Pujols will not play in World Baseball Classic

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) St. Louis slugger Albert Pujols says he will not play for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic because of insurance issues.

Pujols, who hit .357 with 37 home runs and 116 RBIs for the Cardinals, says he regrets not being able to represent his native country in this year's WBC. He played for the Dominican team in 2006.

Pujols says he is 100 percent physically "but the insurance does not want to cover" him to play, leaving the Dominican Republic without one of its biggest stars. He made the comments Monday during a conference call with Dominican baseball officials.

Pujols had elbow surgery in October

The Major League Baseball commissioner's office and the players' association, joint organizers of the WBC, recently compiled a list of major leaguers who had offseason surgery and hadn't yet returned to action - by playing winter baseball, for example.

Organizers told each federation that players on the list would not be eligible for the WBC because the cost of insuring them was too high.

The Mets' Johan Santana of Venezuela, who pulled out of the WBC last week, was one of the players on the list.

Updated February 16, 2009