The St. Louis Cardinals will attempt to lock up slugger Albert Pujols long-term during the offseason, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com, via Twitter. Heyman tweets that Cards owner Bill DeWitt informed him that St. Louis will try to sign Pujols to an extension past 2011.
The 29-year-old first baseman has been the best hitter on the planet this decade, batting .334/.427/.629 since being called up to the majors in 2001. In 2009, he has posted a .330/.447/.676 line with 47 homers, and is the favorite to repeat as the NL's Most Valuable Player.
Pujols is making $16MM this season, the sixth year of a seven-year, $100MM deal, which includes a $16MM club option for 2011. Given his incredible production over the course of the deal, he'll undoubtedly be in line for another raise. Cardinals GM John Mozeliak already announced that the team doesn't intend to negotiate with its potential free agents such as Matt Holliday, Mark DeRosa, and Joel Pineiro until season's end. Attempting to retain those players, in addition to inking Pujols to a triple-digit extension, could mean a busy and expensive winter in St. Louis.
