Albert Pujols: Top three landing spots for former Angel

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One of FanSided’s own broke huge news regarding former LA Angel Albert Pujols.

Albert Pujols was DFA’d by the LA Angels last week, and our Robert Murray has reported that there are three to four teams interested in signing the first baseman. While Murray has not revealed which three to four teams it is, I can at least tell you which teams should be interested in the future Hall of Famer.

It’s got to be somebody in the American League. Sure, there could be National League teams interested, but I don’t know how much good that would do for an NL club.

An AL club has options for Pujols, because of a more consistent designated hitter spot available. There are more opportunities for an AL team to bank on a slumping Pujols, who is batting just .198 with 12 RBI in 24 games this season.

He’s not playing well, but we’re almost a quarter of the way into the season. Some teams are getting desperate, and could maybe make a move. It’s hard to recommend Pujols to a team based on his struggles these past four seasons, but of all the desperate teams, the Detroit Tigers might need to take this gamble the most.

The Tigers are second-to-last in American League OPS (.641), as well as home runs (34). They’re batting an awful .220 as a team, and could potentially use a spark.

Now, it’s very unclear whether Pujols would give them that spark, but the hope would be that he just needed a change of scenery in order to give this league one last go in 2021.

Besides, while Pujols has been rather terrible at the plate this year, he actually has hit a decent amount of home runs this year considering he’s only played in just 24 games. His five homers in 24 games would average out to about 33 longballs over a full season.

For a team that’s struggling to hit for power, Pujols could be an option maybe worth exploring.

Apr 12, 2021; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Los Angeles Angels first baseman Albert Pujols (5) gets ready to bat against the Kansas City Royals during the sixth inning at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports /

Next, another team that could make some sense is the Kansas City Royals.

Now, I want to make it clear that I do not think the Royals are particularly awful offensively. They rank in the middle of the league in batting average.

They, like Detroit, struggle in the power department, however. They too only have hit 34 bombs this year. They rank 20th in the MLB this year in both slugging percentage and OPS.

Pujols has also played in Missouri before obviously with the St. Louis Cardinals. He’d potentially be more open to a move back over to the Midwest like that and that potential transition could come a bit easier considering his familiarity with the state.

Also, Pujols could be beneficial to Royals’ first baseman Carlos Santana. He didn’t look like himself last year, with a .199 batting average and just eight home runs in all 60 games for the Indians.

Santana has looked better this year no doubt, but having a veteran come in and provide an element of leadership to a player who’s not old and should have many more years left could really be influential to a career. Not to mention the Royals are a team that started off hot, but has struggled as of late and been swept in each of their last three series. Having a top five right-handed hitter of all time to come into the clubhouse and maybe talk some sense into the guys could really help.

July 27, 2019; Anaheim, CA, USA; Los Angeles Angels first baseman Albert Pujols (5) reacts after hitting a solo home run against the Baltimore Orioles during the sixth inning at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /

Finally, the Baltimore Orioles should maybe take a look at the sure-fire first-ballot Hall of Famer.

Not much has gone right for the O’s this season, or any season after 2016. Sitting at 16-21, it may be now or never for the Orioles to turn it around in the historically great AL East.

Ranking 12th out of 15th in the AL in both home runs and on-base percentage, 13th in OPS, and among the bottom half in batting average, it’s safe to say that something needs to change in Baltimore.

Chris Davis is still on the IL, and while he’s performed rather embarrassingly for the past four years, the Orioles need him in the lineup. He’s still collecting paychecks from his seven-year/$161 million contract he’s signed up for through 2022, and the Orioles could use a power bat to try to replace Davis.

Pujols hasn’t been much for a long time, but neither has Davis. Pujols would at least fill the void for when Davis gets injured, which tends to happen very frequently these days.

Unfortunately for Pujols, none of these teams are any good, except hopefully for Kansas City, the Royals could maybe bounce back and get back to their early-season form.

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Pujols has made it clear that he wants to keep playing, but he’ll have to make a decision soon regarding whether he wants to play for a bottom-of-the-barrel team or not. He hasn’t played for a winner in quite some time, and that may be important to him.

Pujols is 41, and Pujols at this age is certainly no elite option. These three clubs need to try to catch lightning in a bottle, however, and maybe this is their chance.

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One of FanSided’s own broke huge news regarding former LA Angel Albert Pujols.

Next, another team that could make some sense is the Kansas City Royals.

Finally, the Baltimore Orioles should maybe take a look at the sure-fire first-ballot Hall of Famer.

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