Three moments that defined Albert Pujols' Cardinals career

It's been almost two years now since Albert Pujols officially decided to call it a career.

The slugger played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball, 12 of which were with the St. Louis Cardinals. He came up to the Major Leagues in 2001 and immediately burst onto the scene, winning the National League Rookie of the Year Award.

Soon enough, he was already arguably the best player in all of baseball. He helped guide the Cardinals to two World Series titles, one in 2006 and the other in 2011. Pujols also won three NL MVP Awards during his first stint in St. Louis.

After the 2011 season, Pujols departed for the Angels and was with the Halos until 2021, when he was released and later picked up by the Dodgers. However, he came back to St. Louis for one last ride with Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina, the latter of whom retired alongside Pujols last year.

It was a year to remember for Pujols, as he reached the 700-home run mark, guided the Cardinals to the postseason, and even earned Comeback Player of the Year honors in the National League.

Plenty of great moments took place during the slugger's career, and Cardinals fans will always remember them fondly as they look back at the career of one of the best players in franchise history.

In this piece, we will look at three moments that defined Albert Pujols' time in St. Louis and how they helped him achieve legendary status in the City of St. Louis.

Home Run No. 700

Early in the 2022 season, it looked like a longshot that Pujols would be able to reach 700 homers. In fact, as late as July, he was hitting below .200.

But something clicked for the former MVP and he got hot in the second half. It all culminated in a special moment at Dodger Stadium on September 23.

He had already homered in the game but needed just one more to reach the 700 mark. Sure enough, he took then-Dodgers reliever Phil Bickford deep, hitting a three-run homer for the 700th of his career. Dodger Stadium then erupted, with Dodgers and Cardinals fans alike sharing a beautiful moment.

Pujols received hugs from Wainwright, Molina, and his other Cardinals teammates as he returned to the dugout, and even tipped his cap to the fans in Los Angeles.

Three homers in Game 3 of the 2011 World Series

In 2011, the Cardinals were on a magic carpet ride and ultimately met the Rangers in the World Series. It was the second and last time Pujols would play in the World Series in his career.

In Game 3, the Cards and Rangers engaged in an offensive explosion. With the Cardinals leading 8-6 in the top of the sixth, Pujols came to the plate and unleashed his power against Alexi Ogando, hitting a three-run homer to put the game out of reach.

The slugger went deep again in the seventh and even came to the plate for a final time in the ninth, where he became a part of World Series history, hitting his third home run and joining Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson as the third player in baseball history to homer three times in a World Series game.

2005 NLCS vs. Brad Lidge

2005 was the year that the Astros finally overcame the Cardinals in the NLCS. But the Cardinals didn't go away quietly after falling behind 3-1 in the series.

In fact, they were down to their final out in Game 5 when Pujols came to the plate against Brad Lidge. With the count 0-1, Pujols put a huge swing on Lidge's next pitch that he hit all the way up to the train tracks at Minute Maid Park. That put the Cardinals ahead 5-4, and they would hold on to win by that score.

The Cardinals lost Game 6 and their season came to an end, but Pujols kept them alive to fight for another day.