José Alberto Pujols Alcántara (Spanish pronunciation: [puˈxols]; born January 16, 1980) is a Dominican–American professional baseball first baseman and designated hitter for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "The Machine", he played his first 11 seasons in MLB for the Cardinals, then played with the Los Angeles Angels for more than nine seasons before joining the Los Angeles Dodgers for half a season. With St. Louis, Pujols was a three-time National League (NL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) (2005, 2008, 2009) and nine-time All-Star (2001, 2003–2010). After joining the Angels in 2012, he made one All-Star appearance, in 2015. After returning to the St Louis Cardinals in 2022 he was chosen by the MLB Commissioner to be an all-star.
