Pujols first Latino to reach 700 HRs
In hitting his 699th and 700th home runs at Dodger Stadium on Friday night, Albert Pujols became the fourth player in the 700-homer club, joining Barry Bonds, Henry Aaron and Babe Ruth.
That also makes Pujols the first Latino player to reach the mark -- doing so during Hispanic Heritage Month, of all times. He¡¯s toward the top of numerous all-time lists, and has firmly cemented himself as the most decorated foreign-born position player in the sport¡¯s history.
Here¡¯s a look at how Pujols has staked his claim as the most accomplished foreign-born player in MLB:
Home runs
Entering the 2001 season -- when Pujols debuted -- the all-time HR leader among foreign-born players was Jos¨¦ Canseco, with 446, followed by Rafael Palmeiro (400), Sammy Sosa (386), Orlando Cepeda (379) and Tony P¨¦rez (379). Of course, the top of that list changed dramatically over the ensuing years. By the time Pujols was in a spot to challenge the all-time foreign-born record, that number was Sosa¡¯s 609.
Pujols has led all foreign-born players in homers since he hit number 610 on Aug. 22, 2017. Now, he¡¯s set the standard at 700.
Wins Above Replacement
Entering 2001, Roberto Clemente¡¯s 94.8 career WAR, per Baseball Reference, led all foreign-born position players, ahead of Rod Carew¡¯s 81.2 and Roberto Alomar¡¯s 60. Clemente¡¯s status as the leader stayed until Pujols -- now up to 101 WAR -- passed him, but the rest of the list changed drastically.
Pujols now leads, surpassing 94.8 WAR initially sometime in the 2014 season, with Clemente second. But Adri¨¢n Beltr¨¦, who attended the game Friday to watch Pujols, is now third among foreign-born players with 93.5 WAR. The top 10 list now includes Larry Walker (72.7), Palmeiro (71.9), Carlos Beltr¨¢n (70.1), Manny Ram¨ªrez (69.3), Iv¨¢n Rodr¨ªguez (68.7) and Robinson Can¨® (68.1). Overall, Pujols is 20th among position players.
Extra-base hits
When Pujols debuted, P¨¦rez was the all-time leader in extra-base hits among foreign-born players, with 963. That list looks quite different today, with P¨¦rez now ranking 11th. Pujols leads, with 1,401, ahead of David Ortiz and Palmeiro, with exactly 1,192 each. When Pujols became the all-time foreign-born leader in August 2016, it was Palmeiro that he passed, with Ortiz catching Palmeiro later in the season.
Overall, Pujols is third all-time, behind Aaron (1,477) and Bonds (1,440).
RBIs
Entering 2001, P¨¦rez led all foreign-born players with 1,652 RBIs, and Chili Davis was second with 1,372. By the time it was Pujols¡¯ turn to take over the lead on the list in April 2017, he passed Palmeiro, who had 1,834. Palmeiro is now third, with Miguel Cabrera second at 1,843 RBIs. P¨¦rez is now eighth, with Ram¨ªrez (1,831), Ortiz (1,768), Beltr¨¦ (1,707) and Sosa (1,667) ahead of him on the list.
Pujols¡¯ 2,208 RBIs lead the list among foreign-born players and rank second all-time, behind only Aaron (2,297 RBIs). Note: RBIs have been an official stat since 1920.
Hits
When Pujols got to the Majors in 2001, there were just two foreign-born members of the 3,000-hit club: Carew, with 3,053, and Clemente, with 3,000. Today, there are seven foreign-born players with at least 3,000 hits. When Pujols became the leader on that list in August 2019, he passed Beltr¨¦, who totaled 3,166 hits. Ichiro Suzuki is third, at 3,089, and Cabrera fourth with 3,082. Carew is now fifth, followed by Palmeiro with 3,020, and then Clemente.