Why are the Cardinals signing Albert Pujols? St. Louis adds franchise icon to DH mix

Tom Gatto

Why are the Cardinals signing Albert Pujols? St. Louis adds franchise icon to DH mix image

When the Dodgers rolled into Busch Stadium for a series last September, the St. Louis fans were delighted to see one LA player: Albert Pujols. This, some of them figured, might be their last opportunity to watch him play.

And Pujols, ever clutch, gave them a thrill with a home run in his first at-bat. He didn't get another hit in the four-game set, but that didn't matter: El Hombre was home again and hitting dingers.

Move ahead seven months to April 2022. Cardinals fans will, improbably, get to see Pujols again and tell him, "Welcome back." The Redbirds agreed Sunday night to a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the 42-year-old franchise icon, according to multiple reports.

Why are the Cardinals signing Albert Pujols?

This isn't a "retire as a Cardinal" deal or a way to hold a farewell tour, although Pujols is at the point where his next DFA/release/free agency could trigger the end of his career.

He's coming back to St. Louis to help win another championship with the franchise. He, Yadier Molina and Adam Wainwright were around for the team's World Series titles in 2006 and 2011; all three could be in the Opening Day lineup April 7 against the Pirates at Busch.

And if Pujols is in the lineup, he'll most likely be the designated hitter against Bucs left-hander Jose Quintana. St. Louis is reuniting with Pujols because it doesn't appear sold on prospect Juan Yepez handling a DH platoon with left-handed hitters Corey Dickerson and Lars Nootbaar.

If there's one thing Pujols can still do, it's mash against left-handers. His splits vs. LHPs the past three seasons with the Angels and Dodgers:

YEAR PA HR SLG OPS
2019 181 11 .515 .830
2020 66 2 .385 .627
2021 146 13 .603 .939

His home run against the Cards in September came off a left-hander, J.A. Happ. A lot of the crowd was glad to see it.

How much is Albert Pujols contract with Cardinals?

Pujols has made $344,040,436 throughout his baseball career. His latest deal won't be anywhere close to that magnitude. His contract with the Cardinals will be on an extremely team-friendly deal. 

"The Machine" has returned home, and it was met with a standing ovation on Monday.

Now Cards fans will happily watch Pujols try to hit more dingers (and maybe reach 700 for his career; he's 21 away) in the home uniform. Oh, and they'll also be cheering on a team that became better on paper by bringing Pujols home.

Tom Gatto

Tom Gatto Photo

Tom Gatto joined The Sporting News as a senior editor in 2000 after 12 years at The Herald-News in Passaic, N.J., where he served in a variety of roles including sports editor, and a brief spell at APBNews.com in New York, where he worked as a syndication editor. He is a 1986 graduate of the University of South Carolina.