http://tinyurl.com/yuzmqt Pujols' leads in first pitch percentage By Derrick Goold ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH 09/13/2007 Albert Pujols is among the league leaders in percentage of first pitches taken, and at his current rate he will set a new career high. Through Tuesday's game, Pujols had swung at 75 of the 613 first pitches he has been thrown this season. His 12.2 percent ranks second in the National League behind Milwaukee shortstop J.J. Hardy's 9.4 percent. "Am I taking a little bit more this year? Probably. Yeah," said Pujols, who entered Wednesday's game 11 RBIs shy of his seventh consecutive season of 30 homers, a .300 average and 100 RBIs. "It's not on purpose." Pujols took 80.6 percent of first pitches in 2006 and 79.3 percent in 2005, according to Stats.com. His 87.8 percent this summer would be a personal high. In his career, Pujols is a .270 hitter with two strikes — a robust average when down in the count. This season, he has hit .295 with two strikes, and 13 of his 30 home runs have come with a two-strike count. "It could be 100 percent," Pujols said of his first-pitch takes. "I don't have to worry about taking the first pitch because I'm not a strikeout guy. I can give 2½ strikes to the pitcher and I'm still going to take the same swing that I always take." [email protected] | 314-340-8285 --

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