Los Angeles: Albert Pujols’ line-drive single to left field in the sixth inning on Friday night put him in rare company.
The hit in the Los Angeles Angels’ 4-3 win over Oakland was Pujols’ 1,000th in an Angels uniform. He became just the third player in major league history to have 1,000 hits with just one team in each league. Pujols, in his 18th major league season, has 3,073 hits; the others came in his 11 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Angels first baseman is a certain first-ballot Hall of Fame selection when he becomes eligible. The others who achieved the milestone of 1,000 hits with one team in each league already are enshrined in Cooperstown: Dave Winfield (San Diego Padres and New York Yankees) and Vladimir Guerrero (Montreal Expos and Angels.) “It’s a great feat. We’re happy for him,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia told reporters after Friday’s game. “He’s swinging the bat well, and we need him.
As far as putting everything into perspective that he’s done up until this point, we’re seeing a living legend. We’re seeing a guy do things that not many people in this game have ever done. It’s fun to be part of it.” Earlier in the 2018 season, Pujols recorded his 3,000th career hit, becoming the 32nd player in major league history to reach the milestone. For his career, the 38-year-old Pujols has a .303 batting average with 632 home runs and 1,974 RBIs.
Carlos Beltran, Orlando Cabrera, Carlos Lee, Fred McGriff, Frank Robinson and Alfonso Soriano also had 1,000 hits in each league, although that feat was not accomplished with just one team in each league.
