Appearing on St. Louis sports station WXOS 101.1 FM on Thursday morning, Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols was asked to explain comments made during an interview in the Dominican Republic. In the interview, Pujols suggested he was in no hurry to sign a contract extension with the Cardinals.

“I’m not desperate to sign a contract extension. I still have one year remaining in my contract for 2010 and a club option for 2011. I leave the rest in God’s hands,” Pujols told Dominican radio station CDN 92.5 FM.

 Cardinals GM John Mozeliak said he was “surprised” by Pujols’ stance, given that the Cardinals had repeatedly expressed an interest in opening negotiations with Pujols this winter.

Pujols discussed the situation Thursday on 101.1 ESPN radio with Post-Dispatch columnist Bryan Burwell and Fox Sports Midwest anchor Pat Parris.

Pujols was asked if anything had gotten lost in translation.

“The fans know and the Cardinals know that I want to be a Cardinal for my whole career,” Pujols said. “I love this city. The way that this city has embraced me and my family, I don’t think other cities do that. And when you hear all of the players that come around to this town and say, ‘You guys are lucky that you are playing in St. Louis,’ we have the best fans. I want to be a Cardinal for the rest of my career.

“And what I told those people (in the D.R.) was ‘Listen, why do people keep talking about my contract? I have two years (left) and we don’t have to worry about it.’ You know the Cardinals need to worry about signing Matt Holliday and all the free agents. There’s no rush for me to sign right now, you know? But if they come tomorrow and say ‘Albert, you know, we want to lock you up,’ — hey they know that we’re open to that.

“But I think part of that was (me) putting things in their place and the Cardinals don’t have to rush to sign me right now because we still have two years. But I’d love to finish my career here. And all that got all confused, or whatever, maybe because of the way that I said it. But people know that I want to be a Cardinal for the rest of my life. I’ve said it in the past.”

Pujols also praised the hiring of Mark McGwire as the team’s new hitting instructor, saying that McGwire’s level of preparation and experience will be of benefit to the team’s hitters. 

“A lot of people say you have to have experience,” as a minor-league coach,” Pujols said. “To be a hitting coach … some of the best hitting coaches, look at their lifetime batting averages and they weren’t that great. And they’re some of the best hitting coaches in the game. Part of it is the (playing) experience he has. He played 16 years. His preparation. And to bring that into this organization and to (teach), ‘OK, this is how to prepare.’ He’s going to teach guys how to play the game. He’s going to say to the guys, ‘This is what I have to offer you,’ and hopefully they’ll put it together and hopefully it will work. I’m looking forward to that, knowing he’s going to bring that hitting experience into the organization and hopefully we’ll learn.”

Earlier on the day, on ESPN Radio’s Mike & Mike Show, Pujols had this to say about McGwire:

 “It’s awesome. Having him back in the Cardinal uniform as the hitting coach. We have one of the best coaching staffs in the league. … Pretty much, to teach some of us the experience from his great career. He wasn’t just a home-run hitter. He had a good idea of what he wanted to do at the plate. He taught me so much about concentration, about looking for a pitch, and I needed that as a rookie. I’m looking forward to working with him in spring. I can pick his brain. He can pick my brain. … I’m looking forward to see what he brings to the table with us.”

Pujols also told ESPN that Tony La Russa shouldn’t take the hit for the Cardinals’ demise in the NLDS.

“I think a lot of poeple want to blame him for it, but we are the players, we are the ones who should be blamed,” Pujols said. “We are the ones who have to make our adjustments, we get paid to play. I’m excited to have him back.”

-Bernie