Report: Pujols to land with Dodgers

FILE - Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols hits a two-run home run against the Houston Astros during the sixth inning of a baseball game in Houston, in this Thursday, April 22, 2021, file photo. Pujols has been designated for assignment by the Los Angeles Angels, abruptly ending the 41-year-old superstar slugger's decade with his second major league team. The Angels announced the move Thursday, May 6, 2021, a day after Pujols wasn't in their lineup for their fourth consecutive loss.  (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)
FILE - Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols hits a two-run home run against the Houston Astros during the sixth inning of a baseball game in Houston, in this Thursday, April 22, 2021, file photo. Pujols has been designated for assignment by the Los Angeles Angels, abruptly ending the 41-year-old superstar slugger's decade with his second major league team. The Angels announced the move Thursday, May 6, 2021, a day after Pujols wasn't in their lineup for their fourth consecutive loss. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

LOS ANGELES -- A person with knowledge of the deal says the Los Angeles Dodgers are signing veteran first baseman Albert Pujols to a major-league deal.

The source spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Saturday because the deal isn't expected to be finalized until Monday. The Los Angeles Times first reported the agreement.

Pujols, 41, left the Los Angeles Angels earlier this month after nearly 10 seasons with the Dodgers' Orange County rivals. The oldest player in the majors batted .198 this season with 5 home runs and 12 RBI for the Angels.

Pujols was in the final season of a 10-year, $240 million contract with the Angels, who didn't win a playoff game during his tenure.

The slugger is making $30 million this season, and the Dodgers will pay him only the pro-rated portion of the major-league minimum salary for the rest of the season, roughly $420,000. The rest will be paid by the Angels.

Pujols is fifth in major-league history with 667 home runs and 13th with 3,253 hits, but he has been a low-impact contributor to the Angels for the past half-decade. The Angels said Pujols requested his departure from Anaheim because he didn't want to be a backup, instead intending to play every day for another team.

Yet there's almost no chance of the three-time NL MVP Pujols playing every day for the defending World Series champion Dodgers, who have veteran Max Muncy as their everyday first baseman along with former NL MVP Cody Bellinger, who has been out with an injury since the first series of the season.

Pujols is also moving back to the National League, where the 10-time All-Star can only help as a designated hitter in interleague road games.

But Muncy can also play other positions in the infield, and the right-handed hitting Pujols could perhaps assuage the Dodgers' relative struggles against left-handed pitching this season. They have .663 OPS against lefties this season, significantly lower than their mark against right-handers.

Pujols will be the fourth former MVP on the Dodgers, joining Bellinger, Mookie Betts and Clayton Kershaw. They also have three former Cy Young Award winners: Kershaw, Trevor Bauer and David Price.

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