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The Machine just keeps picking up steam.
In the midst of an improbable renaissance season, Albert Pujols played a key role once again on Sunday, blasting a go-ahead two-run homer in the ninth inning as the Cardinals beat the Pirates, 4-3. It was his 18th homer of the season and 697th of his storied career, moving him past Alex Rodriguez into sole possession of fourth on the all-time list.
It was Pujols’ second home run in as many games and 12th in 37 games since the All-Star break.
At age 42 and in his 22nd and final season, Pujols has been enjoying his best performance in years. He’s hitting .266/.338/.528 with 48 RBI in 91 games, thriving in his return to St. Louis after playing the past 10 years in Southern California. His .866 OPS is his best since 2011, his final year with the Cardinals before signing with the Angels.
Pujols is now three home runs shy of 700 for his career with 21 games to play. He could be the fourth member of the 700-home run club, joining Barry Bonds (762), Henry Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714). If Pujols reaches the 700-homer plateau, he would become just the second player, along with Aaron, with at least 700 home runs and 3,000 hits.
