Let’s Watch Albert Pujols Steal Bases
In the interstice between Barry Bonds and Mike Trout, Albert Pujols was the greatest baseball player in the world. The unrelenting consistency with which he pounded National League pitching in his Cardinals days earned him the nickname “The Machine.” In his 11 years with St. Louis, hisworstsingle-season numbers were a .299 batting average, 32 home runs, .541 slugging percentage, and playing in 147 games. He won three MVPs (with ten top-five finishes), the 2001 Rookie of the Year, six Silver Sluggers, and two Gold Gloves.His Baseball-Reference page is littered with black ink.
Given his current state, perhaps his most surprising statistic is 141 career stolen bases. That’s a very respectable number. He’s one of just 11 first basemen since 2004 to steal more than 15 bags in a season, and only he, Paul Goldschmidt, and Wil Myers have done so more than once.
Young Pujols could certainly run a bit, but these days, he’s not winning many races.Going by Statcast’s sprint speed, the only MLB player slower than him last season was Brian McCann. Inexplicably, his heavy legs haven’t stopped him from swiping bases completely. He was 3-3 on steal attempts last season. In fact, he’s succeeded in his last 12 tries going back to September of 2015! Just how does such a lead-footed individual steal bags? Let’s watch and see.
Steal #1: August 19, 2019
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The Angels had blown an early 7-1 lead, and the score was knotted at seven in the eleventh inning. Even though it was a night game, extra innings in the Texas summer sounds absolutely miserable. Everyone must have been exhausted after a long day of repressive heat and perspiration. This is the kind of ballgame you just want to be over so you can finally go to bed, as demonstrated by the fans in the front rows:
Drastic measures were necessary. Our protagonist drew a two-out, bases-empty walk against Rangers pitcher Rafael Montero. The batter was rookie second baseman Luis Rengifo, who had just one home run since the All-Star break. Pujols knew a long ball was unlikely, and that he probably couldn’t even score on a double. If there was ever a time to run, this was it. With a 1-1 count, he bolted. The pitch was outside, but catcher Jose Trevino was ready. He pounced out of his crouch, ready to fire…
…But the throw sailed towards the first base side. Shortstop Elvis Andrus did well to prevent it from escaping into center field (not that it would’ve made much difference).
Pujols must have taken Montero by surprise and gotten a great jump. Still, an on-target throw from Trevino would’ve nailed him, even though his helmet flew off like he was Kenny Lofton.
Even Mike Trout, whose stoicism is on par with his batting skills, can’t help but laugh.
Rengifo would fly out to right, ending the threat. The Rangers scored in the bottom of the inning, sending everyone home. Pujols’ stolen base went for naught.
Steal #2: September 15, 2019
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Sometimes, the element of surprise is all you need. Facing the Rays at home, Pujols swatted an RBI double in the first inning to tie the score at one with one out. Pitcher Ryan Yarbrough clearly wasn’t concerned with holding him on second base.
His lead was so large that he was obscured by the score box, nearly off-screen altogether. With an enormous head start, Pujols took off, with Yarbrough none the wiser. It was a full 1.4 seconds after he started sprinting until the pitch was finally released. By the time catcher Mike Zunino received the ball- which was ball four to Kole Calhoun- Pujols probably had covered 75 feet.
Throwing down to third base would have been pointless, and our hero was 2-2 on the season. The next batter was Kevan Smith, who hit what might have been a sacrifice fly,but Calhoun was thrown out trying to reach second base to end the inning before Pujols could score.
Steal #3: September 18, 2019
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Pujols shows exceptional recovery for a man of his age, stealing bases just three days apart! Facing the Yankees with two outs in the top of the fifth, Pujols tried to break a 2-2 deadlock. We can’t see exactly what kind lead he took or when he started running, but here’s pitcher Domingo Germán coming set:
And here he is 2.8 seconds later:
What was going through Germán’s mind during those 2.8 seconds? Was he getting his grip right? Perhaps he was considering his postgame meal? Maybe daydreaming about his childhood? Whatever it was, he clearly wasn’t thinking about Pujols on first base. Once again, there’s no throw.
Take a breath, big guy. You’ve earned it.
Pujols would be stranded on base once again. No matter, he proved The Machine still runs just fine when it must.
Do you have any other comments, questions, corrections, or concerns? Maybe you just want to yell at me? Great! You can reach me atdan@baseball.fyior on Twitter@depstein1983. I’d love to hear from you!