Los Angeles Angels first baseman Albert Pujols moved into sole possession of 13th place on the all-time home runs list during the third inning of Monday's 6-1 win over the Kansas City Royals, hitting career homer No. 564 to surpass Reggie Jackson (563), per MLB Stat of the Day.
With the Angels already holding a 3-0 lead, Pujols slugged a 1-1 offering from Royals pitcher Ian Kennedy over the center field fence to extend the early advantage to 4-0.
Not yet done for the night, the 36-year-old first baseman hit another solo home run off of Kennedy in the fifth inning, this time going to left field to give his Angels a 5-1 lead on the 565th home run of his career.
The run support proved to be more than enough, as Angels ace Garrett Richards struck out five batters and allowed just one unearned run in 6.2 innings to pick up his first win of a tough-luck season.
Richards owns a 2.35 ERA with 30 punchouts in 30.2 innings, but a lack of run support has left him with an unsightly 1-3 record.
It appears the tides may finally be turning for the Angels lineup, as Pujols now has three homers over the last two games after managing just two through the first 18 contests of the season.
The rest of the lineup may not offer much promise, but the Angels should at least be able to count on Pujols as well as outfielders Mike Trout and Kole Calhoun for consistent production going forward.
Trout has also heated up in a big way of late, tallying 10 hits in 21 at-bats over the last six games, with three home runs and five RBI.
Meanwhile, Pujols needs just five more long balls in order to pass Rafael Palmeiro (569) for 12th place on the all-time list.
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