Albert Pujols was already making noise as a rookie in 2001, but October is where the Cardinals got their first real reminder of just how dangerous he could be.
St. Louis had won 93 games and grabbed a wild card berth that season, then dropped Game 1 of the National League Division Series to the eventual World Series champion Arizona Diamondbacks.
In Game 2, the Cardinals answered with a 4-1 win, and Pujols delivered the swing that set the tone. He launched the first postseason homer of his career off future Hall of Famer Randy Johnson, putting St.
Louis ahead 2-0 in the first inning.
Pujols finished 2-for-4 in the game and piled up five total bases as the Cardinals tied the series behind a strong outing from Woody Williams. It was the first October blast in a career that would eventually feature plenty more.
That 2001 matchup went the distance, with St. Louis pushing Arizona to five games before falling in the deciding contest. Even in defeat, the message was clear: Pujols had arrived.
The rest of his first run with the Cardinals only reinforced that idea. From 2001-11, he helped the club reach the postseason seven times and played a major role in the 2004 run to the World Series, St.
Louis’ first National League pennant since 1987. He later turned in a three-homer game in Game 3 of the 2011 World Series.
Pujols came back to St. Louis for his final season in 2022 and helped guide the Cardinals back to the playoffs, echoing what he had done as a rookie.
And before that first postseason homer, he was already putting together a monster regular season: .329/.403/.610 with 37 home runs, 130 RBI, a 6.6 WAR and a 1.013 OPS.
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