St. Louis Cardinals designated hitter Albert Pujols Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

Players questioning if Cardinals star Albert Pujols will retire after 2022 MLB season?

Largely out of nowhere, St. Louis Cardinals slugger and future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols has become one of the true feel-good stories of the 2022 MLB season. 

As Jesse Rogers noted for an ESPN piece published Friday morning, 10 of the 14 home runs Pujols has on the season heading into the weekend's action have been belted since the beginning of July. The ageless 42-year-old is tied for the MLB lead in homers and leads the entire league in batting average, OBP, slugging and OPS for the month among players with at least 40 plate appearances. 

Pujols' 693 career home runs have him three away from tying Alex Rodriguez, seven away from 700, and 21 away from matching the iconic Babe Ruth and, at worst, holding a tie for third on the all-time MLB list. 

Despite his hot streak, Pujols told Bob Nightengale of USA Today this past weekend he's sticking to his plan of retiring whenever the Cardinals play their final game of the campaign. 

"I’m still going to retire, no matter whether I end up hitting 693, 696, 700, whatever," Pujols said at that time. "I don’t get caught up in numbers. If you were going to tell me 22 years ago that I would be this close, I would have told you that you’re freakin’ crazy. My career has been amazing." 

Not everyone is so sure. 

"I don't know if he really wants to be done after this year," Cardinals infielder Paul DeJong said, per Rogers' piece. "He's playing amazing. If he goes out like this, he's going to go out on top. I think he can pass Babe Ruth, but we'll see what happens."

Perhaps unintentionally, Chicago Cubs pitcher Drew Smyly made an argument for why Pujols should reconsider. 

"He's covering curveballs down and fastballs up," Smyly said of Pujols' current run of form. "At least against lefties, you can feel him trying to hit the ball in front of the plate instead of seeing it deep, like most hitters. You hear that a lot in baseball, 'see it deep.' It's kind of opposite of what most hitters do. He's trying to hit the ball in front of the plate; it looks like he wants to pull everything. Usually, if you're doing that you have to cheat on a fastball or curveball. He's hitting both right now."

It's easy for Pujols to declare today he would be fine with riding off into the sunset with, say, 699 career round-trippers. One wonders, though, if individuals such as DeJong could convince him to return next spring to chase 715, one of the most hallowed marks in baseball history. 

More must-reads:

TODAY'S BEST
Why the Wizards made the right hiring with HC Brian Keefe
Oilers rally from early deficit to beat Stars, tie WCF
Another masterpiece by Paul Skenes caps remarkable calendar year for rookie phenom
Bengals HC Zac Taylor addresses holdouts from pair of star receivers
Scott Boras makes telling comments on future of Yankees' Juan Soto
Star Arizona guard makes huge decision on NBA Draft status
Iga Swiatek, Naomi Osaka have opposite reactions to crowd following epic French Open match
Kyrie Irving praises Karl-Anthony Towns for overcoming 'unfair criticism' in Game 4
Watch: Minnesota wins inaugural PWHL Walter Cup
Mets outfielder reveals details of team meeting following latest lopsided loss
Mavericks provide notable status update on star rookie ahead of Game 5
Watch: Benches clear after Giants buzz Bryce Harper
Wizards make decision on their new head coach
Veteran sportscaster gives valuable insight into Caitlin Clark's WNBA debut
Patriots QB Jacoby Brissett addresses 'elephant in the room'
AEW owner stays quiet on potential interest in top WWE star
Donovan Mitchell's influence on Cavaliers listed among 'most powerful' in the NBA
Clippers 'determined' to keep these two star free agents
AEW sustains another major injury blow after Double or Nothing
Celtics HC Joe Mazzulla offers update on Kristaps Porzingis ahead of NBA Finals

Want more sports news?

Join the hundreds of thousands of fans who start their day with Yardbarker's Morning Bark, the best newsletter in sports.