Albert Pujols

Is Albert Pujols the victim or the villain?

The noon deadline came and passed without a deal.

For now, it seems as though Albert Pujols will become a free agent at the end of the 2011 season.

The St. Louis Cardinals exercised their $16 million option on Pujols earlier this offseason. He's entering the final season of the seven-year, $100 million contract he signed in 2004.

Albert Pujols, The Most Popular Player In the History of the Cardinals?

Albert Pujols is the most popular player the recent history of the Cardinals.

But that certainly might change down the road if he chooses to leave St. Louis.

That has us thinking about the most popular players in the history of each MLB franchise.

Dream with me for a moment, folks.

With the additions of Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez, the Boston Red Sox need another right-handed bat in their lineup.

At the ripe old age of 32 (in 2012) the most deserving, soon to be highest paid player ever in the game of professional baseball, Albert Pujols will fill that hole nicely.

Sports betting experts know that money makes the world go ‘round, and while player salaries do not enter into the college basketball betting picture, they are a big deal in MLB.

As the NHL trade deadline approaches and MLB spring training opens, the contracts of some key players are making sports headlines.

Albert Pujols' contract negotiations with the St. Louis Cardinals have recently been put on hold until this offseason.  Pujols and the Cardinals had all offseason to work out a new contract and Pujols set a deadline for today and they have failed to reach an agreement on a contract extension. 

Albert Pujols and the St. Louis Cardinals were unable to reach a new contract agreement as the deadline passed with no new deal, making it likely the three-time MVP will test the market after the season. Is it possible the Chicago Cubs are licking their chops and preparing for Pujols?

Word out of St. Louis today is that the Cardinals and Albert Pujols have ended talks on a contract extension.

This means that the slugger will become a free agent following the upcoming MLB season.

Teams should be chomping at the bit to potentially lure one of the best players in the game to their city.  Expect some huge deals to be throw nhis way following 2011.

But where will Pujols land? Which teams can we see him playing for? Check inside to find out.

Albert Pujols is being offered an eight-year deal worth over $200 million, according to a report from Sports Illustrated. The three-time MVP has given the Cardinals a deadline lasting until Wednesday, to offer him a contract that he would sign, if it matched what he is looking for.

The current proposed contract would average out to over $25 million a season, almost identical to the deal Alex Rodriguez currently has with the New York Yankees.

Before anybody gets excited here, this is just a hypothetical situation. 

It's a situation created in order to prove a point, and to create an awareness of the value of top prospects.

But are they really worth the insanely high price tag placed upon them?

That's what I hope to accomplish with this article. 

By the time you are done reading this, I want you to question the train of thought of general managers around the game when they deem a minor league kid untouchable.