As if we needed another sign, excuse the pun, that the Pujols era in St. Louis had firmly supplanted the steroid-tainted McGwire era, it came dramatically last night.
In the first inning of the Cardinals - Cubs game, Pujols lined a screamer over the left field wall knocking off the “I” in the Big Mac Land sign just under the upper deck.
We all know that Pujols was the first player in baseball history to hit 30 HR’s, 100 RBI, 100 Runs, and have a .300 average his first 3 seasons in the majors. We all know that he also became the first player to do it his first 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 seasons. Given that he’s on pace for a 55 HR, 150 RBI, 142 Run, .326 average year, we can probably all but put the 9th in the books. But how does he stack up to the Big Mac?
McGwire put up 583 HR’s in 16 seasons, aided by his record breaking 70 in 1998 and 65 in 1999. Pujols has 333 in less than 9 seasons. McGwire put up 1414 RBI and 1167 Runs in 16 years. Pujols already has 1015 RBI and 983 Runs in 9 years. McGwire’s career average closed at .263 while Pujols is standing at .334.
Honors lean in Prince Albert’s favor - 2 well deserved MVP’s to none. And most importantly, every Cardinals fan is in his corner. It would only be good business for McDonalds to honor him by creating a new Pujols sandwich. When the 2009 All Star Game comes to St. Louis on July 14th, it will be clear who truly represents the spirit of St. Louis.
On July 14th, however, it will be millions of passionate fans who make the difference. For the first time in over 40 years, the Midsummer Classic comes back to St. Louis. And until May 22nd, the fans are the ones to decide who gets to go.
