Albert Pujols honors Darryl Kile in cholesterol awareness campaign

Albert Pujols was in the middle of his second MLB season at Wrigley Field and was about to learn some of the worst news of his life.

Pujols St.Louis Cardinals Catcher Joe Girardi was in Chicago to face the NL Central rival Cubs on June 22, 2002, when he announced to the Wrigley Field crowd that their game was canceled due to “a tragedy in the Cardinals family.”

Just before Girardi addressed the crowd, the Cardinals were informed that starting pitcher Darryl Kile had died suddenly at the age of 33.

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“I mean, it was devastating and you start crying, it was a bad experience for us,” Pujols recalled to Fox News Digital about “the first guy who took me under his wing.”

Nearly 24 years after Kile’s death, the pitcher’s influence on Pujols remains strong. Now Pujols is doing his part to return the favor.

The future Hall of Famer joins Cardinals legend Adam Wainwright, Kile’s daughter, and pharmaceutical giant Merck, who teamed up last year to raise awareness about the risk of heart disease and high cholesterol.

“What his father did to me, the impact he had on me during that short time we worked together, was pretty special,” Pujols said in a joint interview with Sierra Kile.

“Great person who unfortunately left this world too soon, but he made this impact and now we’re bringing his story to life and using his story to really educate people about high cholesterol and this disease and prevent people from having heart attacks if you don’t take care of yourself,” Pujols said. “So I’m really happy to be involved. And I’m really happy to have Sierra here.”

Sierra Kile was very excited to have Pujols on her team.

“The first thing he said to me was, ‘The last time I saw you, you were five years old and tiny,'” Kile said, as he reconnected the MLB legend with 703 home runs. “But being a part of this program with Merck, using my father’s story and reaching out to your doctor to help spread awareness about the dangers of bad cholesterol, means a lot to me, and I’m really happy that Albert and so many people are involved in this.”

St. Louis Cardinals stand on the field and watch a tribute video honoring Cardinals pitcher Darryl Kile, who died of heart failure at the age of 33. (Elsa/Getty Images)

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Sierra was only 5 years old when she lost her father, but she always knew she wanted to keep her father’s legacy alive.

“My mom did a really good job of telling me about my dad while she was raising me and my brothers, and I think seeing the players he used to work with, she told me nothing but amazing things about him as a teammate, as a player, and as a guy in general,” Kile said. “I was able to live like him because of the stories I heard from Albert and some of the guys he played with.”

Pujols played 22 MLB seasons and eventually became a mentor to the next generation, namely Mike Trout. Once he became a seasoned veteran, he knew he had to pay it forward, and he knew he had to do the same in retirement.

“I remembered why he took me under his wing, why he wanted to help me, why he wanted to teach me different things, why he wanted to guide me. It’s through moments like this, and mentoring others as I have done for 22 years as a professional, and hopefully, who knows where this story will go when you really make a difference on someone,” Pujols said.

Days after his death, St. A Darryl Kile jersey hung in the St. Louis Cardinals dugout. (Elsa/Getty Images)

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“Here I am, you know, 26 years later, 27 years later, talking about her like it was yesterday. The impact she had on my life is really special. It’s so nice to see Sierra, to see my family, to connect with her, to mention her name and to turn this tragedy into a positive moment.”

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