There wasn’t much to cheer about last night for Cardinals fans, but they were given another memory from one of the most prolific hitters of all time.
In his first at-bat at Busch Stadium with the Dodgers, Albert Pujols, still a fan favorite in St. Louis, took Cards’ lefty J.A. Happ deep.
That opened the scoring and helped pave the way for a 7-2 Dodgers win.
But more importantly, it resulted in the Cardinals faithful going crazy for their former slugger once again. It’s not every day you see fans clapping for an opposing player’s home run.
“It’s always pretty special anytime you can come over here in St. Louis with the history that I have with the fans” said Pujols, who hit 445 home runs in a Cardinals uniform while winning two World Series’ and three MVP’s. “It was really a great moment, once again, and to be able to deliver like that in the first at-bat was huge.”
It was Pujols’ 679th career home run. At 41, as he approaches the end of his storied career, there’s no doubt that he’ll be headed to Cooperstown when it’s all said and done.
Anytime he hits a homer, you’re watching history happen,” said Justin Turner. “For him to do it here in St. Louis, it’s extra special. St. Louis has a really special place in his heart and that was pretty cool for everyone in the stadium, not just Albert.”
It was indeed special, bringing back memories of when he homered at Busch Stadium as a member of the Angels in 2019.
“Storybook,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “I’m a big believer that the game honors you, and the way Albert has played in the game for so long and the right way, that’s the way it was supposed to work out.”
