Whose 600 is greater, Albert Pujols' or Cristiano Ronaldo's? | John Smallwood
Albert Pujols hit his 600th career home run on the same day Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 600th goal, which begs comparison.
ON SATURDAY, two of the all-time great players in different sports reached the mythical number of 600 in an individual statistical achievement.
In Anaheim, Calif., Los Angeles Angels slugger Albert Pujols hit a grand slam off Minnesota Twins pitcher Ervin Santana to become just the ninth player in baseball history to reach 600 career home runs.
Nearly half a world away in Cardiff, Wales, Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice against Juventus in the UEFA Champions League final to total 600 goals for club and country.
Baseball and soccer are about as different as two sports can get, and comparing the greatness of the two feats would be comparing apples and oranges.
Although played within the framework of a team game, hitting a baseball is an individual competition between a batter and a pitcher.
Hitters have less than a half-second to decide to swing and hit the ball safely. Doing so 30 percent of one's at-bats is considered a high rate of success.
To score in soccer, a player must succeed against 10 opposing field players trying to stop him and then beat a goalkeeper.
Most would consider a match in which the teams score a combined three goals as high scoring.
The truth is that hitting a home run and scoring a goal are both objectives that result in far more failure than success. But is one more difficult?
That debate will likely hinge on the respect a person has for each sport.
The best we can do with Ronaldo and Pujols is look at how they compare to other greats in their game.
At 37, Pujols is fourth youngest to reach 600; only Alex Rodriguez, Babe Ruth and Henry Aaron got there at a younger age.
When you consider that more than 18,600 men have played big-league baseball, being in a club of nine is quite an achievement.
Ruth and Aaron each retired as the all-time home-run king. They and current home-run king Barry Bonds are the only players with 700 career home runs.
Pujols has averaged just around 30 home runs the last five seasons and is on pace to be around that number again in 2017. If he can maintain that average, he'll become the fourth member of the 700 club sometime during the 2020 season when he is 40.
Pujols is 27th on the career list of home runs per plate appearance with one every 15.57 plate appearances.
The age factor will make 700, difficult but it is doable.
"I don't play here for numbers," said Pujols, who won two World Series with the St. Louis Cardinals. "At the end of my career, numbers are numbers. I think I'm going to have plenty of time, but my main goal is to try to win a championship here.
"I'm aware of history, don't get me wrong. I respect it, but this game is hard enough. If you bring stuff from outside or start thinking about guys you have to chase, you make it even tougher. I block it out. I know that if I stay healthy I'm going to pass some guys."
Ronaldo, 32, was not as humble about his goal-scoring prowess.
"I was very good," Ronaldo said after helping Real to a second straight Champions League title. "I scored two goals, am top scorer in the Champions League again.
"The people who always criticize Cristiano are going to have to put their guitar back in the case. The numbers don't lie."
The numbers are astounding.
Starting in the 2002-03 season with Sporting Clube de Portugal in the Primeira Liga, Ronaldo, 32, has scored 529 all-competition goals for three clubs in the highest level of professional soccer in their countries.
With three goals in 25 games for Sporting Clube, 84 goals in 196 games for Manchester United in England's Premier League, and 285 goals in 265 matches for Real Madrid of La Liga in Spain, Ronaldo is the all-time leading scorer among the top five European leagues.
The Champions League, which is contested among the top-division clubs from the 54 members of UEFA, is the toughest club competition in the world.
With the two goals against Juventus, Ronaldo increased his Champions League-record total to 105.
Also, Ronaldo has scored 71 international goals in 138 matches for Portugal, starting when he was 18 in 2003.
Ronaldo scored three goals with three assists during the Euro 2016 as Portugal won its first major international championship. He has the most goals in UEFA European Championships with 29 in four tournaments.
Over the last seven seasons, Ronaldo has averaged 53.2 goals for Real Madrid.
The Guinness Book of World Records lists Brazil star Pele with having scored the most goals ever with 1,281, but it is noted that 514 goals came in unofficial friendlies or tour games.
He is most widely recognized with 767 goals, placing him third behind Josef Bican (805) and Romario (772).
Between club and country, Ronaldo would tie Bican if he averaged 41 goals over the next five seasons. Barring a catastrophic occurrence and factoring in a typical decline of production, Bican's number seems within reach.
It's up to each individual to decide which 600 mark is greater - personally, I go with Ronaldo - but we can agree that it was remarkable to have them achieved on the same day.
@SmallTerp