The Path to 700: Albert Pujols's Farewell to St. Louis

For eleven seasons, Albert Pujols provided memories and moments that hadn't been seen in St. Louis for years and wouldn't be repeated for many more years after. The future Hall of Fame first baseman was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the thirteenth round of the 1999 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft. He wasn't a known commodity then, but he would become a national sensation just three years later.

During his first stint in St. Louis from 2001-2011, Pujols would receive three National League Most Valuable Player awards, six Silver Slugger awards, and two Gold Gloves. He was voted to attend nine All-Star Games, and he held the batting title in 2003 with a .359 batting average. He was already mentioned with Cardinal greats like Rogers Hornsby, Stan Musial, and Bob Gibson as some of the best players to play in St. Louis.

After some time in Los Angeles with both the Dodgers and Angels, Pujols made his long-awaited return to St. Louis as a player in 2022. The jubilation surrounding one of the franchise's most beloved players returning was palpable. "We are pleased and excited to have Albert return to the Cardinals for the upcoming season. This reunion with Albert is a wonderful opportunity for not only him and the Cardinals, but also for our great fans, the St. Louis community, our players and staff, and everyone connected to the St. Louis Cardinals organization," said Cardinals Chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. at the time of the signing.

The Offseason

There weren't any concrete plans to bring Albert Pujols back in the 2022 offseason. They had Paul Goldschmidt, someone who would go on to win the National League Most Valuable Player that year, at first base, and the designated hitter, a position new to the National League as of 2022, was going to be a spot occupied by a revolving door of young players with oodles of offensive potential plus veterans who would need a day off here and there. To put it simply, there was neither room nor a need for Pujols's services.

Despite the need not being present, Pujols was signed on March 27th, 2022 to a one-year $2.5 million deal to finish his career with the same team he started with. Prior to the announcement of his signing, however, was a series of events that led to one of the greatest returns in baseball history.

El Hombre's return began with Yadier Molina, his longtime friend and teammate. The two played in St. Louis together from 2004 until 2011, and their bond was as strong as it could be between any two teammates. Molina reached out to Pujols on March 26th from the organization's spring training clubhouse in Jupiter, Florida to catch up. According to Katie Woo of The Athletic, Molina's goal in the conversation was to find out not just why Albert hadn't signed anywhere yet, but more specifically why he wasn't a Cardinal.

By March 26th, there was barely more than a week left of the spring circuit, and time was running out for Albert to sign with a team and get acquainted with his new teammates. While at least one team had extended a formal offer to Pujols by this point, he was still on the fence about where to spend his twenty-second and final season of professional baseball.

Molina's call sparked an interest in Pujols. "When Yadi reached out and we talked, I thought, 'Okay, there's a chance for me to be reunited here,'" Pujols said.

After speaking with Yadier Molina, Pujols would have a conversation with manager Oliver Marmol who would pass one simple message on to his boss, President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak: "Five wants back."

Mozeliak spoke personally to Pujols within the next 24 hours, and Pujols made it quite clear that he wanted to come back to St. Louis for one final season. "He made it very clear to me that he had options, but it would mean a lot to him to return to St. Louis," Mozeliak stated. Mozeliak's intention was to use Pujols primarily against left-handed pitchers, a group he had a career 150 wRC+ against.

After what probably felt like days but was only a few hours, the St. Louis Cardinals and Albert Pujols were in agreement on a deal. Pujols's agent, Dan Lozano of MVP Sports Group, handled the bulk of negotiating for his client. Both Pujols and Lozano had a plan regarding his playing time desires and his financial preferences. If John Mozeliak could meet both, Pujols's preference was clearly to come back to St. Louis. The two sides came to an agreement, and Albert Pujols officially rejoined the Cardinals on Monday, March 27th.

Initial fan reactions concluded that the signing of Albert Pujols was mostly for nostalgic purposes. Pujols was intent on playing one more season in 2022, and the Cardinals could use one more legacy player to pair with Yadier Molina and Adam Wainwright. It seemed like the perfect fit. This narrative, however, was disputed by management and the coaching staff.

"This is more than just a story of Albert coming back to St. Louis. We made the move because we thought Albert was our best play to win," said manager Oliver Mamol. "We needed him as a player. We know that he can bring good things to the table for our team and help us go to the World Series, and I think that's why Mo signed him," teammate and friend Yadier Molina said. John Mozeliak echoed these sentiments. "I love the nostalgia part of the story; it's great. But he didn't sign here and we didn't sign him to say, 'You should finish your career as a Cardinal.’ We want him to be impactful and we want him to be contributing, and he can do that in more than just getting hits and home runs.”