Rachel Crader is the editor of semoball.com. She graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism in May of 2009 before spending the summer covering the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas.

Highlights from Rachel's days in college include having a class down the hall from Chase Daniel and having NCAA wrestling champion Ben Askren hold the door open for her at Brady Commons, Mizzou's student center. She spent time covering Mizzou basketball, softball and baseball while working for the Columbia Missourian and is excited to return home to Southeast Missouri to cover local sports for semoball.com.

Rachel has covered three Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournaments for the Southeast Missourian and semoball.com, and she'll see you courtside again this year.

Am I an Albert Pujols snob?

Posted Tuesday, May 4, 2010, at 6:39 PM

So, I just updated my Facebook status to say the following:

"Be advised. Every time someone casually compares Albert Pujols and Ryan Howard a kitten dies, and angel loses its wings and I lose 14 minutes of life."

What do you think? Too much? Not enough?

I understand that I have an increased affection for Albert based on the fact that he is a Cardinal and, you know, the greatest player of his and maybe any generation, but do I really have to stand for people comparing Howard to him?

There are plenty of people who have written about how the comparison doesn't really work, but it still seems like I can't go 12 minutes online without reading something that goes ahead and compares them anyway. (By the way, I didn't get to see the Cards-Phillies game on TV last night, so forgive me if I sound like Al Hrabosky right now or something. Eek.)

All of this talk is, of course, the result of Howard signing a five-year, $125 million extension with the Phillies, which has led to endless speculation about just how much money Albert will get when he and Cardinals draw up his new contract.

I don't really care to discuss how much players money make or whether or not they "deserve" their huge sums of money (that's a whole other blog), but I get a little sensitive about Albert being compared to a man with 902 strikeouts in what amounts to less than five seasons in the big leagues.

I suppose here is where I should break down their career numbers so we could argue about the fact that Howard has more RBI than Albert over the last few seasons, but that would hardly tell the whole story -- from defense to baserunning to the affect he has on opposing pitchers/teams/managers and on and on.

Here's the thing: I understand and freely admit that Ryan Howard is an outstanding and even an All-Star caliber baseball player with a World Series ring. He's just not as good as Albert Pujols. And it's not even close.

And, yes, I feel better now. :)

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Rachel

I agree, yes Ryan Howard is an all-star and yes he is a good hitter. However, there is no way you can compare an "all or nothing" kind of hitter to a player that not only hits for power but hits for average and uses all parts of the field. Not to mention Albert is a lot better defensively.

Also, big league players contracts are over-rated and I think that the amount of money a player recieves should not be released by a big league program. You hardly ever see information on the news or in the newspaper saying how much money a college offered a high school athlete to play for them, do you?

-- Posted by baseballfan2010 on Tue, May 4, 2010, at 7:36 PM
Strikeouts "do" matter! One of the things by which to rate any player is how many times he gives his team a chance to succeed! By "not" striking out, Pujols often advances runners and gives more players behind him in the lineup opportunities to drive in runs!

-- Posted by semo7178 on Wed, May 5, 2010, at 8:30 AM
If Pujols doesn't get more money than Howard then he needs to fire his agent. Pujols is no doubt a superior player to Howard in every aspect except home runs and RBIs. The bottom line is if Pujols and Howard were traded for each other (hypothetically speaking), we'd have a bunch of Howard fans around here and we'd make a case for why Howard is better than Pujols. But that won't happen. Pujols will soon be a free agent and the Cardinals better pay up, because you know somebody will. I bet the Red Sox would love to see Pujols in Boston.

-- Posted by semohoops on Wed, May 5, 2010, at 9:27 AM
If Pujols gets more money than Howard you better hope he gets it somewhere besides St. Louis. There is no way St. Louis can remain competitive by offering him an extremely large contract. I still believe signing Holliday will ultimately a bad move after the first two years of the contract. I'll take five five million dollar players over one 25 million dollar player any day.

-- Posted by drawmules on Wed, May 5, 2010, at 11:24 AM
I disagree with that. I think St. Louis should sign Pujols by all means necessary. You keep him first and foremost and then you build around that, even if it means you have a bunch of rookies in the lineup with him. That has proven to be a successful formula since they've had him. I think no matter what, you have to sign Pujols. If you don't then you better trade him and get players the caliber of Tim Lincecum, A-Rod, Jeter, Ichiro, etc. But unfortunately, St. Louis will continue to jack up those ticket prices after this momumental signing.

-- Posted by semohoops on Wed, May 5, 2010, at 12:19 PM
The Cardinals pretty much knew what they were going to have to pay for pujols when they signed Matt Holliday to his deal. Believe me draw mules, they are prepared to ante up. Pujols IS the Cardinals. He brings in the bucks. It will happen. And how!

-- Posted by Dexter Native on Wed, May 5, 2010, at 3:34 PM
"Be advised. Every time someone casually compares Albert Pujols and Ryan Howard a kitten dies, and angel loses its wings and I lose 14 minutes of life."

Could someone explain this to me. I've been thinking about it all day and I don't get it. I didn't want to ask because I was afraid Mrs. Crader would get mad at me. But Mrs. Crader I'm so curious what this means. I really want to get your joke. But I don't get it. I'm really sorry.

