Albert Pujols was Third in the Sporting News Poll, but He Really was First

Near the end of July, 2003, Albert Pujols had played two and one-half seasons. He was rated by most "experts" as the third-best player in baseball, but hindsight reveals that he wasn't the third best player. Albert Pujols was the best player.

A Sporting News poll of executives from 10 teams placed Alex Rodriguez first and Barry Bonds second. They were the only players to receive a first or second place vote. One general manager said, "A-Rod and Bonds, they're one and two, whatever order you want to put them in."

Rodriguez received seven of the 10 first place votes. Bonds had the other three. The only other player to be named on every ballot was Albert Pujols.

Ichiro Suzuki was on only five of the ballots while Vladimir Guerrero, Pedro Martinez, Mark Prior, Alfonso Soriano and John Smoltz were left off at least one ballot. Remember, this was 2003.

The only player to finish in the top three that never used steroids, knowingly or deliberately, is Albert Pujols.

Before A-Rod admitted steroid use, his great start as a Texas Ranger was credited to improving his swing under the tutelage of Rangers' hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo. He produced career highs in home runs and RBIs his first two seasons with Texas. Today, we know that he had some help.

Barry Bonds was considered the modern day Babe Ruth. He was the most feared hitter in baseball and probably the most feared hitter to ever play the game after Ruth.

In the the 2002 World Series in which Bonds' made a crucial error in the eighth inning of Game 6, the Anaheim Angels refused to give him anything to hit. They would rather have walked him, even with the bases loaded, rather than give him a pitch he could drive.

Bonds' fantastic seasons after the age of 35 were credited to his great ability to immediately recognize a pitch as well as to the great power he generated from his hips. Bonds' pitch recognition and power improved with age. Today, we know that, like A-Rod, Barry had some help.

A game against the Kansas City Royals on June 29, 2003 and a game against the Chicago Cubs on the most patriotic of all days, July 4, illustrated how Pujols was getting even better than he had been.

In a five-run Cardinals' second inning, when Pujols came to the plate, Royals' second baseman Carlos Febles played directly behind second base, leaving a tremendous uncovered area between first and second. The powerful Pujols merely met the ball and drove a ground ball single through the unoccupied area.

A few days later in Chicago, Kerry Wood knocked down Pujols. He got up and hit the next pitch over the center field wall.

This past season, his 11th, Pujols' numbers fell off. They were formidable, but were short of the "Lou Gehrig standard" that Pujols almost matched his first 10 years.

The 31-year-old Pujols is a free agent. Teams that think he has seen his best days should re-examine their beliefs.

Merely because the game's best player has a season that doesn't match his others does not mean that his production will not return to what is "normal" for him.

He is still the best.

Source Citation

Crossman, Matt. "Three tiers for the stars: it's A-Rod and Bonds, then Pujols--then the rest--on our list of baseball's 50 best players, as chosen by general managers and personnel men. (50 Best Baseball)." The Sporting News 28 July 2003: 10+. General OneFile. Web. 12 Nov. 2011.