Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols becomes fourth MLB player to hit 700 career home runs

In what may be a fitting capstone to a Hall of Fame career, Albert Pujols on Friday connected for his 700th home run as a major leaguer, a feat accomplished by only three other sluggers in baseball history.

The milestone homer – Pujols' second of the night – came in the fourth inning off Dodgers right-hander Phil Bickford, the latest of a record 455 different pitchers who've given up at least one round-tripper to Pujols over his 22 MLB seasons.

Pujols joins Barry Bonds (762), Henry Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714) in the 700-HR club, just 12 days after passing Alex Rodriguez (696) for fourth-place on the all-time home run list.

The historic homer comes at the tail end of a late-career renaissance for Pujols, who returned to the St. Louis Cardinals this season at age 42 – after leaving as a free agent a decade earlier.

It was in St. Louis where Pujols originally rose from a little-known 13th-round draft pick to superstardom that included three National League MVP awards and a pair of World Series titles in his first 11 seasons.

After signing a 10-year, $254 million free agent contract with the Los Angeles Angels, Pujols hit 222 home runs over the next 10 seasons -- plus 12 more in late 2021 after he was released by the Angels and signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers.

But back in the familiar confines of Busch Stadium and in a Cardinal uniform, Pujols has seemingly found the fountain of youth this year, posting his highest slugging percentage and OPS since his first season with the Angels in 2012.

Pujols homered earlier in Friday's game off Dodgers starter Andrew Heaney. The home runs give Pujols 21 of the season.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Albert Pujols hits 700th career home run: Fourth man to join the club