals once again. Anything less than a finals appearance would be a disappointment to both Pujols and his team. Albert's leadership has been cited as a major reason why the DR's drive is so high during this go-around.

Pujols was a member of the 2006 DR team that made it to the semifinals. That team included two Hall of Famers in Adrian Beltre and David Ortiz, Pujols himself, and several All-Stars, including Miguel Tejada, Alfonso Soriano, José Reyes, and Moises Alou. Pujols, however, has more faith in this year's Dominican Republic team.

“We had a pretty good lineup,” said the first-time manager, Pujols. “But I think this lineup that we have in 2026 is probably the best lineup that the Dominican Republic has had.”

The DR is set up nicely to make a deep WBC run thanks to All-Stars like Sandy Alcantara, Fernando Tatis Jr., Junior Caminero, Juan Soto, Manny Machado, and Julio Rodriguez. They're a team with plenty of position player depth and a desire to do better than they did in 2023, when they failed to make it out of pool play.

The St. Louis Cardinals have been searching for a right-handed bat all offseason. I'm sure they could give Albert a call, and he could still mash as the team's designated hitter. This reunion would delay his inevitable election to the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame, though.