Albert Pujols on Playing Past 2021: 'I Haven't Closed that Door'

Albert Pujols' 10-year contract is set to expire after the 2021 season, but he has not yet decided on when he will retire. 

In a discussion with ESPN's Alden Gonzalez, the 40-year-old Angels veteran said that it is not guaranteed that he will retire once his contract is up in Los Angeles. Pujols added that he is taking the situation "day by day." 

"I don't think about it that way," Pujols told ESPN in Spanish. "It's my last year under contract, but that doesn't mean I can't keep playing. I haven't closed that door. I'm taking it day by day, year by year, but you haven't heard from my mouth that I'm going to retire next year, or that it's going to be my last year, or that I'm going to keep playing. I haven't said any of that. When that time comes, we'll see. Just because you have one year left on your contract doesn't mean it's your last year. It could be, but it could not be. God hasn't put that in my heart yet." 

In his 19-year MLB career, Pujols has totaled 656 home runs and 3,202 hits. He is close to joining Hank Aaron as the only players in league history to record both 700 home runs and 3,500 hits in their careers. 

As MLB play has remained suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, Pujols said he has continued to work out in his basement but has refrained from hitting until a potential start date for the season is set. He also mentioned his worries in regards to COVID-19, citing the unknown of the 2020 season, his home of the Dominican Republic and his oldest of five children, Isabella, who has Down syndrome and is considered to be at a higher risk. 

Despite his concerns, Pujols said he has enjoyed spending the extra time with his family at his home in Irvine, Calif.

"I'm a human being—I want to be at the ballpark, I wanna be doing my thing," Pujols said. "But at the same time, what's most important right now? My relationship with my kids, the health of my kids, and trying to enjoy this time with my kids. I know that in the future, they're going to look back on this time and they're going to appreciate it a lot."

MLB has reportedly mulled a plan to start the 2020 season in late June with realigned divisions.