Faith, family, community keep Angels’ Albert Pujols grounded

After a Sunday morning filled with hitting, fielding, throwing and base-running drills at Albert Pujols’ baseball camp, dozens of kids gathered around home plate at Orange High for a brief chat and question-and-answer session with the Angels first baseman.

“How do you calm yourself down in pressure situations?” one boy asked the three-time National League most valuable player and likely Hall of Famer. “What was it like to hit your 500th home run?” asked another. “What size bat do you use?” asked another.

Then a lad of about 7 grabbed the microphone and asked, “How much money do you make?”

“A lot,” Pujols said, and the kids, parents and instructors erupted in laughter.

The odds of one of Sunday’s campers garnering a Pujols-like contract are probably one in $240 million. “But you never know,” Pujols said. “You might see the next Albert Pujols, the next Mike Trout, the next Giancarlo Stanton here. At the end of the day, this is what it’s all about, giving back, trying to help these kids.

“Whether it’s here in Southern California, St. Louis, Kansas City, the Dominican Republic, anywhere I go, that’s my goal. I’ve learned that. I didn’t know it early in my career,” he said. “Through the blessings and wisdom God has given me, I’m able to take advantage of that and pass it along. That’s the footprint I want to leave behind.”

No matter how much success he’s had or money he’s made during a distinguished 14-year career, Pujols, 34, seems to have maintained a healthy perspective. His faith, family, commitment to community and — at times, the painful reminders of life’s fragility — keep him grounded.

Pujols and all of baseball were hit hard on Oct. 26 when promising St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Oscar Taveras, 22, one of the top prospects in the game, died with his 18-year-old girlfriend in an automobile accident in the Dominican Republic.

Pujols was still a Cardinals star when St. Louis signed Taveras in 2008. Though Pujols said he didn’t know Taveras that well, he had spoken to him several times and given him some bats.

“It was really sad; it touched me,” Pujols said of Taveras’ death. “You never know the numbers he would have put up, how he would have helped that organization. Whether you’re 22 years old, 40, 60, 80, any time you lose a member of the baseball family, it’s hard.

“Our life is like numbers. You never know when it’s your time. So you want to take advantage of every day, thank God for what you have and for waking up and being alive. Sometimes I’ve taken this game too hard and been too hard on myself, but I’ve learned over the last three or four years to try to lay back and not be that tough on yourself and just enjoy the game a little bit more.”

The 2014 season was far more enjoyable for Pujols than his injury-shortened 2013, when he hobbled through four months before suffering a torn plantar fascia in his left foot in late July and missing the final two months.

Pujols hit .272 with 28 home runs and 105 runs batted in and played strong defense to help the Angels win their first American League West title since 2009. The playoffs ended abruptly for the Angels, though, when they were swept by the Kansas City Royals in the division series.

“It was a good year, but I think it could have been better,” said Pujols, who is entering the fourth year of his 10-year, $240-million deal with the Angels. “The most important thing was getting to the playoffs. I think we have the team to get back there. Hopefully I can have an even better year and help this ballclub get to the next level.”

After undergoing right knee surgery in the winter before 2013 and recovering from his foot injury before 2014, Pujols is looking forward to his first “normal” off-season in three years.

He began working out last Monday, he’ll begin hitting the week before Christmas and he will continue to follow his strength-and-agility program to get his legs in the best possible shape for 2015.

“Being able to push off my right knee and drive the ball the other way — I did that this year a little better than I did in 2013,” Pujols said. “And I’m pretty sure I will be able to cover the plate a little more next season, so you won’t see me [strike out] as much as I did the first couple of years here.”

A healthy lower half allowed Pujols to play in 159 games and make 116 starts last season at first base, where he had what Manager Mike Scioscia deemed a Gold Glove-caliber season. Pujols was a finalist for the award but lost out to the Royals’ Eric Hosmer.

“I was a little disappointed, I’m not going to lie to you,” Pujols said. “I think this was one of my best defensive years. Like I shared with these kids, I take a lot of pride in my defense, I work hard on it and I don’t take that for granted.

“There are different ways to win ballgames,” he said. “Saving that run in the first inning or picking that ball in the dirt in the ninth to save a game is just as important to me as getting a couple of hits, because I want to help the club win. That’s something that I did a lot this year.”

mike.digiovanna@latimes.com

Twitter: @MikeDiGiovanna