Albert Pujols: Reviewing the Possible Destinations for the St.louis Slugger

Pujols-mania is just about ready to launch. Speculation and rumors will fly at the speed of light, throwing out the ideas of Albert Pujols going to this and that team.

When all is said and done, Pujols will most likely be able to hammer out a deal with the (world champion) St. Louis Cardinals, and return to his first base duties in the Gateway to the West.

But even despite that probability, no one will yet check off the possibility of him leaving. And so come this Sunday, the sweepstakes for the best player of his era will officially begin.

Coming off of a World Series Championship where Pujols secured his second ring with St. Louis, it would seem a lock for him to return. But with Tony La Russa going out in style and two rings under his belt with the Cardinals, is there anything more for him to do St. Louis?

Albert Pujols is one of the best players to ever set foot on a baseball field. There's no denying that. Most of us also know by now that he is one of the more classy players in the league. But when comes time to get his due, which is right around the bend, will he leave the Golden Arches for brighter lights?

Even if he were to leave, Pujols is still considered somewhat of a godly figure in St. Louis, where he has played his entire career. The city has embraced him, as they do to all their stars, and in return he has become the biggest asset that any franchise could hope for.

So if he leaves, they will still love him, but Pujols most realize that he will never be so much a part of a city as he is now in St. Louis. It seems to be the perfect place for him.

But the factor of money at some point has to be considered. Pujols declined a deal worth $200 million over nine years before the season started, and wanted to wait after the season had concluded to restart negotiations.

There has long been speculation that Pujols will want to be paid close to $30 million per season, or at least in the neighborhood of $300 million over the next decade.

When looking at value of players paid more than him, it seems logical (Alex Rodriguez). But St. Louis will not pay $30 million every year, nor should they have to. This isn't New York, Boston or Philadelphia.

But with those sorts of markets out of play, is there even a remote possibility of him getting the $300 million figure? In my mind, absolutely not.

If there was any one person in baseball that deserved that sort of money, it would be him. But in the end, no one player should be dished out that much dough.

Which brings us back to the simple idea of Pujols ending all the drama quickly and re-signing with St. Louis. But the theory is much easier said than done, especially with extra money possibly still on the table if Pujols leaves.

With some large-market teams such as the Yankees (Mark Teixeira), Phillies (Ryan Howard) and Red Sox (Adrian Gonzalez) already having All-Star-caliber first basemen, Pujols' chances of a big payday are slightly dwindled.

But it still leaves four major markets (Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles and Washington D.C.) for Pujols to explore. The likelihood of the Rangers (Dallas-Fort Worth) bringing in Pujols is a slim-to-no chance.

The LA clubs pose a much bigger threat to the Cardinals. There's no telling the overall financial position of the Dodgers, so I would probably rule them out of the running, but the Angels are at least worth throwing into the conversation.

The Angels may take a stab at Pujols, with the money they were going to spend on Carl Crawford last year paying for part of Pujols' potential contract.

The Angels wouldn't have dreamed a year ago of having first base problems, but there's much uncertainty about the health of Kendry Morales.

But the bottom line with the Angels may still not have enough green to dish out to "The Machine." The fourth-largest payroll in the game may lead them to make solid improvements at third base (such as Aramis Ramirez), rather than make a huge splash with Pujols.

So that leaves two alternatives to the Cardinals. One is the Washington Nationals, who have been known for giving big bucks over the past couple of years (example: Jayson Werth). But how much more can they throw out?

Adam LaRoche has been a solid contributor for them at Pujols' position, but let's face it—no one is Pujols. The Nats have a lot on the books for years to come, so if they do for a big name, I see them setting their sights on Prince Fielder.

Fielder is cheaper, younger and plus, the Nats tend to go after Scott Boras' clients. So with that option out of the way, it leaves one more possible destination out of St. Louis.

And it just so happens to be the rival Cubs, a team building fresh that could possibly bring in a big name depending on what they end up doing with Carlos Zambrano's and Alfonso Soriano's contracts.

With Carlos Pena going to free agency, it would open up the position for Pujols. But if the money's not of a vast difference from St. Louis' offer, then there's no point for Pujols to leave.

There's no exact number to give, but somewhere in the vicinity of an extra two years or $30-40 million would probably be needed by the Cubs to pull this off. But who knows, Theo Epstein has a tendency to strike for a big name.

With that being said, the Cardinals have the inside track, and even with keeping Chicago in the back of your mind, don't be expecting Pujols to go anywhere.

He will give a bit of a discount, but he'll still get over $200 million from the Cards. It is just business, but I believe Pujols, as long as it is not a drastic difference, will put aside a fair amount of money and stay in St. Louis.