This is what a role model should be

It's 4:25 p.m. I'm standing in the visiting locker room of the Pittsburgh Pirates. The St. Louis Cardinals are in town for a 3-game stand, while in the midst of an NL Central race with the Chicago Cubs. Not to sound creepy, but I'm watching the best baseball player on this earth do his job. Albert Pujols is sitting at a computer, studying film. He's re-watching previous at-bats of his from the previous serious. He goes over the film, frame by frame, over and over again, studying the smallest parts of his swing in an attempt to make his perfect. I've never seen someone so focused.

He gets up from the chair, and I approach him for an interview. He says, "Not right now, man." Understandable. Pujols is one of the most intense people I've ever met, and he might have a system or something like that. Either way, I'm basically resigned to finding Matt Holliday to get the interview I need. After waiting for five minutes for Holliday to no avail, I feel a pat on my back. I turn to see Albert.

"Are you ready for me?" Absolutely.

Pujols spent some time with me, giving me some great sound bytes, and just an all-around nice guy. But that's not even the reason why Albert Pujols is a grade A class act. Keep reading.

We're in the bottom of the 7th. Game tied 2-2. With runners on first and second, Garrett Jones steps to the plate and rockets a 1-0 pitch foul down the first base line. An older fan attempts to reach over the barricade to grab the foul ball for his son, who has Down syndrome and is celebrating his 21st birthday. Unfortunately for the guy, he missed the ball and landed awkwardly on his neck, leaving him stunned and temporarily unable to move.

Enter Pujols. The second the man took the tumble, Pujols not just went to his aid, but ran. He ran straight to the man's side, had him lay down and made sure he remained still while the team doctors checked the man out. All the while Pujols is talking this guy through what's going on, while also comforting his son. Even Matt Holliday ran across the diamond from over in left field to talk to the man's son for a while. As the fan lay on his back for a good 15 minutes, Pujols never left the guy's side. He even helped to lift the man on the stretcher as he left the field.

Yes, the guy did have a St. Louis Cardinals shirt on, but you have to believe, he would have done that for any fan. And you know that after the game, he took care of that family in any way he could. I mean, regardless of the injury, it was the kid's birthday.

But my point is while everyone else on the field stood as a baseball player, Albert Pujols stood on the field as a man, as a human, helping one person to another. Had Pujols not done what he did, I wouldn't have held it against him. No one else on the field - with the exception of Holliday - did anything. But that's not Pujols. That's not Albert.

It takes a class act to do the right thing in that situation. Scratch that. It takes an Albert Pujols to do the right thing in that situation.