No deal as Pujols contract deadline passes

JUPITER, Fla., Feb. 16 (UPI) -- The St. Louis Cardinals and home-run champ Albert Pujols failed to negotiate a contract extension in time for a Wednesday deadline, his agent says.

Talks between the Cards and their standout first baseman wrapped up early Wednesday without a deal, meaning Pujols won't talk about a new contract again until the end of the season.

"While both parties were hopeful that an agreement could be reached, a difference of opinion in determining Albert's value simply could not be resolved," Pujols' agent, Dan Lozano, said in a statement issued to MLB.com.

The Cardinals thus mostly lost their exclusive window to sign a deal with the two-time defending National League home-run leader. They still have a five-day exclusive negotiating window after the conclusion of the 2011 World Series.

Neither General Manager John Mozeliak nor Cardinals Chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. would discuss the negotiations with Pujols during a news conference at the team's Jupiter, Fla., spring training home.

"We felt very good about the offer we made," Mozeliak told the Web site, "and we felt that it recognized his iconic status and it also still allowed us to put a successful club out there."