Angels slugger Albert Pujols became the 32nd major-leaguer to collect 3,000 career hits, hitting a soft single off Mike Leake in the fifth inning Friday night at Seattle’s Safeco Field.
Pujols, 38, also joined an exclusive club, becoming only the fourth player to achieve the 3,000-hit plateau while hitting 600 home runs, ESPN reported. He joins Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Alex Rodriguez.
Pujols joins Adrian Beltre as the only Dominican-born players to reach the milestone. He is also the fourth player in four seasons to connect for 3,000 hits; Rodriguez did it in 2015, followed by Ichiro Suzuki in 2016 and Beltre last season, ESPN reported.
With his 3,000th hit, Pujols tied Roberto Clemente for 31st on the all-time list, MLB.com reported. He is seventh on the all-time home run list with 620.
Pujols also joins Rod Carew as the only players to collect their 3,000th hit while playing for the Angels. He will receive a $3 million bonus for hitting the milestone, MLB.com reported.
