In finally winning the National League’s Most Valuable Player Award, it may appear that Albert Pujols has reached the pinnacle. After a Rookie of the Year trophy, numerous other citations and a slew of close-but-not-quite MVP candidacies, finally he has been recognized as the man in the Senior Circuit.
To Pujols, it’s just one more stepping stone to the one achievement he wants more than any other: to be a World Series champion.

“Now I can say I have an MVP in my house, in my trophy case,” Pujols said Tuesday, after he was honored by the Baseball Writers Association of America. “I’m going to celebrate tonight. It’s an honor. But I still need to get that ring. That’s my next dream.”

Choose your definition of valuable, and Pujols lived up to it in 2005. He was a dominant offensive force, ranking among the NL leaders in virtually every hitting category. He complemented his bat with solid and improving defense and success on the base paths. He came up with big hits at big times. He was the one constant threat in a Cardinals lineup ravaged by injuries. He was the best player on the best team in the league.

And so Pujols now has the one individual award that eluded him for his first four big league seasons. He had finished fourth or better in the balloting in each of his first four seasons, placing second twice. Barry Bonds won each of the previous four MVPs in the NL.

Pujols received 18 of the 32 first-place votes and 14 second-place votes for 378 points. Atlanta’s Andruw Jones picked up 13 first-place votes, 17 seconds and two thirds for 351 points, while Derrek Lee finished third with one first-place vote, one second and 30 thirds for 263 points.

“Those guys had a great year,” Pujols said. “Any of those guys could have won the award. I want to congratulate those guys for the great year that they had, and I want to thank the writers, who picked me [for] the 2005 MVP.

“You couldn’t go wrong with any of those guys. They’re great athletes. They try and do the best they can to help their team out to win. Andruw had an outstanding year … and I look at it the last four years I finished in the top five in the voting, and this was my year. It’s exciting. It’s a great honor.”

The top three were the only players to be named on every ballot. The 27-point margin between first and second was the closest NL MVP vote since 1991, when Terry Pendleton edged Bonds by 15 points.

Houston’s Morgan Ensberg was fourth with 160 points, followed by Miguel Cabrera of the Marlins with 146. Carlos Delgado, Pat Burrell, Chris Carpenter, Brian Giles and Jimmy Rollins rounded out the top 10 finishers. Pujols, Jones and Lee were ranked 1-2-3 in some order on every ballot. A total of 32 players were named on at least one ballot.

Jones led the Majors with 51 home runs while playing for an Atlanta team that, like the Cardinals, was hit hard by injuries. Lee won the batting title and finished ahead of Pujols in batting average, slugging percentage, home runs and doubles, but toiled for a losing club.

The most complete package in voters’ eyes, then, was Pujols. He led the league in runs scored with 129, finished second in batting average (.330), RBIs (117), slugging (.609), on-base percentage (.430) and total bases (360). Pujols also ranked among the leaders in hits (195, fourth), home runs (41, third), walks (sixth) and extra-base hits (third).

“Going down to Spring Training, you don’t think about winning MVP,” Pujols said. “All you think about is, ‘What can you do to get yourself ready in Spring Training and be ready for Opening Day?’ That was my goal. My goal was to make sure I was ready to go for the 2005 season and hopefully help my team out to go back to the World Series. We fell short this year, but we had a great year. My goal is to try to help my team out to win and hopefully get that ring. That’s my goal.”

Pujols continued to emerge as a leader on the Cardinals. He maintained the excellent durability that has marked all five seasons of his career, and played improved defense at first base. His career-high 16 stolen bases filled out the picture of a player who is becoming more complete every year.

“Albert’s award was well-deserved because he was the most valuable player to our team across the board, as soon as he showed up to the ballpark until he left,” manager Tony La Russa said in a statement released by the team. “His value went beyond statistics, as he was active in mentoring younger players, and always available to discuss the game of baseball.”

Despite dealing with the lingering effects of plantar fasciitis, Pujols played 161 games for a team that badly needed his bat in the lineup. For a significant portion of the second half, St. Louis had to make do without four of its eight Opening Day starters. Yet Pujols churned on, putting up just the kind of numbers that have come to be expected from him.

He revealed during a conference call about the award that he has undergone additional treatment for the condition since the season ended.

“I tried to hide it,” Pujols said of his plantar fasciitis, “but I couldn’t. It was bad almost since the season started. That treatment that we did last offseason helped me out a lot, but I played a lot of games in Spring Training, and I work real hard in the offseason and in Spring Training to prepare myself for the season.

“But at the same time, I did it in 2004. I played with the injury. I didn’t think about it. And the same thing this year. I wasn’t going to think about it. when the game started, I would just leave it in the past.”

Pujols is the second Cardinal to win a BBWAA award this fall, joining NL Cy Young winner Chris Carpenter. The Cardinals are the first National League team since the 1991 Braves to have both the NL MVP and Cy Young winners. The last Cardinal to garner the MVP was Willie McGee in 1985.

