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ST. LOUIS - Albert Pujols likes to remind people that, despite his spectacular talents, he is human.
The last two days proved it.
The All-Star game carried great expectations for the St. Louis Cardinals’ star, who entered the break with numbers that make him a Triple Crown threat. He received a prolonged standing ovation during player introductions, topped off by chants of “MVP! MVP!” from the hometown fans.
But he set off no fireworks while playing six innings Tuesday night, failing to hit a ball out of the infield in three at-bats and committing a fielding error that led to an unearned run in the American League 4-3 victory over the National League.
A lackluster All-Star game for Pujols came on the heels of a so-so Home Run Derby for the major leagues’ home run leader. He was eliminated in the second round Monday night.
Still, Pujols had a blast playing host and performing for his fans.
“It was great,” he said. “Probably, it will be the best All-Star Game that I’m ever going to have. An unbelievable experience.”
He even redeemed himself defensively later in the game with a handful of nice plays, one of them saving a run. His best moment probably came before the game, when he made a deft scoop that perhaps saved President Obama from bouncing his ceremonial first pitch.
“It was in the air the whole way,” Pujols said. “I scooted up a little bit, but I think I was going to catch it in the air the whole way.
“I was more nervous not to drop the ball, believe me. I wasn’t worried about him bouncing the ball.”
Pujols has carried the St. Louis offense all season, leading the majors with 32 home runs and 87 RBIs, with little protection in the lineup. He has drawn 32 intentional walks, twice as many as any other player, some of them in not very threatening situations.
Perhaps he relaxed in the All-Star lineup, batting third as usual but surrounded by players who earned a mid-summer trip to his home ballpark. Or perhaps he just needed a break after helping the Cardinals take a 2½-game lead in the NL Central.
“I don’t think it’s all the extra All-Star stuff,” manager Tony La Russa said, discussing Pujols’ Home Run Derby performance. “I think it’s the fact he was pushed like our club.”
After it was all done, Pujols was smiling.
“I enjoyed every moment of this All-Star game,” Pujols said. “Yes, I did have to do a lot of press conferences, a lot of media, Home Run Derby.
But today I did whatever I had to do and I got myself ready for the game.”
Pujols had a long day Sunday, the last day before the break, playing both ends of a day-night doubleheader in Chicago before traveling back to St. Louis. He was back at a downtown hotel the next morning for interviews, playing the role of ambassador and fielding questions that included whether he thought he could hit 60 homers (he’ll think about it in September) and whether he was powerful enough to launch a ball from Busch Stadium to the Gateway Arch — which is nearly a half-mile away (“No,” he said).
Pujols won a Gold Glove in 2006 with an aggressive style, often ranging far to his right to cut off balls. He was pretty much in no-man’s land again when he booted Mark Teixeira’s grounder in the first and the ball got away, allowing Ichiro Suzuki to score from second.
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Morry Gash / AP President Barack Obama hugs Albert Pujols after throwing out the ceremonial first pitch Tuesday. |
“I just kind of got lost a little bit,” Pujols said. “It kind of handcuffed me, because it went through Mauer’s legs almost. I kind of lost that vision.”
Pujols has yet to play on the winning team in eight All-Star games, one of them a tie. He minimized the American League again holding homefield advantage in the World Series, noting the Cardinals won in 2006 without it after taking one of the first two games in Detroit.
“Obviously it hasn’t happened over the last I don’t know how many years, but I would say that when you’re in the World Series, it doesn’t matter,” Pujols said. “All you have to do is win one game (on the road) like we did in 2006 and now you have home field advantage.”
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Doron Lamb hit a 3-pointer with 3:18 left to put No. 1 Kentucky ahead to stay, and the Wildcats took a big step toward a Southeastern Conference regular-season title by beating Vanderbilt 69-63 Saturday night for their 17th straight win.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.