When the Dodgers scooped up 21-year MLB veteran first baseman Albert Pujols after he was unceremoniously released by the Angels of Anaheim, there were some, perhaps even many, who thought that normally brilliant Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman had lost his mind. I mean, we’re talking about a guy who, although he has hit 668 home runs (and counting) over his Hall of Fame-worthy career – fifth-most in MLB history – is now slower than molasses (Google it, kids) and holds the record for grounding into the most double plays in MLB history at 406 (and counting).

But when all is said and done about the 2021 Dodgers season, it’s probably safe to say that the so-called ‘spark’ that so many said the Dodgers needed to get out of their horrendous slump was when Friedman signed the 41-year-old Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic native and 13th-round draft pick in 1999 by the St. Louis Cardinals out of Maple Woods Community College in Kansas City to a one-year free-agent contract at the MLB minimum salary of $570,500, with the Angels paying him $30 million for the final year of his 10-year/$240 million contract – an absolute bargain any way you slice it.

But aside from the Hall of Fame-worthy stuff on Pujols’ remarkable resume, it’s what he brings to the Dodgers clubhouse and dugout that created that ‘spark’ the Dodgers so desperately needed.

…and then some.

In the top of the eighth inning and the Dodger hanging on to a (then) precarious 4-1 lead over the smoking-hot NL West-leading San Francisco Giants, Pujols lined a single into centerfield, driving in Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner for a crucial insurance run. It was Pujols’ fifth RBI in only his sixth game in a Dodgers uniform.

But that’s not the half of it.

When Pujols was replaced by Sheldon Neuse as his pinch-runner, and upon returning to a barrage of high-fives in the Dodgers dugout, Pujols walked to the far end of the dugout, where he was congratulated by a young 10-year-old-ish fan wearing a Dodgers hat. Pujols reached over the short screen and gave the youngster a fist bump.

But that’s not the three-quarters of it.

The man affectionally known as ‘Prince Albert’ (and ‘The Machine’) handed the youngster the very bat that he had just used to drive in the 2,117th run of his brilliant 21-year career.

“Not surprising,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said when told of Pujols’ incredibly kind gesture. “Superstars, people that look up to guys like Albert, for him to reciprocate that and make a young fan’s day, year, whatever it is, I mean it’s a treasure I’m sure that person will have for a long time. Not a surprise.”

The real treasure is Albert Pujols.

…and he’s our treasure.

Play Ball!

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