At 25 years and just under 10 months, Pujols is the youngest NL MVP since Ryne Sandberg in 1984. He is the 13th Cardinal to be named MVP since the BBWAA began handing out the award in 1931, joining a list that includes Hall of Famers Bob Gibson, Orlando Cepeda and Stan Musial, among others.

“This is a great moment,” Pujols said. “Fans and my family and friends were waiting. I’m still going to hear a lot of phone calls from friends. I still need to call some friends down in the Dominican who are just as proud as the city of St. Louis. There are some people in the Dominican that are pretty excited that I received this award.”

The Rams’ biggest player nearly became the next big thing in Texas during the offseason.

After a few years of contract stalemates with the Rams that forced him to be franchised three times, left tackle Orlando Pace appeared to be on the verge of finally taking the next step out of town.

Even after being franchised in the previous years, Pace had never taken a free agent visit to another team, something he was allowed to do under the franchise designation. But the Texans’ desperate need for a star on the offensive line changed all of that.

Things progressed to the point that Pace nearly became a Texan.

“They were ready to get the deal done,” Pace said.

But the franchise rule makes it extremely difficult for the tagged player to move on. First, Houston would have had to sign Pace to an agreeable long-term offer sheet. Then, to convince the Rams not to match the offer sheet, Houston could have offered a suitable trade or agreed to forfeit two first-round picks.

Ultimately, it was going to be difficult to get any of that done since the Rams had no real desire to let Pace leave.

“Looking back on it, for a franchise player to actually move and go somewhere else and go to another team, it’s a lot that has to take place,” Pace said. “The visit was just a preliminary thing. There were a lot of negotiations left to be done, and it would have been tough to go to another team.”

Of course, it’s never easy to let a player of Pace’s caliber go, even if you get decent compensation. Pace has been to six Pro Bowls and is widely regarded as one of the best left tackles in the game.

“He’s got size, he’s got tenacity,” interim coach Joe Vitt said. “But when you combine the size and the tenacity with his athleticism, it makes him a rare breed. With his size, playing the left tackle position, the blind side of the quarterback, our quarterbacks feel very, very secure when they’re taking a five to seven step drop, or even a play-action, that they’re not going to get hit in the back of the head. Most times now in the National Football League on offense, if you get a dominant left tackle, they may be the second highest paid guy on your football team. [It’s a] Critical position.”

At the least, the flirtation with the Texans expedited the long, drawn out process that Pace’s contract negotiations had become. Pace signed with new agents and was eventually signed to a contract that could help him end his career a Ram.

“I’ve been in this organization, and I’m glad we’ve finally worked things out,” Pace said. “Hopefully I’ll be able to finish my career here in St. Louis. This is a situation where as a player you are looking for security. St. Louis provided that for me, and I’m happy to be here.”

This trip to Houston will be much different for Pace as the Texans will do anything but wine and dine him this time around. Pace missed practice Thursday and Friday because of a left hamstring injury, leaving his status for this weekend in doubt.

Pace hedged some when asked about whether he would play, at one point saying he would, then offer the wait and see approach.

“I think I’ll be able to go,” Pace said. “I’m heading to get some treatment right now. We’ll test it out, see how it feels and go from there.”

Pace injured his hamstring in practice Wednesday when his foot was stepped on and he pulled back, straining the hamstring.

“I probably could have practiced,” Pace said. “It’s more precautionary. We’ll see what happens and tomorrow see how it feels pushing off it.”

If Pace can’t play, right tackle Alex Barron will slide to the left side with Rex Tucker handling right tackle duties. In addition, the Rams released receiver Dominique Thompson and brought tackle Matt Morgan up from the practice squad. Morgan would give the Rams some depth in case Pace can’t go.

LITTLE PRODUCTION: With Leonard Little’s return to the Rams a few weeks ago came the return of the man widely considered the Rams’ best defensive player and play maker.

But the guy everyone remembered for his ability to hunt down quarterbacks and come up with important sacks has been nowhere to be found since his return.

Sunday’s game against the Texans would seem to be a prime opportunity for Little to get back on track after he failed to pick up a sack in either of the past two games.

Houston is last in the league in sacks allowed, giving up 47, an opportunity that should have Little excited. Interim coach Joe Vitt said there are some ways to get Little free and the Rams might take some steps this week to get Little going again.

“He is a difference maker,” Vitt said. “We have thought about moving him around a little bit and this week maybe tightening up his stance a little bit more and go more bull rushes, instead of just trying to get up the field. There’s a couple of different things we can do with him.”

For his part, Little isn’t concerned about any of that stuff; he blames his lack of production on himself.

“I just haven’t been playing well like I should,” Little said. “They can free me up, they can do whatever they have got to do, but I haven’t played with the intensity like I have in the past. That’s all up to me. It’s not up to the coaches to try to move me around to try to beat people. I should beat people on my own. They can say whatever they want to say, but I need to go out there and play my game.”

One thing that hasn’t helped Little is a lingering ankle injury that has him listed as probable for Sunday’s game against the Texans. Little said he should be fine and will play at Houston.

