The stare beyond compare made quite the appearance Tuesday night in Anaheim.
You know the one.
It's the look Cardinals legend Albert Pujols used for years here in St. Louis.
It could fall upon an opponent who ticked him off, on an teammate who didn't meet his sky-high standards, or on a reporter who asked a question Pujols didn't have much interest in answering.
The most withering looks have always been reserved for when Pujols feels he's being disrespected.
Mariners reliever Nestor Cortes realizes that now.
The southpaw made two mistakes in his first meeting with Pujols in the fifth inning of the Angels' 10-2 win.
The second mistake was an 88 mph sinker that caught way too much of the plate for an 0-2 count against one of the greatest hitters of all time, especially with two outs in the inning.
But the first mistake came when Cortes attempted a super slow-motion delivery during the third pitch of the at-bat.
Why not?
Pujols was two-for-13 to start the season. He was still hunting his first extra-base hit. Cortes had gotten ahead in the count with two four-seam fastballs. Pujols watched one for a strike and fouled off the other. This was the friendliest count a pitcher could find. Time for some sizzle, right?
Wrong.
Cortes, it looked from afar, was showing off by breaking out the hitch in his giddy-up.
Pujols put a stop to that.
He gave Cortes' two-strike, two-mistake sinker a 373-foot ride over the left field fence for the first home run of his season.
From afar, it looked like Pujols was not pleased with the attempt to make him look foolish. At least I think that's a fair interpretation of the stare Pujols gave the pitcher while he trotted the bases. If there was a thought bubble over Pujols' head, it probably would have said something like: 'Did you forget who you were pitching to?"
The solo blast was career home run No. 657 for Pujols, meaning he is now just three home runs shy of tying Willie Mays for fifth on the all-time list. Cortes became one of the more memorable members in the club of 423 pitchers Pujols has homered against.
"He was frisky tonight, and played really well," Angels manager Joe Maddon told reporters. "You just see the bounce in his step. He was ready to rock and roll."
Pujols has so many memorable home runs during his 20-season Hall of Fame worthy career, and followers of the Cardinals will always hold the ones hit for the Cardinals in the highest regard, but we should all be able to agree No. 657 belongs on the list of all-timers.
It reinforced a long-lasting truth in a season where so much has changed.
Whether he's a Gold-Glove winning, All-Star game starting MVP in his prime, or a 40-year-old future Hall of Famer with bad feet and knees, what was true in 2001 remains true in 2020.
Don't mess with The Machine.