-- Posted by drawmules on Wed, May 5, 2010, at 10:55 PM
An out is not an out. A strike out gets you exactly NOTHING. Putting the ball in play has a chance of doing something productive. Sac fly anyone? Sac bunt? Both are outs, but they are productive outs. I realize Pujols isn't going to be bunting anytime soon, but point is still there.

There is not a single player in the game RIGHT NOW that can compare to Albert Pujols. Many will say there isn't one in the history of the game that compares. He IS that good!

-- Posted by redhawkstudent on Wed, May 5, 2010, at 11:32 PM
Even Babe Ruth and Hank Arron Struck out more than any other player in their playing days. Pujols is the best player because not only is he a great hitter but a smart base runner and a great first baseman. The Cardinals lead the league last year and the year before in the most double plays, Pujols plays a big part in that.

Im not saying Ryan Howard is not a great player he is a great power hitter.Next year when Pujols is the highest paid player in MLB wherever he may be,the comparison between the two will be forgotten.

-- Posted by mogearjammer on Thu, May 6, 2010, at 7:30 AM
Albert Pujols is one of the best hitters of all time. But he will never be a top 10 player of all time because of his lack of speed. Best right handed hitter I've ever seen. Definitely not the best player.

-- Posted by Pwilcox on Thu, May 6, 2010, at 3:14 PM
Barry Bonds is probably the best hitter of the last 30 years. He had the complete package and could do it all at the plate and in the field. His numbers are so far off the charts it is like a video game. As a hitter though, I wouldn't rank Pujols too far behind. As an all-around player, he's not quite legendary in those areas. His hitting is what makes him great.

-- Posted by semohoops on Thu, May 6, 2010, at 3:39 PM
Hasnt he won a gold glove? I know he is deserving but I am not certain if he has won one or not...

-- Posted by baseballfan2010 on Fri, May 7, 2010, at 7:34 AM
Rachel,

I'm with you. I found it odd that they were comparing Howard to Pujols. I find myself rooting for Howard because he is from St. Louis, but there is really no comparison.

Albert is the only player in history to start off his career with 5 straight years of 30 homers, 330 avg and 100 rbi's, and he is well on his way to doing it for the 10th straight time. Oh yeah, he's also scored 100 runs in each of those years.

Barry Bonds? please....

Speed is not that important unless you play in the outfield. Pujols is a smart, aggressive base runner and that makes up for a lot of speed.(See above for runs scored.)

just sayin...

-- Posted by B_O_B on Fri, May 7, 2010, at 7:36 AM
I know Barry Bonds is not very well liked around this area. I'm not a fan of his either, but you can't be serious if you are saying he isn't the best hitter that we have seen in the last 30 years. You are letting your passion cloud your judgment.

-- Posted by semohoops on Fri, May 7, 2010, at 8:11 AM
Explain how Barry Bonds was a better hitter than Pujols is even if he did it all steroid free.

-- Posted by baseballfan2010 on Fri, May 7, 2010, at 5:26 PM
I don't have to explain anything. Statistics will give you all the explanation you need. Just look at these ridiculous video game stats. And he did a lot of this despite getting walked at a record-setting pace. The guy was unreal. Either you are too young to remember him in his prime or you are letting personal bias get in the way.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/bondsba01.shtml

-- Posted by semohoops on Fri, May 7, 2010, at 7:44 PM
First of all, I don't think there is any doubt that Pujols IS the best player in the game today. In the last 30 years, I would still put him above any hitter. Although I have probably not been watching baseball near as long as most of you, I still don't understand how you could say Pujols isn't the greatest hitter of his generation and the last 30 years for sure. I think the stats speak for themselves, but putting the stats aside, look at the impact he has on the game. Or even, if it was possible to set up this kind of poll, ask Major League pitchers who they would rather pitch to, Pujols or Bonds. Bonds was a stud no doubt. I still think Pujols affects the game in so many ways that it's just not hardly possible to reasonably compare him to any player in the modern era of baseball.

With that being said, I would even put Ken Griffey Jr. ahead of Barry Bonds as a player, as a hitter, and as a baserunner. Ken Griffey Jr., in my opinion, revolutionized the game and, in a way, prepared us for the way the game would become- with 5 tool athletes taking over every aspect of the game. I would put Ken Griffey Junior above Barry Bonds and Pujols above everyone.

-- Posted by sportsaholic on Fri, May 7, 2010, at 9:47 PM
Both of these guys will be overpaid by the time it is all said and done. . . For example, here are the stats of a 1B that had a superior early career compared to Ryan Howard and one that is at least pretty close to Pujols's success . . . and remember how the end of his career was?

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/thomafr04.shtml

-- Posted by redhawk04 on Fri, May 7, 2010, at 10:29 PM
I don't really think a DH can compare to Pujols, even if Frank Thomas did play first for some time in his career. Pujols, in my opinion, is far beyond The Big Hurt. However, I do agree that you can compare Thomas to Barry Bonds. I think they are very similar players, but I didn't see either one play in their prime so my opinion is just my opinion.

-- Posted by sportsaholic on Sat, May 8, 2010, at 11:10 AM

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