The St. Louis Cardinals have been one of the most dominant teams in baseball over the course of their history.
To date, the team has won 11 World Series Championships, second only behind the New York Yankees. The Cardinals have also had some elite talent in their history. In the latest sports history book, ‘Got Your Legends,’ Mike Greenberg and Paul Hembekides broke down the franchise’s biggest icons.
The Cardinals’ Mt. Rushmore has the following players:
- Stan Musial
- Bob Gibson
- Ozzie Smith
- Albert Pujols
Albert Pujols is the only player listed from the team’s modern years, getting the nod over Yadier Molina.
“The eleven seasons Albert Pujols spent in St. Louis to begin his career were among the most productive offensive stretches by any player in history,” wrote Greenberg. “Pujols finished in the top five of MVP voting in ten of those years, winning the award three times, and hit 445 home runs as a Cardinal, leading St. Louis to two World Series Championships.”
Hembekides confirmed the decision to pick him over Molina was an easy one.
“Albert Pujols is a demonstrably greater player than Yadier Molina,” Hembekides said. “This guy [Pujols] had a 1.000 OPS in the National League, he’s one of five players in history to do that … Albert Pujols might be the greatest living ball player, and the primary reason why he is remembered as such is because he’s a Mt. Rushmore Cardinal by any standard of measure.”
For more on the Cardinals all-time greats along with the other 123 teams in the top four sports leagues in the United States, be sure to get your copy of “Got Your Legends“. The book officially releases on Tuesday.
