SEATTLE (AP) — Albert Pujols has become the 32nd player in major league history to reach 3,000 hits, getting a broken-bat single to right field off Seattle’s Mike Leake in the fifth inning to join the exclusive club.
Pujols dumped the single into shallow right field on his sixth attempt to reach the mark after getting to 2,999. He received a standing ovation from the crowd in Seattle and was given the baseball as a memento. His teammates all greeted Pujols on the field before action resume.
Pujols nearly got the mark in the first inning, but his hard liner was right at shortstop Jean Segura. Pujols walked on a 3-2 pitch leading off the fourth inning after fouling off four two-strike pitches.
The 38-year-old Pujols joined Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Alex Rodriguez as the fourth player in baseball history with 3,000 hits and 600 homers. He’s the first player to reach the mark since Adrian Beltre last year against Baltimore.