INJURY REPORT: Aside from Pace and Little, running back Marshall Faulk (knee) and left guard Claude Terrell were listed as probable on Friday’s injury report. Faulk and Terrell participated in all of practice.

Safety Oshiomogho Atogwe (toe) is still listed as questionable. There were a few adjustments to the injury report Friday with cornerbacks Travis Fisher (groin) and DeJuan Groce (concussion) officially listed as out for Sunday’s game. They join Adam Archuleta (concussion), Marc Bulger (shoulder) and guard Blaine Saipaia (concussion) as out.

The St. Louis Blues today announced that former defenseman Al MacInnis’ No. 2 jersey will be retired on April 9 during a special in-game ceremony versus the Edmonton Oilers. He officially announced his retirement from a stellar professional playing career on September 9 after spending 23 seasons in the National Hockey League with the St. Louis Blues and Calgary Flames.

“We are extremely pleased to announce that Al MacInnis will be the last Blues player to ever wear No. 2,” said Blues President & CEO Mark Sauer. “The sight of Al’s jersey hanging from the rafters of Savvis Center will serve as permanent testimony to his tremendous career in St. Louis.”

MacInnis will become only the fifth Blues player in franchise history to have his jersey number retired. Other Blues include: Bob Gassoff (No. 3 on Oct. 1, 1977), Barclay Plager (No. 8 on March 9, 1982), Brian Sutter (No. 11 on Dec. 30, 1988) and Hall of Famer Bernie Federko (No. 24 on March 16, 1991).

“I am truly honored that the Blues have elected to retire my number, and I’m flattered to join the list of players who have been recognized before me,” said MacInnis. “I will always consider myself part of the Blues family and will look back on my playing days here with fond memories of my teammates, my coaches, the staff and, last but not least, the fans.”

MacInnis, 42, finishes his career ranking third all-time among NHL defensemen in goals (340), assists (934) and points (1,274), and ranks fifth with 1,416 games played. He also ranks 12th all-time among NHL players in assists, 28th in points and 17th in games played.

“By retiring Al MacInnis’ No. 2 jersey on April 9 we are not only recognizing one of the best defensemen to ever play the game,” said Senior Vice President & General Manager Larry Pleau. “We are providing one last chance for our fans to see Al on the ice and personally thank him for all of the wonderful memories he provided over the years.”

The Port Hood, Nova Scotia native was drafted by Calgary as their first choice, 15th overall, in the 1981 NHL Entry Draft and made his NHL debut with the Flames on December 30, 1981 vs. the Boston Bruins. MacInnis spent 13 seasons with Calgary (1981-94), appearing in two Stanley Cup Finals (1986 and 1989) and capturing the Stanley Cup Championship in 1989 along with the Conn Smythe Trophy as the postseason’s most valuable player. He also appeared in six NHL All-Star Games as a member of the Flames, and was named to the NHL’s First All-Star Team twice (1990 and 1991) along with being named to the Second All-Star Team three times (1987, 1989 and 1994) while in Calgary. MacInnis currently ranks first in Flames’ franchise history with 803 games played and 609 assists, and he ranks second with 822 points.

After spending over a decade with Calgary, the Blues acquired MacInnis on July 4, 1994. He spent 10 seasons in St. Louis, shattering franchise records for defensemen. MacInnis played in 613 games with the Blues, ranking first all-time among Blues defensemen in goals (127), assists (325) and points (452). While in St. Louis, he was selected to appear in seven NHL All-Star Games, was named to the NHL’s First All-Star Team twice (1999 and 2003) and won his first James Norris Memorial Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman in 1999. During his final season in 2003-04 MacInnis played just three games for the Blues after suffering a season-ending eye injury.

MacInnis has also held the blueline for Team Canada on the international stage. He represented his country as a member of the Canada Cup-championship winning team in 1991, and captured a gold medal at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City. The momentous victory broke a 50-year gold-medal drought for Canadian hockey at the Olympics. MacInnis also represented his country at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano, Japan, while advancing to the bronze-medal game and finishing fourth.

MacInnis played three seasons of Junior hockey with the Kitchener Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League and was named to the OHL’s First All-Star Team in 1982 and 1983. He amassed 198 points (74 goals, 124 assists) in 198 games, and tied Bobby Orr’s record for goals in one season by a defenseman with 38 during the 1982-83 season on his way to being named the OHL’s Most Outstanding Defenseman

Saturday’s game marks the second match of back-to-back games for the Blues. St. Louis has recorded a 1-7-1 record in back-to-back games this season, including a 0-3-1 mark in the second contest. St. Louis is coming off a 5-3, loss to the Minnesota Wild yesterday afternoon in Minnesota. The Blues are winless in their previous six games (0-5-1) on home ice and have recorded a 2-8-1 overall record at home this season. The Blues have tallied 14 power play goals in 85 attempts (16.4%) and have killed 58 of 74 (78.3%) penalties at home this season. The Blues have tallied at least one power play goal in each of their last three home matches. Scott Young (3g, 8a) and Petr Cajanek (1g, 10a) lead the team with 11 home points. St. Louis has played in eight one-goal games so far this season, posting a 2-3-3 record.