Yadier Molina gets Cardinals fans excited about Albert Pujols reunion

The Cardinals of St. Louis signed Albert Pujols, Hall of Famer and team legend, to a short-term deal on Sunday night. Yadier Molina was happy to meet him.

The Pujols reunion is far from guaranteed as it was just a few weeks ago, with both sides at an impasse. However, the Cardinals legend has always been tempted to play well into the season at the age of 42 and return to the club he is most famous for.

Having just signed a one-year contract with the Cardinals, Pujols is expected to enter spring training as early as Friday. One of his best friends and now current teammate, Yadier Molina, said Pujols was happy to start.

“He is very happy to be back. We have one thing in mind – win another World Series championship,” said Molina, John Denton of MLB.com.

Cardinals: Yadier Molina excited about Albert Pujols . reunion

Pujols are not expected to have a full-time role right away, as the Cardinals will likely split their time at designated hitters.

“I talked to him… I was hoping for this, and now we go. Anytime you have a player like Albert, with what he brings to the club, it’s fantastic. Over the phone, he told me. He’s very happy to be here and I’m glad that everything went well,” continued Molina, via Denton.

St. Louis has a lot of young players that they want to have time at DH, such as Lars Nootbaar and Juan Yepez. Pujols, however, gives him a big personality and raises expectations. During his limited time with the Dodgers last year, he looked as if he’d reinvented his approach, coming to life when Los Angeles needed him most.

If the Cardinals get that version of the Pujols, maybe he could be a real contributor on a playoff team. 700 home runs may well be right around the corner.