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Albert Pujols leads in the NL in homers and RBIs, and is 10th in batting average.

By John Kruk, ESPN

Albert Pujols has once again started the season on a hot streak, and there are some who believe this could be the year someone finally wins the Triple Crown. If any hitter is able to do it in this day and age, it is Pujols, who leads in the NL in homers (12) and RBIs (33) and is 10th in batting average (.330). He's one of the best hitters in both leagues, can kill the ball seemingly whenever he wants and gets plenty of RBI opportunities in the Cardinals' offense.

I believe he's a more powerful version of Tony Gwynn, because he can hit the ball to all fields, is extremely patient (this season he has 12 home runs and 11 strikeouts) and consistently puts the ball in play. The major difference between the two is that where Gwynn had doubles power, Pujols has the ability to take a mistake and put it in the second deck.

So, he has average covered; if you don't believe me, take a look at the two times in his career that he's already hit over .350. He has protection in the lineup and opposing pitching staffs don't intentionally walk him despite the fact he is the most dangerous hitter that we've seen since Barry Bonds retired. He also has guys in front of him who can get on base and give him numerous RBI opportunities.

What, then, is stopping him from winning the Triple Crown this season? Home runs. He is a great hitter, but he's also one who believes in getting the win. He could easily lead the league in home runs every season, but that would probably mean that his strikeout numbers would increase and his value to his club would decrease. This is a Cardinals team that relies on moving runners over to score runs, and Pujols is a big part of that. His selflessness puts this team in the hunt for the playoffs every season, but also takes him out of the running for the Triple Crown.

His main competition in the home run race is Ryan Braun, who has Prince Fielder protecting him in the lineup, and Adam Dunn, who could fall out of bed and hit 40 home runs, and Ryan Howard, who could accidentally have a three-homer game in his home ballpark. Also, all three of those guys are depended upon to hit bombs and not to hit for a high average. Their clubs don't care if they have more than 125 strikeouts because of their style of play. That obviously precludes them from contending for any batting titles anytime soon, but it gives them a major advantage over Pujols in the home run race.

That won't take away from how great a season we're seeing from Pujols, but it will take him out of the running for one of the most elusive achievements in baseball.

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ON DECK: TUESDAY'S BEST MATCHUPS

Dodgers at Phillies

The Dodgers were an average team away from home with Manny Ramirez, posting an 8-8 record on the road. Now, they head away from L.A. without Manny. After two consecutive poor starts in which he surrendered 15 runs in nine innings, Clayton Kershaw has allowed one run over his past two outings.

Yankees at Blue Jays

The two teams have flopped predicted spots; the Yankees were supposed to be the powerful juggernaut and the Blue Jays were the middle-of-the-pack team. So far, it's been the opposite, with Toronto racing out to a 22-11 start. Roy Halladay takes his 6-1 record out against A.J. Burnett on Tuesday.

Padres at Cubs

For so long this offseason, Jake Peavy looked as if he would pitch at Wrigley Field on a regular basis, but a deal between the Padres and Cubs never happened. Peavy pitches at Wrigley on Tuesday, but for San Diego. It's been a rough go so far for Peavy, who is 2-4 with a 4.27 ERA.

For the rest of Tuesday's schedule, click here.