St. Louis Cardinals' Albert Pujols joins 700 club with two-home run day

LOS ANGELES — Albert Pujols became the fourth member of the 700 home run club on Friday night, and he did so in emphatic fashion, launching two home runs in front of a packed Dodger Stadium crowd.

The first homer — a 434-foot, two-run blast to left field — came off Dodgers left-hander Andrew Heaney in the third inning. The second one was a three-run shot in the fourth off righty Phil Bickford. By that point the St. Louis Cardinals held a 5-0 lead, and Pujols had driven in all of his team's runs.

Upon crossing home plate after his 700th homer, Pujols raced to the backstop to embrace Adrian Beltre, his longtime rival and one of his closest friends. Shortly thereafter, he found Yadier Molina and wrapped him in an emphatic hug.

The Cardinals went on to win 11-0.

Pujols, winding down the final season of a Hall of Fame career, joins Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth in the 700 home run club. He is the only one among them to hit Nos. 699 and 700 on the same night. Pujols now has 2,208 RBIs for his career, second on the all-time list behind Aaron's 2,297.

It's fitting, perhaps, that the 42-year-old designated hitter accomplished an incredible milestone here at Dodger Stadium, the place that he has often said played a big part in energizing him to play one final season in 2022.

Pujols joined the Dodgers last May, shortly after his release from the Los Angeles Angels, and was reinvigorated while serving as a part-time starter and late-game pinch-hitter over the last five-plus months. He was effective against left-handers and was a major influence in a veteran-laden clubhouse that lovingly called him «Tio Albert.»

Before the game, the Dodgers played a montage for Pujols, with Julio Urias, Hanser Alberto, Justin Turner, Max