MLB Rumors: World Series Champion Gets Release From Angels; Baseball Career Hangs

The future of Albert Pujols held no promise, but it appears the end is here.

The two-time World Series Champion has been released from his contract with the Los Angeles Angels, a development that happened way ahead of schedule.

Already 41 years old, the slugger was previously seen to be simply going through the motions of finishing his current deal with the Angels.

However, that was under the premise that he would be getting acceptable playing time. It seems Los Angeles is headed in a different direction, and the ten-time MLB All-Star will not be part of it.

According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Pujols was seeking his release if his playing time would be trimmed down significantly.

The performance of Pujols has been declining the past years, and this MLB season is no exception. He is hitting just .198 and has had only five home runs in 24 games.

But the notable thing here is that his hit has dipped the previous years. He has .245 or worse in every season but one since 2015.

Moreover, he has been averaging career lows this MLB although it was bound to follow given his fading performance.

To recall, there was a cloud of uncertainty shrouding the future of Pujols after this season. Initially, his wife Deidre mentioned that the 2001 NL Rookie of the Year would be retiring at the end of the season.

The Dominican-American player would refute that claim and stressed that he has not yet made up his mind.

But with the recent release from the Angels, the landscape for Pujols may be entirely different now.

As mentioned in a previous post, a plausible route for Pujols is to follow the lead of Manny Ramirez who opted to continue his baseball career in Taiwan.

Ramirez is seven years older than Pujols but feels he can still play ball to a certain extent.

With his game declining, it will be interesting if the two-time Golden Glove winner can still improve his game if he gets a possible stint abroad.