MLB Free Agents 2011: How Much Is Lack of Contract Affecting Albert Pujols?

Contract years are the most important seasons for professional athletes.

These are the seasons right before a contract is over and the player will enter free agency in the off season.

A good season and the player will earn a substantial raise, a poor season and the player can expect a pay cut.

Some players enjoy the added pressure, while some struggle.

Unfortunately for Albert Pujols, critics have said the latter. 

Although this is hardly time for the Cardinals to panic, as they lead the NL Central, this is an area for concern. 

While many journalists do blame the contract year for the struggles of the Cardinals slugger, there are plenty of explanations. 

Here are the Top four. 

Please comment with your theories on the struggles on Pujols, this is an interesting topic and one I would love to hear more about. 

4. Vision

Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

ST. LOUIS, MO - MAY 8: Albert Pujols #5 of the St. Louis Cardinals hits a double against the Milwaukee Brewers at Busch Stadium on May 8, 2011 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)

Although nothing has been confirmed, some have speculated that Albert Pujols has had a tough time seeing the ball during his afternoon games. 

This season, Pujols has had a .212 BA in the afternoon games and a .313 BA during the night games. 

In fact, since 2009 Pujols has had much better numbers in the night games than the afternoon games. 

Could it be possible that Pujols has poor vision and it is affecting his play?

A full article on the theory article can be viewed here. 

3. Gripping the Bat a Little Too Hard

Harry How/Getty Images

LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 17: Albert Pujols #5 of the St. Louis Cardinals at bat against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on April 17, 2011 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

This is where the contract situation lands on the list. 

If Pujols can keep up his model of consistency he can expect a full tilt bidding war in the off season, a potentially stressful situation for many.

Some insiders claim the Pujols can expect a 10-year $300 million offer in November. 

This can be a reason for Pujols' hitting woes.

Maybe the idea of a dramatic pay increase maybe made Albert put a little too much pressure on himself.

2. He's Human

Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

LOS ANGELES - APRIL 14: Albert Pujols #5 of the St Louis Cardinals hits a home run in the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 14, 2011 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Some people argue that he's just human and he'll snap out of the slump to the point where everyone will forget there even was one. 

Every great athlete in their career has at least one rough patch. 

This is Pujols' version of the rough patch. 

He will come back and be just as good as he always was. 

1. Injury

Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

ST. LOUIS, MO - MAY 31: Albert Pujols #5 of the St. Louis Cardinals fields a one hopper at third base against the San Francisco Giants at Busch Stadium on May 31, 2011 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)

There is one last theory regarding the slump of Albert Pujols. 

On April 24th, Pujols claimed to have "mild tightness" in one of his hamstrings. 

The theory is that the hamstring injury is much worse than predicted, to the point of taking out much of the power out his swing. 

This has led him to not hitting the ball nearly as well as he did pre-injury.