With the World Series set to begin on Wednesday, Oct. 19 at 1:00 p.m. EST at Busch Stadium—with the St. Louis Cardinals sending Chris Carpenter (11-9, 3.45 ERA) to the mound to face-off against the Texas Rangers' C.J. Wilson(notes) (16-7, 2.94 ERA) in a clash of both team's aces—most of the attention will surely be on the game, the series, and the players and managers within the scope of all that.
However, as we can see from the most recent article by AP Sports Writer R.B. Fallstrom, there is still some attention being paid to what will happen after the seven-game series finishes. In his piece he reports Albert Pujols(notes) still isn't discussing what might happen—win or lose—regarding his free agency situation.
It's perfectly understandable the Cardinals first-baseman wouldn't want to discuss the issue right when his team is about to enter into the one of the most important contests of the 31-year-old slugger's career. Here he is about to have another chance at a championship ring, and it would be almost unthinkable for him to have his mind on what might happen once all the games are played.
Of course, all of that would have been avoided if St. Louis had been able to come to some sort of agreement with Pujols on a contract extension either prior to this past season, or during the 162 games they played. However, that simply didn't happen, for a myriad of reasons, and we are where we are. As it stands, the 3-time National League MVP has simply refused—over and over—to discuss the situation until the season is done with.
Nevertheless, that doesn't stop anyone else from discussing it, and while I know it would almost seem ludicrous to many, considering his 11-year history with the St. Louis organization, I have the feeling Pujols is not going to be batting third in the lineup for the Cardinals come spring training next year.
In fact, while it may sound even more astonishing, I have a surprising suspicion he could end up playing somewhere most so-called "experts" in the media would never even consider at the moment. That place? Miami. The team? The Miami Marlins (previously known as the Florida Marlins).
I know all of the arguments against the idea Pujols could end up wearing a Marlins uniform. The first would be the idea owner Jeffrey Loria simply wouldn't pay him. After all, Loria is looked at by many as some skinflint, cheapskate miser who pinches his pennies and tries to field a team on the cheap. He's looked at—with good reason—as someone unwilling to have a payroll anywhere near the top of the majors; which has prevented plenty of his teams from ever truly competing.
Yet, with the Marlins moving into a new ballpark in 2012, and a huge revenue stream coming from that, Loria has promised to begin spending money, and that promise seems to be taking shape with the hiring of Ozzie Guillen to be the club's manager when they move into their new digs.
Another argument against Pujols leaving St. Louis is the fact it's his de facto home state. While he was born in the Dominican Republic, he attended Fort Osage High School in Independence Missouri. He has roots there, and that, along with many other things make it difficult for many to believe he would ever "abandon" the St. Louis fans that have come to love him over the years.
Nonetheless, his roots in the Hispanic community are just as strong, and there are few areas of the country as diverse and representative of that community, including his Dominican heritage, as the city of Miami.
Combine that with the fact the Marlins are a very young team with plenty of talent and the chance—with a few pieces—to make a huge splash in the majors over the next few years, and Pujols could see in them a chance to add to his legacy; possibly winning a couple more titles before he's done. He would certainly be a hero among the South Florida fans. With his bat added to that of Hanley Ramirez(notes) and the other young sluggers on the Marlins team, he could energize that fanbase like few others.
Loria knows this, and while it would certainly cost him a lot of money to acquire Pujols, I believe it would be a wise investment.
I fully realize this is nothing more than speculation at this time, and if it never pans out I could be laughed off as a fool. However, I would only remind my readers who would laugh it off I correctly predicted LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh would team up for the Miami Heat long before anyone else in the media did (including Stephen A. Smith), and I have documented proof of that you can read here.
While I'll be enjoying the World Series, riveted by the action and drama, one thing that will be nagging at my brain as a Miami Marlins fan is whether there's a chance the city could actually pull off another amazing free agency bonanza similar to the one the Heat pulled off getting James, Wade, and Bosh.
Heck, the Marlins could even add the Rangers' Wilson to the starting rotation and get another high-profile player for some other position (perhaps center field) to have their own troika of superstar free agent acquisitions.
Whatever they do, I would love nothing better than to have Pujols wearing a Marlins uniform next year, as all Miami fans would.
Play Ball!
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