The Estrellas Orientales of the Dominican Winter League (LIDOM) named Albert Pujols as their president of baseball operations on Friday. The club had announced in December that Pujols would be joining their front office, but did not specify in what role at the time.
After retiring as an active player following the 2022 campaign, Pujols began his managerial career in LIDOM in the 2024-25 winter season, leading the Leones del Escogido to the league title – a moment remembered for a dramatic, Game 7-deciding home run by Rays slugger Junior Caminero in the championship series. He then went on to win the Caribbean Series crown in Mexicali, Mexico with the Leones.
Pujols skippered Team Dominican Republic in last month’s World Baseball Classic and reached the semifinal round, where his club was defeated by the United States, the tournament’s eventual runner-up.
The Estrellas, based in the city of San Pedro de Macorís in the Dominican Republic, have won just one championship since 1968. That title came in 2019, when the club was managed by Fernando Tatis Sr. and included Fernando Tatis Jr. and Robinson Canó on the roster, with José Sirí being named the championship series MVP.
Fourth on the all-time home run list with 703, second in RBIs with 2,218 and in ninth place with 3,384 hits, Pujols – a three-time NL MVP and two-time World Series champion in a 22-year Major League career with the Cardinals, Angels and Dodgers – will be on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time in the fall of 2027. He is currently a special assistant for the Angels.