page_title: Albert Pujols
section_title: 2012
hierarchical_section_title: Albert Pujols / Professional baseball career / Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim / Los Angeles Angels (2012–present) / 2012
caption_attribution_description: Albert Pujols
context_page_description: José Alberto Pujols Alcántara is a Dominican professional baseball first baseman and designated hitter for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball. He previously played 11 seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals, with whom he was a three-time National League Most Valuable Player and nine-time All-Star. Since joining the Angels in 2012, he has made one All-Star appearance, in 2015. A right-handed batter and thrower, Pujols stands 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighs 235 pounds.
  Pujols was born in the Dominican Republic and moved to the United States in 1996. After one season of college baseball, he was selected by the Cardinals in the 13th round of the 1999 MLB draft. As a rookie for the Cardinals in 2001, he was unanimously voted the NL Rookie of the Year. Pujols played for the Cardinals, contributing to two World Series championships in 2006 and 2011. After the 2011 season, Pujols became a free agent and signed a 10-year contract with the Angels.
  Pujols was, at the height of his career, a highly regarded hitter who showed a "combination of contact hitting ability, patience and raw power."
context_section_description: Pujols did not perform very well to begin the 2012 season, batting .217 with no home runs and four RBI in the month of April. Soon after the Angels called up top prospect Mike Trout and fired hitting coach Mickey Hatcher, Pujols's numbers began to rise, as he batted .323 with 13 home runs from May 15 through the All-Star Break. On July 31, he hit two home runs against Derek Holland in a 6–2 victory over the Rangers. After the game, Holland observed that Pujols had "definitely turned it around, no doubt about it... He had a slow start, but he's picked it up. He's a great hitter...." On August 14, Pujols had four RBIs, including a game-winning three-run home run against Ubaldo Jiménez in a 9–6 victory over the Cleveland Indians.
  In 153 games, Pujols batted .285 (at the time, a career low) with 173 hits, 50 doubles (second to Alex Gordon's 51), 30 home runs, 105 RBIs (7th in AL), and 85 runs scored.
caption: Pujols in 2012
exif: {}