If there was ever a time for Albert Pujols to get up on the mound, it was on Sunday night.
The legendary St. Louis Cardinals first baseman stepped in to pitch during the final inning of their blowout 15-6 win over the San Francisco Giants, marking the first time in his decades-long career that he’s done so.
Now, unsurprisingly, it didn’t go that well for Pujols. He gave up three hits, including a three-run homer from Luis Gonzalez and then a single shot from Joey Bart before finally closing out the inning.
Though their lead shrunk a bit, Pujols got the job done in his first, and likely last, pitching appearance in his MLB career.
The Cardinals went 2-1 in their three-game series against the Giants at Busch Stadium following their 4-0 win on Saturday. Pujols scored twice and had a pair of hits in the nine-run win on Sunday as their designated hitter
While things clearly didn’t work out as planned for the Giants, they seemed to take Pujols’ mound appearance well. Evan Longoria even wanted a souvenir after he hit a single off of him.
Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina made MLB history in the win, as they picked up their 203rd career victory as a unit. Wainwright gave up two runs and three hits while striking out five in six innings to pick up his fourth win of the season. The duo have started 311 games together, the third-most of any pitcher-catcher duo in league history.
