Cardinals legend Albert Pujols opened up about one of the biggest regrets of his storied career, one that will make even his critics sympathize with him.
Albert Pujols, one of the greatest hitters in MLB history, also happens to have one of the biggest and most painful career regrets.
Pujols, who mainly split time between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Los Angeles Angels in his 22-year career, recently gave a raw and emotional anecdote about a sobering time in the league.
On Audacy's The Bret Boone Podcast, Pujols revealed that despite his accolade-laden resume, the one thing he regrets is not taking the time to "heal his body."
The future Hall-of-Famer said he used to drain his knee in between games for an unspecified amount of time; Pujols underwent knee surgery in 2018, but prior to that operation, the star first baseman was allegedly performing some gnarly medical methods to stay healthy out there on the field.
Or, at least, healthy enough.
Pujols said:
"I used to drain my knee every single day because I wanted to be out there in the field. I want to be respected in the clubhouse. I want my teammates to know I am here when I easily could've taken a year off and healed really well… That's one thing that I regret, not being able to take the time off from my knee to heal properly."
The timespan of Pujols' anecdote falls around 2016, when he was halfway through his Angels' stint and starting to decline. In the podcast, Pujols relayed that his doctor at the time was even flabbergasted at what Pujols was doing to himself. The then-Angels slugger only had one thought in his mind, and that was staying out there and "playing with the guys, even if it's on one leg."
Ex-Cards slugger Albert Pujols regrets pushing his body to the limit
Throughout the years, Pujols had to overcome various injuries from bone spurs in his right elbow to creeping tendinitis, but it seems like his knee problems took the heaviest toll on his overall health.
When Pujols arrived in L.A., he had a reputation to uphold. Having won two World Series, NL Rookie of the Year, NL batting champion, and three MVP awards, "The Machine" wanted to continue his flourishing success in the City of Angels. He had, after all, gotten a massive $240 million contract from the Angels ahead of the 2012 season.
But Pujols' alarming revelations about his knee situation tell the less-glorified story of a man so burdened by expectations that he was hurting his body to play. Dignity outweighed his own health; Pujols didn't want to be labeled as that guy sitting on the payroll just twiddling his thumbs.
"I don't want people to think I was faking an injury. I don't want people to think that I was just getting the money that I was getting paid. I had a responsibility and that responsibility was to be on the field no matter what, and that's what I did."
There are brighter moments in Pujols' careers — in fact, there may be too many to count. He was named MVP in the 2004 NLCS, he became the third player to hit three homers in a World Series game in 2011, and he ended his career with nothing but glory and respect, helping the Cards reach the playoffs one more time.
Now retired, out of the league's shadow and working as a special assistant to the Angels, the 43-year-old can't help but sit in his office staring down at his Infinity Gauntlet. He won nearly every possible award during his MLB career. But what did it cost?
