Written by Greg Moore
Albert Pujols, 2001 Rookie of the Year and the NL MVP in 2005 and 2008, is the first player ever to hit 30 or more home runs in his first nine seasons. He’s the second player to hit 100 or more RBI in the same time-span, and he holds the Cardinals’ all-time record for most grand slams. He is the second player in Major League history to have nine consecutive seasons with at least 30 doubles, a .300 batting average, 30 homeruns and 100 RBI.
But he is not just a baseball star, even though he is arguably one of the best players to ever play the game. Pujols is a man we can all look up to. He loves his sport, but more importantly his faith comes first. I, along with many of you wonder “Why is Pujols so successful?”
According to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports,scientists have said Pujols is successful because of “practice, the maniacal sort that turns muscles and ligaments and tendons into fine-tuned machines and cells into intelligent worker bees that help execute the brain’s commands.” The thing is, when you ask Pujols the same question, he gives a completely different answer.
God is the focal point in Albert’s life.
His wife, Diedre, took him to church when they started dating in 1998, and ever since God has been number one in his life. Pujols says, “I believe in Jesus Christ, who gave me the strength and power and talent to honor him. You can always try to figure it out and be scientific and look for success. Not me. It’s dedication, hard work, practice and God.”
Wherever Pujols goes, God is with him. I wonder how many people know the real Albert Pujols, not just the superstar athlete? He is a preacher, he prays, he hostsChristian Family Day at Busch stadiumand has been called the “true mayor of St. Louis.” He believes this is what God wants him to do.
In an April interview with USA TodayPujols said, “I’ve always had the responsibility to God to be a role model, so it’s not just now. I play to represent God, something bigger than baseball. This is not about me, I leave everything up to God.”
This is the kind of person we should all look up to. For those of us getting ready to graduate, we can learn everything we need to know about taking our faith into the workplace from Albert Pujols. Pujols is frequently scrutinized for professing his faith, and for thanking God for his abilities. As Christians, we are to lead by example, exactly like Pujols has.
Many of baseballs so-called superstars (Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz, for example) have failed as role-models by using steroids. All of these men will have asterisks by their names in baseball’s history. But Albert Pujols is this generation’s last hope for modeling a superstar lifestyle with a chance of threading the camel through the eye of the needle.
