Albert Pujols homers for career RBI No. 2,000
Like the future Hall of Famer has done so many times through his storied career, the 39-year-old Pujols on Thursday buried Ryan Carpenter's two-seam fastball into the left-field stands, making him the third player to reach 2,000 career RBIs, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, the official statistician of Major League Baseball. His sixth home run of the season gave the Angels a 6-0 lead over the Tigers in the third inning at Comerica Park.
The home run had a projected distance of 415 feet, according to Statcast. It was his 639th, leaving him 21 shy of Willie Mays for fifth all time.
The RBI record book can be bit confusing for a couple of reasons. For starters, RBIs did not become an official statistic until 1920, which means that the Elias Sports Bureau does not consider Babe Ruth and Cap Anson to be members of the 2,000-RBI club, even though you will see them listed as having reached that milestone on certain sites, such as Baseball Reference, which retroactively includes all RBIs accrued prior to 1920. Per Elias, the only players to officially accrue 2,000 RBIs are Aaron, Rodriguez and now Pujols.
Additionally, due to the uncertain nature of record-keeping in the early part of the 20th century, some discrepancies exist between the stats provided today by different historical data providers. For example, some sources list Lou Gehrig as having 1,995 RBIs, while Elias has him at 1,994.
All-time RBI leaders, per the Elias Sports Bureau
1) Hank Aaron: 2,297
2) Alex Rodriguez*: 2,086
3) Albert Pujols: 2,000
4) Barry Bonds*: 1,996
5) Lou Gehrig: 1,994
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A home run for the milestone -- that's style.
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