The Humble Rumbler

Despite the title of best player in MLB and his heroics in the post-season, Albert Pujols continues to play an ideal moral model for our generation. By Andrew Muckell

(AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

     Game three of the World Series seesawed for the Texas Rangers back and forth between almost catching up to the St. Louis Cardinals and stumbling far behind. From the get-go, LF Allen Craig’s solo home run in the top of the first and a four-run rally in the top of the fourth put Texas at a disadvantage. In the bottom of the inning, however, DH Michael Young and LF Nelson Cruz homered, scoring three runs. The offense ensued for the next inning and a half as both teams scored three runs in the fifth and 1B Albert Pujols bashed a towering three-run home run to ignite a four-run sixth inning for the Red Birds. The Rangers had essentially lost the game by then, but Albert was just getting started.
     In the seventh, Pujols drilled a two-runbomb into left-center field. Already four-for-five on the night with two singles and two HRs, King Albert asked manager Tony La Russa if he would like to play another first baseman to give them World Series experience. La Russa, like any manager would have done, played Albert for the rest of the night, and he got a return on his investment. In the top of the ninth, Pujols capped off the Cardinal onslaught with a solo home run, driving in his sixth run of the game.

     Some say it was the most impressive World Series offensive performance ever.
     In an interview after the game, Albert Pujols stated that he did not arrive at the ballpark expecting to perform the way he did. Players do not expect to make history, especially not Albert. He is of a rare breed of athletes, one I would group with the New York Yankees P Mariano Rivera and former NFL quarterback Kurt Warner, which dominates sports and shies from the spotlight. Even the best of us would brag about being compared to Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson, but being the best is not Albert’s goal. There is more to life than fame and money, Albert would agree. Maybe we can learn from him.