Albert Pujols Fantasy Prospect Profile

Albert Pujols: In 1999 you had Vernon Wells rapidly move up the minors, for the 2000 season, you had Albert Pujols quickly climb from Low-A in the Midwest League to playing in the Triple-A World Series by September. All of this in just his first full pro season.

Formerly a 13th round selection in the 1999 draft out of Maple Woods (MO) JC, this 20-year-old opened the 2000 season with Peoria (.324, 17 HR, 84 RBI, 32 2B, 6 3B, 62 R, 38 BB, 37 SO, 2 SB, in 395 AB). He was later promoted to Potomac (.284, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 8 2B, 1 3B, 11 R, 7 BB, 8 SO, 1 SB, in 81 AB) and then finished out the regular season at Memphis (.214, 2 RBI, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 1 SB, in 14 AB).

At 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds, this right-handed hitter is the Cards third baseman of the future. In the field, Pujols has the arm and that you need to handle that position and can make all the plays and more that you could ask for. In the batter's box, he has the ability to develop into a hitter who will hit for both a high average and could be a 25+ homer threat. With Tatis being traded, the wait should not be very long.

He will probably start 2001 back in Memphis with the hope that he can get off to a strong start. If he does that, don't be surprised to see him up by mid-to-late season. You do have to wonder if he will have some early struggles just due to how fast he has advanced. If he does, it might be best to let him work in the minors for most of the season.

Top Prospect Alert Features

Top Prospect Alert Baseball News Blog

Top Prospect Alert Fantasy Player Reports

Exclusive Prospect Interviews

Top Prospect Alert Original Stories

Prospect Photo Gallery

Top Prospect Alert Trivia

Top Prospect Alert Message Board

MLB Hat Store

Minor League Store

NFL Hat Store

NFL Team Apparel

NFL Player Jerseys

NCAA Hat Store

NBA Hat Store

NBA Player Jerseys

TopProspectAlert.com Minor League News & Autograph Blog Home

By Robert Sherry